Apple Returns To Top 5 Smartphone Ranking In China With IPhone 16 As Huawei Battle Ramps Up

Apple is back in the top five smartphone vendors in China with the iPhone 16, as the battle with Huawei becomes intense.
Apple regained the top five vendor ranks for smartphones in China with the launch of the iPhone 16.
Based on International Data Corporation or IDC reports, Apple emerged as the leading contender in the third quarter of this year, gathering a 15.6% market share.

It had a 16.1% share for the same period last year, but this time, it has taken a slight cut to 15.9%. Although this year’s shipment is similar to last year’s, with no difference in growth percentage at all, its return to being the leader in China seems to be some good news for the company.

On the other hand, there is Huawei. With a 15.3% market share, Huawei lies in third place, but year-on-year smartphone shipments in China have rocketed by 42%. This is the growth of a robust comeback of Huawei: it had gone through solid challenges from the U.S. sanctions as it was limited to advanced chips and software from access. Technology at its advanced best gives the Mate 60 the highest contributor toward its resurgence, repositioning itself in the Chinese market.

The battle between Apple and Huawei has continued to blaze hotter than ever since China is one of the critical markets in the geography of the Apple brand. Huawei’s rebound has added more pressure to Apple, mainly since Apple could not position itself within the top five rankings on market share during the second quarter. Huawei has also got another boost with innovative devices like its Mate XT tri-foldable phone and a great return to the market. The report by IDC shows that Huawei has witnessed four consecutive quarters of double-digit growth, and the Mate XT is likely to increase interest in foldable devices.

The iPhone 16 series remains Apple’s primary reliance for some momentum in China. One of the most prominent features of the newly released series is Apple Intelligence, a suite of AI-based features. Apple also said it would deploy Apple Intelligence in the United States this fall but has not said how quickly it will be introduced in China. This was primarily due to the regulatory landscape in the region. Meanwhile, Chinese smartphone brands Huawei, Oppo, and Honor have emphasized their own AI features to attract consumers.

Recent visits and meetings by the CEO of Apple, Tim Cook, in China with the head influential leaders in central and local governments and top executives in tech companies are further powerful moves that will be helpful in strengthening its posture in China. Analysts believe this move might facilitate partnerships to help roll out Apple Intelligence in China to resume its region competition lead.

In this cutthroat battle, Vivo managed to command the top slot in China’s smartphone market during the third quarter. According to IDC, Vivo had an 18.6% market share and demonstrated year-on-year shipment growth of 21.5%. This brought Xiaomi to fourth place; one of its sub-brands, Honor, placed fifth.

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Actually, the Canalys data was different. According to Canalys, the smartphone shipments by Apple in China stood at a year-over-year decline of 6% in Q3 of 2022. This pushed Apple down to fifth place in terms of market share. Conversely, Canalys argued that Huawei took second place after experiencing year-over-year growth of 24% in shipments, which would score its recovery and growing competition against Apple.

It’s only growing more competitive between Apple and Huawei as each company vies to take a big bite out of China’s market. Apple has the iPhone 16 as its golden goose, along with future AI capabilities, while Huawei is back in the race and innovating at a prodigious pace — and not too unkind to the Chinese pocketbook. As these two technology titans continue their fight for a share of the pie, we will see a dramatic change in China’s smartphone dynamics shortly.

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