Samsung loses smartphone market share to Apple in the US and to Xiaomi in China

Both Apple and Samsung increased their smartphone market share in the US in the fourth quarter of 2013 - according to a report published by NPD Group. However, the gap between Apple and Samsung widened compared to the same period of 2012.

42% of all smartphone users in the US had an iPhone in Q4 2013, while 26% owned a Samsung handset. In the same quarter of 2012, 35% of users had Apple smartphones, and 22% were loyal to Samsung. In conclusion, Apple’s market share grew by 7%, while Samsung gained only 4%. It’s probably safe to assume that the launch of iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C (both available since September) helped Apple a lot in the battle with Samsung.

Unlike Apple and Samsung, most other smartphone makers lost market share in the US in Q4 2013. Motorola, LG, HTC and BlackBerry had less than 10% of the market each, with the Canadian company once known as RIM being at the bottom.

According to Kantar Worldpanel, Samsung’s smartphone market share is also dwindling in China. Reportedly, Xiaomi dethroned Samsung in December 2013 as the most popular smartphone brand in China, helped by its affordable, yet well-equipped devices that are produced locally.

Naturally, Samsung is getting ready to retaliate with its Galaxy S5 flagship, which might be released globally in April. But we’ll probably have to wait until the third quarter of the year before seeing how the S5 fared.

sources: NPD Group, Kantar via TechCrunch