Global smartphone shipments reach 291.2m units in Q1 2015

The global smartphone shipments for the first quarter of 2015 reached 291.2-million units, a drop of 9.2% compared with the prior quarter, according to the latest research by TrendForce.

Samsung is dominating the smartphone market with a market share of 27.8 % in the first quarter of 2015, improving from 24.7% in the fourth quarter of 2014. Apple came in at number two on the list with a market share of 19.9%, its share declining from 23.2% from the fourth quarter. The success of Samsung is owed mostly to its flagship, the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge proving to be popular with consumers.

The decline in the number of units in the quarter is due to the weak smartphone market in China. But according to Trendforce, the Chinese market will improve. The company suggests that China’s smartphone market will recover in the second quarter and the shipments of Chinese smartphone brands will reach 122-million units in total, or a 14.8% increase over their first quarter shipments.

The report says that Samsung will ship more than 80-million units in the second quarter, while Apple will ship about 45-million units. In the second quarter of 2015, smartphone global shipments will reach an estimated 311-million units, translating to a quarterly growth of 6.8%.

Samsung’s dominance of the global smartphone market will continue, according to TrendForce, surpassing 20 million units in the second quarter.

Apple still sold over 55-million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus during the first quarter, making it the number one brand in China, where iPhones are still popular.

“The ongoing excitement for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus drove the first quarter shipments of all iPhone products to exceed 55-million units. Apple also set itself firmly as the number one sales brand in China in the first quarter, where the demand for iPhones is especially strong,” TrendForce said.

Other brands also did well, with LG’s first quarter shipments reaching 18-million units, making it climb to the fourth spot in the global smartphone market. Chinese brands only managed to ship 106 million units in the first quarter, posting a 12.7% quarterly decline. TrendForce, suggests that the weak demand of Chinese brands in the first quarter is attributed to the success of iPhone in the first quarter.

In the first quarter of 2015, Lenovo shipped 17.5-million smartphone units. Huawei’s smartphone shipments in the first quarter surpassed 20 million units. OPPO shipped over 8-million units. Xiami’s RedMi and RedMi Note reached 16-million.