Mobile analyst firm Juniper Research estimates that the number of smartphone shipments reached 338 million in Q2 2015, representing a year-on-year growth of 16 percent.
Findings suggest that the global smartphone market continued to mature this quarter, and the gap between winners and losers grew larger.
While the launch of the P8 helped Huawei to nearly 50 percent y-o-y growth, Xiaomi, its nearest rival, shipped 20.5 million, representing an increase of a third compared to this time last year.
Juniper notes that the key difference between Huawei and Xiaomi is that Huawei is currently making an effort to expand beyond Asia. Xiaomi is not, leaving it vulnerable to the slowing of the Chinese market, which is also affecting ZTE.
Meanwhile, research claims that Samsung shipments have continued to decline, although the company reported a more profitable product mix this quarter.
“The launch for the S6 and S6 Edge, expected to ship between 60 and 70 million by the end of 2015, was blunted by reports of delays in components,” the report states.
“As a result, the company has not been able to ship the volumes it anticipated and will be ‘adjusting the price’ of the devices to boost sales ahead of new high-end model launches expected in Q3.”
Staying with the big boys, Juniper claims that Apple’s record-breaking streak with the iPhone continues, with 47.5 million unit sales fuelled by growth in China, with y‑o-y revenues for the region increasing 112 percent to over $13 billion.
In addition, LG posted 14.1 million shipments, representing a y-o-y decline of just under 3 percent while Microsoft continues to steadily increase shipments in the lead up to Windows 10 for phones, shipping 8.4 million devices, a 12 percent increase over last year.
Also, BlackBerry’s decline continued, with shipments just above the one million mark as the release schedule is slashed from four phones a year to one or two.
