[Mobile China News] On January 16, the latest report released by market research organization IDC showed that Apple will become the world’s No. 1 smartphone seller in 2023. This is the first time in history that Apple has taken the top spot for the year, and it is the first time since 2010 that a company other than Samsung has won the top spot.

　　The top five manufacturers in terms of global smartphone sales in 2023 are Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, OPPO and Transsion. For the whole year of 2023, Apple mobile phone shipments reached 234.6 million units, accounting for 20.1% of the market; Samsung shipped 226.6 million units, with a market share of 19.4%; Xiaomi ranked third in global shipments, with shipments reaching 145.9 million units, accounting for 12.5%. Followed by OPPO and Transsion, ranking fourth and fifth respectively, with shipments and proportions of 103.1 million units, 94.9 million units, 8.8%, and 8.1%.

　　According to the latest report released by market research firm IDC, global smartphone shipments in 2023 will be 1.17 billion units, a year-on-year decrease of 3.2%, setting the lowest shipment volume in 10 years. In terms of manufacturers, Apple is not only the only one among the top three that achieves positive growth every year, but also takes the top spot for the first time in history. IDC said Apple's continued success and resilience can be largely attributed to the growing trend of high-end devices, which now account for more than 20% of the market, driven by aggressive trade-in offers and interest-free financing programs.   

                                                
                                                             Top 5 mobile phone shipments in the fourth quarter of 2023

　　The decline in Samsung's shipments is certainly due to competition from Apple, but also because the entire Android market is diversifying. IDC believes that Huawei has returned and is rapidly making progress in the Chinese market, and brands such as OnePlus, Honor, and Google are launching highly competitive devices at low prices in the high-end market. There's also growing buzz around foldable phones and artificial intelligence capabilities in smartphones. Overall, it's going to be a very interesting time in the smartphone space.