Apple has managed to turn the iPhone into an absolute icon of mobile telephony. Despite being high-end devices, Apple smartphones are the best-selling models in the world in 2022, and occupy eight of the top ten places according to a new study from Counterpoint Research.
On that list only two mid-range models from Samsung —the A13 and the A03— manage to sneak into that particular ranking that is dominated by the iPhone 13. There is also a particularity: the 14 Pro Max sold (quite) more than the iPhone 14 or 14 Pro.
These ten models represent, according to Counterpoint, 19% of total smartphone sales globally in 2022: one in five users who bought a mobile last year chose one of these ten models.
The iPhone 13 achieved something spectacular being number one in sales since it was launched in September 2021 until August 2022, when it was replaced by the iPhone 14 Pro Max. When the iPhone 14 family was launched, the price of the iPhone 13 was significantly lowered, which helped it continue to sell very well, especially in countries with developing economies.
Counterpoint Research analysts highlight that for the first time the most expensive variant of the iPhone outsold its lower models: it happened with the iPhone 14 Pro Max, which according to these data was the best seller in September, October and November 2022. Despite its maturity, the iPhone 12 —the oldest on the list— continued to sell very well throughout 2022, especially in the US, Japan, and China.
Only Samsung managed to sneak into that 2022 list with two models (in 2021 it only managed to enter with one model), and curiously These are two models without 5G connectivity. The Galaxy A13 was sold especially in the Caribbean region, in Latin America and in India.
The Galaxy A03, for its part, sold especially well in Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, and is by far the most modest on the list, and in fact it is governed by a Unisoc Soc.
The high-end Android looks with envy at the iPhone
The presence of Samsung with these two phones also gives another overwhelming fact in that ranking: not a single high-end model of Android-based mobile is in that ranking.
Brands like Xiaomi that began their journey with mobiles that were fantastic in terms of features and prices have made the leap to the Apple philosophy: now they are as expensive (or more) than the iPhone. The goal: volume doesn’t matter (so much), profit margin does.
It is precisely in those more ambitious models in where is the true profit marginand Apple has known from the beginning not to enter the fight for the input range and always orient its terminals to those higher ranges.
According to this study, the share of these top ten mobiles will increase compared to the rest in 2023. The reason? The manufacturers are simplifying your catalogs and reducing the number of models available “to minimize cannibalization.”
In Counterpoint they indicated how the number of smartphone models has fallen from more than 4,200 in 2021 to close to 3,600 in 2022. Brands are increasingly targeting higher-end terminals and making a transition of the business model: those that before they went to volume now they seek to obtain the highest profit margin even if they sell fewer units.
Apple continues to be a benchmark in the market, although in terms of the number of units distributed the figures are more distributed. Counterpoint itself public a few weeks ago the evolution of the share of units distributed between 2021 and 2022, and although Apple dominated in several quarters, Samsung also stood out in that section. Meanwhile, Xiaomi has lost some steam while OPPO and Vivo maintain their quotas.
