What you need to know
- Results from Canalys show that four of the best selling Android phones in 2019 were from Samsung.
- The number one selling Android smartphone of 2019 was the Samsung Galaxy A10.
- The top three smartphone manufacturers in 2019 were Samsung, Huawei, and Apple.
According to research firm Canalys, Samsung sold four of the top 10 smartphones in 2019. However, you might be surprised by which phones made the list. For example, the Note series was not present in the top 10 list at all, and the Galaxy S10+ just barely made the cut coming in at tenth place.
Instead, Samsung saw the most movement with its mid-range smartphones, with the Galaxy A10 being the number one Android phone of 2019. Overall, it still came in third place globally, with Apple's iPhone XR and iPhone 11 taking the top two spots.
Samsung also rounded out the top five with the Galaxy A50 and A20 taking fourth and fifth place. Despite the stagnant growth of the mobile market, Canalys shows there is still demand for smartphones. However, the mid-range segment is becoming the most coveted, especially with the majority of growth coming from emerging markets. In 2019 alone, India saw a growth of 7%, making it the fastest-growing smartphone market in the world.
When it comes to overall rankings, in spite of Apple having five phones in the top 10, Samsung still managed to come in first, shipping 298.1 million units in 2019. Huawei came in second with 240.6 million units, and Apple trailed in third place with 198.1 million units overall.
2019 was supposed to be the year Huawei challenged Samsung for the top spot, says Canalys analyst Mo Jia. Unfortunately for Huawei, it was held back last year after being placed on the U.S. Entity List.
2018 saw Huawei take huge chunks of Samsung's market share. And 2019 was meant to be the year Huawei challenged Samsung for the #1 spot. Samsung knew this and was ready for all-out war. It drastically increased its portfolio, and slashed operating margin. But the battle never came, as Huawei's placement on the US Entity List in May stifled it overseas.
Even though the U.S. ban may have slowed Huawei's growth, it still could not be contained. The Chinese tech giant still grew in 2019 and stays within striking distance of Samsung. Could 2020 be the year Samsung finally gets knocked out of the top spot? We'll have to wait and see.
