Apple iPhone X was still on top of the smartphone world in March

Counterpoint Research released its list of the top selling smartphones during March, the latest data available. Remaining on top during the month was the Apple iPhone X, with 3.5% of the market. In second place, with 2.3% of global smartphone sales for the 31 days was the Apple iPhone 8 Plus. And for the first time in history, Xiaomi was the proud producer of the top selling Android handset, which for March was the Redmi 5A and its 1.8% share of sales. The latter narrowly beat out the Oppo A83 mid-range model.

Also in a virtual tie were Samsung's 2018 flagship phones. With 1.6% of the market each, the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ were the 5th and 6th top selling smartphones during March, respectively. Also grabbing 1.6% of sales was the Apple iPhone 7. That model, appropriately the seventh top seller in the month, was followed by its stablemate, the Apple iPhone 8 (1.4% share of sales). The Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro was next, also grabbing 1.4% of the market in the month, followed by the Apple iPhone 6. The golden oldie still managed to capture 1.2% of global smartphone sales in March.

According to Counterpoint, while the iPhone X remained the leader in the "ultra-premium" segment of the market, the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ gave Sammy a shot in the arm in that category. In the premium market ($600 to $800 price level), Samsung doubled its share of sales. Chinese manufacturers such as Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi and Huawei were the winners in the mid and low-end tiers.

The low-end of the smartphone market ($100 to $199 price) picked up thanks to strong performances in that category by Samsung, Huawei sub-brand Honor, and Xiaomi. Those three names made up half the sales in that niche of the global market.

source: Counterpoint