Unusual Galaxy S25 sales activity could spell trouble for the iPhone

Like its predecessors, the Galaxy S25 sold well during the first two months of its release before its popularity began to taper. Unlike previous S series phones, however, the series rebounded in its seventh month. Samsung insider Ice Universe shared this observation on X, noting how unusual this sales cycle has been. This makes the device a more formidable threat to Apple's iPhone.

Going strong

Samsung's Galaxy S phones, and other Android flagship handsets for that matter, usually see strong initial momentum before interest fizzles. The Galaxy S22, S23, and S24 all exhibited this pattern.

While the Galaxy S25 also made a strong debut and lost steam in its second month, the slump proved temporary. Surprisingly, the lineup has shot back to popularity.

Ice says that this type of mid-cycle recovery is rare for the Galaxy S series and doubts that the interest is organic. Customers typically do not return to a device after initial interest wanes. It's likely that external forces, such as price cuts, carrier promotions, and enterprise demand, converged to revive sales. It's also possible that Samsung orchestrated these shifts.

This bounce-back suggests Samsung wants to extend the flagship sales cycle rather than letting the Galaxy S25 be another quickly forgotten Android release. That mirrors Apple's strategy of positioning the iPhone as a long-term offering.

Of course, if Samsung has to step in to revive sales, the momentum isn't entirely demand-led. That's not enough to disregard the Galaxy S25's comeback, though.

Revving up demand

Boosted trade-in discounts and price cuts often prop up iPhone sales in China, so the Galaxy S25's resurgence shouldn't be dismissed just because incentives were involved. Besides, aggressive discounts have always been offered on the Galaxy S series phones, but they weren't enough to prolong a phone's lifecycle.

This suggests that something larger is at play here. Samsung's strategy of refining its flagships instead of offering buzzworthy features every year may be working, making them a more solid choice than before.

All eyes on the Galaxy S26

The Galaxy S25 could very well be an outlier, and unless the Galaxy S26 follows the same trajectory, it may be too soon to declare that Samsung has permanently strengthened its position against the iPhone.

Also, the Galaxy S26's delayed launch, its alleged higher price, and its rumored incremental nature may be why customers are flocking back to the Galaxy S25 now.