Pixel 6 pushes Google into UK top 5, but Samsung and Apple continue to rule

Google has been criticized for its decision to limit the Pixel series to a handful of markets like the US and Japan. But a new report reveals that this approach is starting to pay off in at least one country: the UK.

The Pixel 6 line pushes Google into the UK's top 5

Francisco Jeronimo of IDC reports that Google become the fifth largest smartphone brand in the UK at the start of 2022, marking the first time that Google’s Pixel line has entered the top 5. The company shipped 163,900 Pixel phones between January and March, enough to secure a 3.3% market share and marking a significant improvement over the 50,900 units sold in the first three months of 2021.

Google is still a relatively small player in the UK, but these results suggest that the Pixel line may have finally found a winning formula. The Pixel 6 duo introduced an all-new design language coupled with a custom processor — Google Tensor. The launch was also backed by a huge marketing campaign, not to mention availability at all four major UK carriers: Vodafone, Three, O2, and EE.

Pixel shipments are likely to decline in the current quarter as the Pixel 6 flagships start to age, but demand should pick up over the summer months once the mid-range Pixel 6a hits the market ahead of the Pixel 7 launch in October.