Records from 2018 revealed that Samsung and Apple smartphone sales dropped dramatically. Gartner analysts attributed this to a change in consumer behavior as more smartphone buyers display confidence in Chinese tech.
In a new report by global research and advisory firm Gartner, it was revealed that Samsung shares dropped 19 percent in 2018 while Apple saw share losses of 13.4 percent.
According to The U.K. Register, the Gartner report further found that Chinese tech giants such as Xiaomi, Oppo, and Huawei grabbed the opportunity to take the spotlight as sales from two of the world's most popular smartphone providers dropped significantly.
The report noted that last year, Apple only sold 209,000 million units compared to over 214,000 million in 2017. Samsung, on the other hand, sold more than 295,000 million smartphones in 2018. The figures are still lower by a huge margin since the South Korean provider sold over 321,000 million units in the previous year.
Senior Research Director at Gartner, Anshul Gupta said the drop in Samsung and Apple sales could indicate consumer confidence in Chinese smartphones with the reason that these gadgets are better in value.
"OnePlus, Oppo, Vivo is still 30 percent cheaper compared to Samsung and Apple but have equally good features. [Previously] consumers wanted to show off a Samsung or an Apple. Now they are no longer shy of buying an Oppo or Huawei phone," he explained.
The Cupertino-based iPhone maker has yet to unveil a new strategy in response to the huge sales deficit last year. However, Samsung is said to have "responded well." According to Gupta, the company came up with smarter and improved camera flagships in the J and A series.
Gupta recommended that smartphone mammoths should prove to consumers and critics alike that innovations such as flexible displays are worth a customer's time and money. He added that the latest innovations may not change the flow of sales dips early on. Both Apple and Samsung may have to wait for buyers to be interested in new additions.
Meanwhile, Huawei continues to rise above pressure from the U.S. government. According to Fortune, two American allies have indicated that they are willing to cooperate with the company's 5G network projects despite U.S. accusations of security risks.
Britain's National Cyber Security Center said earlier this week that security threats from Huawei's 5G networks are "manageable." Experts believe the U.K. government's recent move will affect global discussions on whether or not the Shenzhen-based tech firm's 5G programs should be banned.
