Apple is one of the biggest smartphone manufacturers, but they might also be the first domino to fall in an industry that is starting to experience some losses. Being a truly revolutionary company, with the release of the iPhone that changed the smartphone industry, Apple might also be the first one to be heading head first into a downfall spiral with its latest smartphone releases.
Noting the Market Patterns
In 2018, both Samsung and Apple, two of the biggest smartphone manufacturers in the world, noted in their quarterly calls that they haven’t met their market sales expectations. Of course, while this is not exactly crushing news for companies of their size, it does signify for a broader market change.
As smartphones are unable to offer a much different customer experience year to year, more and more people are starting to hold on to their devices for more than two years. In fact, it is expected that the average switch time for a smartphone enthusiast will soon shift to three years.
Both Apple and Samsung were also quick to respond by raising the prices of their flagships by a big enough margin to meet their quarterly calls. However, this doesn’t seem to have been enough to continue marking new records.
A More Saturated Market
The second reason why in 2018, both Apple and Samsung didn’t note their expected sales is the fact that the market is now more heavily saturated than ever. Today, there are far more options that can rub shoulders with the best of flagships at an affordable rate than in previous years. This means that people opt in to purchase more affordable smartphones that would do them the same justice that flagship would.
Of course, lower sales doesn’t mean that Apple won’t be able to cope. Plus, with rumored folded iPhone on the horizon, chances are, sales will bounce back up again. However, it is also worthy to note that for the first time in a long while, Apple didn’t announce their sales numbers in their quarterly call in 2019. While speculative, it does go to showcase that they might not be as proud with what the latest iPhone XR and iPhone XS devices ended up doing in terms of sales.
Ultimately, the smartphone craze is here to stay and smartphones have more than became an integral part of the daily lives of people. The question is, what would be the next big trend that shakes up the market? We think it’s the fold.
