Xiaomi overtakes Samsung to become China’s top smartphone vendor

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Published 17 Feb 2015

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Local manufacturer Xiaomi has overtaken Samsung to become the top smartphone vendor in China, new data reveals. Thanks to strong year-over-year growth, Xiaomi managed to secure a 12.5 percent market share in Q4 2014, while Samsung’s dropped to just 12.1 percent.

During the same quarter in 2013, Samsung claimed 18.7 percent of the Chinese smartphone market, which means the company’s share has decreased significantly over the past 12 months. Xiaomi’s, on the other hand, grew 5.3 percent.

The news comes just two weeks after Samsung lost its lead in India to Micromax, another local manufacturer. The South Korean company was also recently overtaken by Apple, which became the world’s largest smartphone vendor for the first time in three years.

Given its impressive sales figures and an increasing demand for its products, it’s not too surprising to see Xiaomi overtaking its rivals. During Q3 2014, it became the world’s third-largest smartphone vendor, according to IDC.

Xiaomi’s devices have become more appealing than Samsung’s — and indeed others’ — thanks to their impressive specifications and affordable price tags. Company vice president Hugo Barra revealed last month that it keeps its prices low by maintaining a smaller smartphone portfolio, and by giving its products more time on the market.

The total number of smartphones shipped in China during 2014 was 420.7 million, 107.5 million of which were shipped during the fourth quarter.

[via TechCrunch]