What you need to know

  • Apple's iPhone market share fell by 17% in Europe during the 2Q of 2019.
  • It shipped 6.4 million iPhones during the quarter as oppose to 7.7 million the year before.
  • Regardless, the company is still looking good profit-wise as the iPhone XR was in the top five of best shipping phones, a list dominated by affordable devices.

Apple's iPhone market share took a hit in Europe during the year-on-year Q2. According to new Canalys data, Apple's market share fell 17% as it saw competitors like Samsung and Xiaomi grain ground.

Per the report, Apple shipments fell from 7.7 million in Q2 2018 to 6.4 million this year. Picking up the market share was Samsung, who saw its shipments rise from 15.3 million to 18.3 million.

However, more market share doesn't mean more profit for Samsung. Most of the devices it shipped in Europe were mid-range devices. Of its 18.3 million units shipped, over 12 million were part of its A series which offers an affordable price tag with solid specs for consumers.

Apple has never put a big focus on market share. It is already outnumbered by the number of competitors it faces; this is a losing battle for the iPhone market. When it comes to the area it truly values—profit—Apple is still sitting pretty.

The iPhone XR came in fifth place as the best selling device during the quarter with 1.8 million units shipped. That's impressive considering it was the most expensive of the bunch. The top four consisted of the Galaxy A50, Galaxy A40, Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 and Galaxy A20e, all of which cost between $200 and $300 as oppose to the iPhone XR which costs $750.

Apple now stands in third place in European market share behind Samsung and Huawei, but it's likely not worried about this development at all. In fact, it knew this would come up, which is why introducing the iPhone XR continues to pay dividends nearly a year of it was released.