Xiaomi dethrones Samsung to become the world’s largest smartphone brand

Source: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central

Xiaomi is having a great 2021; it overtook Apple to become the world’s second-largest smartphone brand, and it overtook Samsung in Europe to take the lead in the region in the second quarter of 2021.

According to the latest monthly projections from Counterpoint Research, Xiaomi has dethroned Samsung to become the world’s largest smartphone brand. The data is for June 2021, with Counterpoint noting that Xiaomi’s monthly sales increased by 26%, allowing it to overtake Samsung in terms of monthly smartphone sales volumes (direct selling).

Counterpoint data puts Xiaomi’s global market share at 17.1%, Samsung’s at 15.7%. It’s not surprising ; Xiaomi has grown steadily over the past 18 months, with the Chinese manufacturer’s Redmi series generating a large chunk of its global sales. With the Redmi Note 10 Pro becoming the budget phone to beat and the Mi 11 Ultra on par with the best Android phones, Xiaomi has beefed up its portfolio in 2021.

Company research director Tarun Pathak notes that Xiaomi’s push was in part due to the easing of pandemic restrictions. Samsung’s manufacturing issues – where its factory in Vietnam was closed due to COVID-19 – also ended up helping Xiaomi:

Since the onset of Huawei’s decline, Xiaomi has made constant and aggressive efforts to fill the void created by this decline.

The OEM has grown in the historical markets of Huawei and HONOR such as China, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In June, Xiaomi was further helped by the recovery of China, Europe and India and the decline of Samsung due to supply constraints.

Momentum should return to Samsung in the coming months; the brand is expected to present the Galaxy Z Fold 3 on August 11 and launch new Galaxy A series models in the coming months. But with Xiaomi gaining more and more ground at the behest of Samsung, it is clear that the South Korean manufacturer must rethink its strategy if it is to retain its crown.