iPhone Sales in China Dropped Significantly in Q1 2024

iPhone sales in China declined significantly in the first quarter of 2024 as consumers turned to other premium smartphone brands, according to Counterpoint research.

iphone 15 series store
During the first quarter of the year, China's smartphone market experienced modest year-over-year growth of 1.5%, marking the second consecutive quarter of growth. This uptick in sales is largely attributed to strong sales performance from local manufacturers such as Huawei, which achieved a remarkable 69.7% growth compared to the same period last year. This growth was fueled by the launch of Huawei's Mate 60 series, a smartphone lineup that has significantly bolstered the company's dominance in the Chinese premium segment, typically characterized by devices priced over $600.

In contrast, Apple saw its smartphone sales in China plummet by 19.1% year-over-year in the same quarter. Analysts point to Huawei's resurgence as a direct challenge to Apple as the main reason for this, primarily in the premium segment where the two companies compete head-to-head. Counterpoint anticipates that upcoming ‌iPhone‌ models with new color options and AI features could help to rejuvenate Apple's sales in the Chinese market. Looking ahead, the smartphone market in China is projected to see low single-digit growth throughout 2024.

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Top Rated Comments

Account25476 Avatar
13 months ago
128GB storage, 60Hz display, ~3400mAh battery capacity still in 2024, ridiculous software limitations (e.g., Battery Health revamp only for iPhone 15) you can squeeze costumers for 3-4 years but then they eventually start questioning these specs, people are not stupid.
Score: 51 Votes (Like | Disagree)
d5aqoëp Avatar
13 months ago
1. The iPhone design has largely remained unchanged since iPhone 12
2. No Pro Motion for base iPhone models
3. No direct access to file system. So downloaded files cannot be easily transferred to PC or Mac
4. Tired UI since iOS 7
5. Growing Nationalism in China
6. The display tech in iPhone 15 Pro is clearly inferior to Huawei or S24 Ultra (Reflection thinggy)
7. The dynamic island is inferior to having just a tiny camera hole on other flagships. (Even if face id is superior)
8. Cannot sideload any ipa except EU and that too has some strange requirements like Notarisation
9. Huawei have tighter integration with CCP ecosystem for easy surveillance and WeChat. Apparently Chinese love it.

Why would a Chinese get 2x costly iPhone when $600-$800 flagships have all the features and more...

...and Chinese don't care about Blue Bubbles or Facetime calls.
Score: 46 Votes (Like | Disagree)
omenatarhuri Avatar
13 months ago
Was pretty shocked how good a ~300 dollar Samsung is. Great display fine camera etc. Lots of power.

Went that way for kids phone, staying on iPhone myself.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pugxiwawa Avatar
13 months ago
That’s what happened when you release the same thing over and over and over and over again.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Hastings101 Avatar
13 months ago
Nice to see all that bowing down to China Tim Cook does is working out well for him.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
madmin Avatar
13 months ago

... they eventually start questioning these specs, people are not stupid.
Oh yes they are stupid...

(source: me)
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)