iPhone X Remained World's Most Popular Smartphone Last Quarter Despite Concerns About Poor Sales

iPhone X was the world's most popular smartphone for the second consecutive quarter, according to research firm Strategy Analytics.

iphone x silver
Strategy Analytics estimates that iPhone X shipments totaled 16 million units in the first three months of 2018, making it the best-selling smartphone model during that period, as it was during the final three months of 2017.

"For the second quarter running, the iPhone X remains the world's most popular smartphone model overall, due to a blend of good design, sophisticated camera, extensive apps, and widespread retail presence for the device," said Juha Winter, a senior analyst at Strategy Analytics.

strategy analytics smartphones q1 2018

Source: Strategy Analytics

The findings contradict a flurry of reports that variously referred to the iPhone X as a failure, disappointment, and flop. Multiple publications said the iPhone X did not live up to the hype due to poor or dull sales.

Much of the doom and gloom centered around Apple suppliers like AMS and TSMC warning about weaker smartphone demand. Apple CEO Tim Cook has dismissed those kind of reports in the past, noting that the company's supply chain is very complex, and that conclusions shouldn't be drawn from singular data points.

Cook in 2013:

Even if a particular data point were factual, it would be impossible to interpret that data point as to what it meant to our business. The supply chain is very complex and we have multiple sources for things. Yields can vary, supplier performance can vary. There is an inordinate long list of things that can make any single data point not a great proxy for what is going on.

In reality, Apple accounted for the top four best-selling smartphones worldwide last quarter. iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus were the second and third most popular, with an estimated 12.5 million and 8.3 million shipments respectively, while the iPhone 7 took fourth place with around 5.6 million shipments.

The research lines up with Cook's recent revelation that "customers chose iPhone X more than any other iPhone each week in the March quarter, just as they did following its launch in the December quarter." He added that the iPhone X is a "Super Bowl winner," even if "you want them to win with a few more points."

Apple on Tuesday reported that it sold 52.2 million iPhones last quarter, but it doesn't break out the sales on a model-by-model basis. However, the average selling price of an iPhone was $728 in the quarter, up from $655 in the year-ago quarter, suggesting the higher-priced iPhone X did sell relatively well.

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi's budget Redmi 5A was the sole Android smartphone to crack the top five on the best-selling list, with an estimated 5.4 million shipments last quarter. Samsung's new Galaxy S9 Plus, launched in the final month of the quarter, ranked sixth with an estimated 5.3 million shipments.

iPhone X may not have lived up to the hype of some overblown Wall Street expectations, but in the end, the device was a key contributor to Apple's record-breaking revenue in the first half of its 2018 fiscal year.

Related Forum: iPhone

Top Rated Comments

Swampthing Avatar
77 months ago
Bestselling phone doesn't necessarily equate to best phone. There is an element of herd mentality.
There’s also a herd mentality of a certain group of people who think it’s “cooler” to hate the thing that is most popular, regardless of quality.

Keep that in mind too.
Score: 39 Votes (Like | Disagree)
djcerla Avatar
77 months ago
Bestselling phone doesn't necessarily equate to best phone. There is an element of herd mentality.
The satisfaction rate for the X is something never seen before ('https://www.macrumors.com/2018/04/23/iphone-x-siri-survey-creative-strategies/') with a stunning 85% of "very satisfied" answers, so I guess for once the best phone is the best selling one.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
citysnaps Avatar
77 months ago
Bestselling phone doesn't necessarily equate to best phone. There is an element of herd mentality.
Sure it does. People vote with their wallets after carefully considering the value proposition and looking at other alternatives. Especially for a premium-priced device. You might want to consider not projecting your personal views and feelings, and how you make purchase decisions, onto millions of others.

The market has voted.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NoNothing Avatar
77 months ago
Queue the doubters and people calling Tim a fibber. Simple because of some no nothing talking analyst heads got it wrong.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
djcerla Avatar
77 months ago
Here's a hot serving of delicious crow for many, many MR forum members.

In related news, AAPL is hitting a new all time high today.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
A MacBook lover Avatar
77 months ago
The satisfaction rate for the X is something never seen before ('https://www.macrumors.com/2018/04/23/iphone-x-siri-survey-creative-strategies/') with a stunning 85% of "very satisfied" answers, so I guess for once the best phone is the best selling one.
Make a great product, it will sell millions. Who knew.


My X is my favorite iPhone ever
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Camera Lozenge 2 Perspective Gray

Five Key Upgrades Coming to iPhone 16

Friday March 15, 2024 1:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone is Apple's top-selling product, and it gets an update every year. In 2024, we're expecting the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lineup, with an arguably more interesting feature set than we got with the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Capture Button All four iPhone 16 models are set to get a whole new button, which will be...
When To Expect New iPads Feature 1

Apple to Announce New iPads on March 26, Rumors Claim

Monday March 18, 2024 4:02 am PDT by
Apple is widely expected to release new iPad Air and OLED iPad Pro models in the next few weeks. According to new rumors coming out of Asia, the company will announce its new iPads on Tuesday, March 26. Chinese leaker Instant Digital on Weibo this morning 日发布%23">claimed that the date will see some sort of announcement from Apple related to new iPads, but stopped short of calling it an...
airpods 3 orange

Two New AirPods 4 Models Expected to Launch in September or October

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:56 am PDT by
Apple suppliers will begin production of two new fourth-generation AirPods models in May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Based on this production timeframe, he expects the headphones to be released in September or October. Gurman expects both fourth-generation AirPods models to feature a new design with better fit, improved sound quality, and an updated charging case with a USB-C...
iphone se 4 modified flag edges

iPhone SE 4 Expected to Depreciate Heavily

Tuesday March 12, 2024 9:04 am PDT by
Resale value trends suggest the iPhone SE 4 may not hold its value as well as Apple's flagship models, according to SellCell. According to the report, Apple's iPhone SE models have historically depreciated much more rapidly than the company's more premium offerings. The third-generation iPhone SE, which launched in March 2022, experienced a significant drop in resale value, losing 42.6%...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

iOS 17.4.1 Update for iPhone is Imminent

Monday March 18, 2024 5:27 am PDT by
iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 should be released within the next few days, with a build number of 21E235, according to a source with a proven track record. MacRumors previously reported that Apple was internally testing iOS 17.4.1. As a minor update for the iPhone, it will likely address software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. It is unclear if the update will include any other changes. ...
M3 iPad Feature 3

New iPads Likely to Begin Shipping in April

Monday March 18, 2024 9:52 am PDT by
Apple's new iPad Pro models with OLED displays will likely begin shipping to customers in April, according to information shared today by Ross Young, CEO of display industry research firm Display Supply Chain Consultants. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman also said the new iPad Pro models might not ship until "deeper" into April in his Power On newsletter on Sunday:I've repeatedly said that new...
iOS 17 Passkey With Apple ACCOUNT Feature

'Apple ID' Expected to Change to 'Apple Account' Starting With iOS 18

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:13 am PDT by
MacRumors was first to report that Apple was planning to rebrand "Apple ID" to "Apple Account" across its software platforms and websites like iCloud.com as early as this year, and now Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has corroborated this change. A mockup of the new Apple Account branding In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the new "Apple Account" branding will start to be used later this...