Apple Shipped an Estimated 36.4 Million iPhones Worldwide in Q1 2019, a 30% Year-Over-Year Decline

Apple shipped an estimated 36.4 million iPhones worldwide during the first calendar quarter of 2019, which corresponds to Apple's second fiscal quarter, according to new estimates shared today by IDC.

Apple's worldwide smartphone shipments were down 30.2 percent from 52.2 million iPhones shipped in the first quarter of 2018. The decline in sales led to Apple losing the number two worldwide smartphone vendor spot to Huawei. In Q1 2019, Huawei shipped an estimated 59.1 million smartphones.

idcsmartphoneshipments

Apple had a challenging first quarter as shipments dropped to 36.4 million units representing a staggering 30.2% decline from last year. The iPhone struggled to win over consumers in most major markets as competitors continue to eat away at Apple's market share. Price cuts in China throughout the quarter along with favorable trade-in deals in many markets were still not enough to encourage consumers to upgrade. Combine this with the fact that most competitors will shortly launch 5G phones and new foldable devices, the iPhone could face a difficult remainder of the year. Despite the lackluster quarter, Apple's strong installed base along with its recent agreement with Qualcomm will be viewed as the light at the end of the tunnel heading into 2020 for the Cupertino-based giant.

While Apple was the number three worldwide smartphone vendor and Huawei took the second place spot, Samsung continues to dominate the market with an estimated 71.9 million smartphones shipped during the quarter for 23.1 percent market share.

Apple, meanwhile, had 11.7 percent market share, down from 15.7 percent in the year-ago quarter, while Huawei held 19 percent market share during the quarter. Xiaomi, Vivo, and Oppo trailed after Samsung, Huawei, and Apple.

idcsmartphonemarketshare
Apple was the number two smartphone vendor in Q4 2018 due to stronger holiday quarter sales, but fell behind this quarter. Huawei saw significant growth in China according to earlier numbers from Canalys, a market where Apple is struggling.

"It is becoming increasingly clear that Huawei is laser focused on growing its stature in the world of mobile devices, with smartphones being its lead horse," said Ryan Reith, program vice president with IDC's Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. "The overall smartphone market continues to be challenged in almost all areas, yet Huawei was able to grow shipments by 50%, not only signifying a clear number two in terms of market share but also closing the gap on the market leader Samsung. This new ranking of Samsung, Huawei, and Apple is very likely what we'll see when 2019 is all said and done."

Overall smartphone shipment estimates totaled 310.8 million units in the first quarter of 2019, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of decline. Apple no longer provides a breakdown of unit sales of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, leaving estimates as the only way to get a glimpse of how Apple product sales are faring.

Update: Canalys also released its worldwide iPhone shipment estimates for Q1 2019, presenting a slightly better picture for ‌iPhone‌ sales. Canalys believes Apple shipped 40.2 million iPhones during the quarter, down from 52.2 million in the year-ago quarter.

That marks a decline of 23.2 percent and gives Apple 12.8 percent market share. It still ranks Apple as the number three worldwide vendor, coming in below Samsung and Huawei.

Tag: IDC

Top Rated Comments

BootsWalking Avatar
64 months ago
I knew the sales drop had to be huge considering Apple's equally huge announcement of buying back $75B in shares today. Apple is following in IBM's footsteps - using financial engineering to mask an underlying deterioration in its core business. Time will tell how well their growing services business will be able to pick up the slack.
Score: 56 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jack Burton Avatar
64 months ago
It's because they haven't redefined the mute switch yet
Score: 53 Votes (Like | Disagree)
EBone12355 Avatar
64 months ago
I love Apple. But I didn't like spending over $1k on a new iPhone XS to replace my 6+. People are not wanting to spend that much money on a phone.
Score: 49 Votes (Like | Disagree)
fourthtunz Avatar
64 months ago
I love iPhones but it seems price has played a factor in lower sales
even if smart phone trends are down.
Score: 47 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JPack Avatar
64 months ago
No surprises here. Unless you’re wearing a tinfoil hat and living in the U.S., Huawei has an extremely competitive product line up with 5G to boot.

The 2019 iPhone lineup will regain some market share because they’re finally adopting three rear cameras. But it’s pretty obvious Apple is slowly becoming a follower with regards to smartphone technologies.
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
krell100 Avatar
64 months ago
It's all pretty simple: Apple is too expensive across their entire product line.
Score: 32 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...