Global smartphone market beefed up by 8% in Q4 2023, but Google Pixels remain in the shadows

After seven consecutive tough quarters for smartphone brands due to continuous drops in shipments, the last quarter of 2023 finally brought the long-awaited rebound with an increase of 8% compared to the shipments of the last quarter of 2022, reaching 320 million units worldwide. However, Google still has a long way to go, as Pixel devices maintain their role as ‘market underdog’.

Canalys’ latest market research leaves some interesting results, such as Apple taking first place in terms of global smartphone shipments of the year (2023) over Samsung for the first time. According to the report, this could be because Samsung has focused more on its mid-to-high-end segment seeking greater profitability, neglecting the low-end segment, and other brands took advantage of that. However, a resurgence is expected for the company following the launch of the Galaxy S24 series and the Galaxy AI suite.

Completing the top 5 smartphone market share for Q4 2023, below Apple (24%) and Samsung (17%) are Xiaomi (13%), TRANSSION (9%) and Vivo (7%). As we can see, the global market share of Google Pixel devices is still so residual that it is grouped under ‘Others’ in the graph. However, this does not take us by surprise.

It’s noteworthy that these market results for Google Pixels were expected since they accumulated several years of disadvantage regarding availability and advertising compared to other big brands. Before, Google’s strategy with these devices was very different and their scope was much more limited. It was only after the launch of the Pixel 6 series that the company began to give more importance to taking market share, but the rest of the OEMs had already established their position.

To try to change this, Google has been betting heavily on marketing in recent years, in addition to expanding the availability of its Pixel devices to more and more markets. The company is using segments such as sports and fashion to try to gain a foothold in the competitive market and be able to aspire to reach the top 5 in the future. But, because of all the advantage they gave their rivals, it will probably take them several years to reach the goal.

Meanwhile, Google tries to provide exclusivity to its devices with unique features that you can only find on them. They have also been the first in the mobile segment to strongly bet on AI as a way to enhance the functionality of their apps and services, achieving a competitive advantage. Currently, only Samsung could catch up with the launch of the Galaxy S24 series and the Galaxy AI suite, while Apple is somewhat behind.

Source