Smartphone sales are far from their golden age. After peaking at almost 550 million units distributed in a record quarter at the end of 2017, A period of decline has arrived, reinforced by the pandemic and chronicled because we still greet each other with elbows.: We have been experiencing a decrease in our sales for 27 months.

That dynamic has changed, according to a release by market consultancy Counterpoint Research so far: October became the first month in many months to see a year-over-year increase in smartphone sales, breaking a two-year, three-month streak of declines. .

A green development after 27 months of decline

Last October was also the month with the highest smartphone sales in a month since January 2022. These are preliminary figures from a consulting firm that has access to market forecasts, not manufacturers’ official data; A respite in a market that has been closed for too long.

Some stability at the quarterly level was already anticipated. The third quarter of this year, which was closed with the distribution of nearly 300 million units, was almost the same as the same quarter of the previous year. It wasn’t bad after going downhill for so long.

When this fourth quarter, which started in October, ends, we will see how the end of this year went and whether October can maintain its inertia. There are reasons to think so: the October signal itself and the arrival of the iPhone 15. iPhone always revives the market in the last quarter (e.g. market share went from 16% to 23% last year) and the iPhone 15 represented a much bigger jump than the iPhone 14 represented.

The 14 was a clone of the 13 with two remaining improvements, and the 14 Pro didn’t bring much innovation either. This year we have the 15 with 2x lenses with USB-C and software emulation, as well as the 15 Pro Max with 5x lenses and changes to the case material.

There are reasons to think that The last quarter of 2023 will bring even greater happiness to sales.

Or at least stability after more than two years of storm.

This is a manufacturer-by-manufacturer breakdown of sales for each quarter. There is nothing new under the sun: Samsung continues its strong leadershipbut occasionally (like the launch of the new iPhone) with Apple taking the lead. Xiaomi has settled for third place, but Oppo is increasingly fighting back directly, with Vivo taking fifth place.

This is the percentage distribution according to market share.

Of course, the biggest wish of manufacturers by 2024 is; A certain long-term stability as well as growth. The pandemic reduced demand for devices and caused parts shortages; This became a nightmare for brands, they could not meet the demand and left a huge income behind.

The Middle East and Africa have been the protagonists of this small green boom in the market, tipping the balance towards growth. We also have to take into account China and especially Huawei, which is very weak globally but where sales in the country of origin increased by 37% in the last quarter. If someone wants to thank the person in charge, they can start looking at the Mate 60 Pro.

in Xataka | PC isn’t looking up, but there’s a big winner and an (unexpected) big loser in the latest quarter.

Featured image | Xataka.