ABI Research is a global marketing intelligence and research firm specializing in technology industries. And they recently released their predictions for smartphone share distribution and growth through 2018. Echoing last quarter’s record-breaking numbers for Samsung as well as recent reports of Apple cutting back on orders for iPhone parts, ABI Research predicts Apple market share in the smartphone marketplace will peak at 22% this year and remain flat at that figure through 2018.
Their new market forecast predicts an ongoing 2nd place for the Cupertino tech company and a continued domination of the smartphone marketplace by rival Samsung. Containing only 8% of the market as recently as 2010, Samsung snatched more than 30% last year with products like the Samsung Galaxy Note, Samsung Galaxy Note II, Samsung Galaxy S II and currently red-hot Samsung Galaxy S III smartphones.
Senior analyst Michael Morgan made a statement encapsulating the reams of research, predicting that “Apple will be chasing Samsung’s technology, software, and device leadership in 2013” and on into the foreseeable future. 2012 saw the absolute explosion of smartphone display resolution and size, and with phones like the Galaxy Note delivering a 5.0 inch screen and the Galaxy Note II phablet offering a 5.55 inch display, Samsung handsets are now delivering speedy 4G LTE connectivity with a near tablet size screen.
Last year Apple finally did increase the size of their iPhone display from 3.5 to 4.0 inches, but their top competitor has been the Samsung Galaxy S III 4G Android smartphone which delivers a much larger screen at 4.80 inches. No one is predicting the death of Apple iPhones or future Apple devices, but with over 75% of all smartphones currently offering Android operating systems, that is where companies like Samsung have had their successes. More than 90% of Samsung smartphones are powered by Android, and ABI predicted that the entire smartphone landscape will be heavily influenced by how Samsung uses Windows Phone and Android OS platforms.
In what is hardly a shocking prediction considering the global economic climate currently, ABI says that smartphone growth in number of units sold will be driven at the low-cost level. The firm stated that smartphones with price tags lower than $250 will account for nearly 2/3 of all smartphone shipments by 2018. On the heels of this research are rumors that Apple is currently working on a low-cost iPhone for China, though Apple has continued to deny such unconfirmed rumors. ABI also said their research shows that LTE high-speed connectivity will be supported by 50% of all smartphones by the year 2018.
You can purchase the Galaxy Note II at a discounted price tag now starting at $69.99.
