South Korean media: China's smartphone shipments fell 3% in the third quarter, only Apple rose!
On November 25, South Korean media "Digital Daily" published an article stating that data released by Counterpoint Research showed that China's smartphone shipments fell by 3.3% in the third quarter of 2025, consumer demand has shrunk, and the impact of government subsidies weakened after the first quarter. However, these subsidy policies have to some extent maintained the upward trend of average selling prices.
According to Counterpoint's market monitoring tracking report, vivo ranked first in the Chinese market in the third quarter with a market share of 17.9%. Although this number slightly decreased from 18.7% in the same period last year, a rich product lineup including S30, X200s, Y300, and Y500 boosted performance. The sales of Huawei Mate 70 and Pura 80 were slightly weak compared to their predecessors, but the Nova 14 series performed well. In addition, Huawei is also facing challenges in the ecosystem during its transition to the HarmonyOS operating system.
Apple was the only major manufacturer to achieve year-on-year growth. Since the launch of the iPhone 17 series, its sales have significantly outperformed its predecessor (iPhone 16). The starting price of the entry-level iPhone 17 remains at 5999 RMB, while storage capacity has been upgraded from 128GB to 256GB, further enhancing its cost-effectiveness. Xiaomi's market share increased slightly, mainly due to the popularity of the Redmi Note 15 and K80 series. Among the Xiaomi 17 series, the 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max with a rear display are particularly notable. OPPO also experienced a recovery, mainly due to the stable sales of Reno 14 and the strong performance of its sub-brand OnePlus.
Counterpoint said: "Apple's pricing strategy is currently putting great pressure on Android brands in the premium market that sell flagship models at similar prices. With the release of multiple flagship models in the fourth quarter, competition is expected to intensify, thereby accelerating overall quarterly sales growth."
At the same time, Honor's sales declined year-on-year, but rebounded from the previous quarter. The X70 series stood out in the entry-level market with its 8300mAh large-capacity battery, fast charging, and durability.
Counterpoint confirmed in its summary and outlook that demand in the Chinese market slowed down in the third quarter of 2025 and predicted that demand in the fourth quarter would rebound, mainly due to the concentrated release of flagship models by Chinese manufacturers and the launch of the iPhone 17 series.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1849762332926985/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.