2024 was a huge rebound for smartphone sales, but not for the iPhone

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Nirave Gondhia / Digital Trends

After two years of decline, smartphone sales are projected to rebound strongly in 2024. However, IDC (via Bloomberg) shows this growth does not extend to Apple, which is expected to see only modest year-over-year gains.

The market tracker forecasts that smartphone sales will grow by 6.2% this year, pushing total units sold worldwide to 1.24 billion. In contrast, Apple is anticipated to experience only a 0.4% increase in iPhone sales.

Despite this modest figure, Apple is expected to remain the profit leader, with the average selling price of an iPhone exceeding $1,000. In comparison, Android phones have an average selling price of $295.

Pent-up smartphone demand from the coronavirus and an uptick in sales in regions with lower smartphone penetration are being attributed to the improvement, not the emergence of AI tools. AI, a significant theme for companies like Apple, Samsung, and Google, has yet to impress consumers.

Regarding AI, IDC’s Nabila Popal explains, “More investments are needed to increase consumer awareness and introduce a ‘must have’ feature that will rush consumers to the store and create that super cycle [that] everyone is waiting for.”

IDC

IDC predicts minimal growth in the coming years. This is due to various factors, including consumers keeping their devices longer and a saturated market in developed economies. Additionally, the rise of a robust secondary market for used devices offers a cost-effective alternative for many. Future growth will likely depend on emerging economies and technological advancements, such as foldable phones and 5G connectivity.

It will be interesting to see how Apple iPhone sales evolve now that Apple Intelligence is gradually integrated into newer models. Announced in June, the features of this AI tool are being released in stages. The first phase launched in October with the release of iOS 18.1. Additional features are expected to be available by the end of the year with the public release of iOS 18.2, followed by further updates in future versions of iOS 18 in 2025.

Apple Intelligence is currently limited to the 2023 iPhone 15 Pro and the entire iPhone 16 lineup, which includes the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max. Apple hopes this limitation will drive increased sales from users of older models.

Are you in the market for a new phone? Check out our favorites of the year.