The Apple Effect: 14% of US iPhone Buyers Have Switched from Samsung

Iphone models 2

The battle for customers seems to be a bit less successful for Samsung, as it has managed to lure only 5% of iPhone users during the three months ending May 2016, according to the latest research released by Kantar Wordpanel Comtech.

The iPhone, on the other hand, seems to be more attractive to Samsung users: 14% of Apple purchases came from those switching from the South Korean manufacturer’s products, the Kantar report reads.

However, Samsung was more popular among US smartphone buyers during the aforementioned period, as it accounted for 37% of sales, Apple only 29%. There is strong competition between the flagship models of the two manufacturers, Kantar notes: The Galaxy S7/S7 Edge accounted for 16% of sales, and the iPhone 6s/6s Plus, 14.6%.

The majority of sales have been to customers repurchasing and upgrading within their preferred brand, and Samsung is closing the gap to Apple in terms of brand loyalty: 88% of current Apple users and 86% of current Samsung users intend to stay loyal if they upgrade within the next year.

In the UK, the iPhone 6s and 5s turned out to be the most popular smartphones, followed by the Samsung Galaxy J5 and the iPhone SE.

An interesting highlight of the study is that in both the US and UK markets Apple and Samsung grabbed the top 10 list of most popular smartphones.

In urban China, Apple is competing with Huawei for the top brand slot. As Kantar notes, 42% of iPhone sales were repeat purchasers, while 25% switched from Samsung.

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