The smartphone market is having a rough time due to high prices, down to its lowest levels since 2013, but Apple is somehow doing fine.
A new preliminary report from Counterpoint Research says global smartphone shipments fell 11% in the second quarter of 2026, the worst Q2 since 2013. This was due to the shortage of memory chips due to the AI boom, which has pushed most brands to keep raising prices to compensate.
Apple didn’t raise iPhone prices during the quarter (it will likely happen this fall), and its shipments actually grew 3%. That was enough to push its global share to 20% a record for a second quarter. The iPhone 17 lineup did most of the heavy lifting and ended up as the top-shipped phone in the world.
As for some bad news, iPhone sales dipped in China even with early discounts during the 618 shopping festival. Apple also funnelled its limited memory supply into current-gen iPhones, which meant older models were harder to come by and demand for them softened.
Still, holding the line on pricing while Xiaomi, OPPO and vivo all posted double-digit drops says a lot about how well the premium play is working right now. Samsung took the overall top spot with 24% share, but Apple’s climb is the real story of the quarter.
Apple jacked up prices on numerous products last month including Mac, iPad, Apple TV and more. The iPhone and Apple Watch was spared, but we know a price increasing is coming.
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