Barcode Enabled Device Shipments Reached 317m in Q3 2014

This interesting press release from Juniper of course pertains to smartphones.  But at www.barcode.com - our concern is with bar codes - and since all (or most) of these smart phones can take a picture and decode a bar code or QR code, we are very pleased to see the growth!    Since the number doesn't seem to include tablets, the overall number of bar code reading devices must be even greater!   Which begs the question---  when will someone have a marketing campaign that reaches a Billion scans? 

 

Global Smartphone Shipments Reached 317m in Q3 2014, as Lenovo Becomes World’s Third-largest Smartphone Vendor

  • Samsung shipped an estimated 78.6m smartphones; maintaining a 25% market share 
  • Apple posts an increase on their record Q2 with strong iPhone 6 sales, with 39.3m iPhones shipped
  • Lenovo completes acquisition of Motorola Mobility, to become the third largest smartphone maker

Hampshire, UK – 30th October 2014: Leading mobile analyst firm Juniper Research estimates that the number of smartphone shipments reached 316.6m in Q3 2014, representing 13.1% y-o-y growth and 5.5% q-o-q growth.

The biggest winners this quarter are those capitalising on expanding Asian markets, such as Chinese ODM Xiaomi. The firm sold 19m devices in Q3, a 25.8% increase in sales on last quarter.

Combined Lenovo-Motorola shipments are estimated to be in excess of 23 million devices this quarter, with Motorola on-track to return to profitability in Lenovo’s target 4 to 6 quarters. Lenovo is now well-positioned to expand into India and other Southeast Asian markets, where the Moto X and Moto G have a large consumer base, as well as a positive brand presence in the US.

Apple experienced strong growth following the iPhone 6 launch, posting its highest ever Q3 results, representing a 16.2% y-o-y increase. This is expected to grow further in the coming months as large numbers of US consumers upgrade to the latest iPhone iteration.

Conversely, Samsung experienced an estimated 8% y-o-y fall in shipments, part of a wider malaise for the vendor which also saw a 49% drop in net profits.

The Not-So-Squeezed Middle

We are seeing continued strong gains for medium-sized vendors, generally reaching out from Asia to more international markets.  Despite its share of shipments declining by 1.6%, Huawei still posted a 26% y-o-y increase in shipment volumes, with a larger increase in revenues thanks to their high-end devices such as the Ascend range shipping in increasing numbers.  

LG shipped 16.8m units, a 40% y-o-y sales increase, expanding its market share to 5.5%.  Microsoft posted a q-o-q increase in Lumia device shipments, a 16.3% rise to 9.3m devices.   BlackBerry’s return to device profitability through cost-cutting masks a slight q-o-q drop in sales, of just over 2 million devices.

Juniper Research provides research and analytical services to the global hi-tech communications sector, providing consultancy, analyst reports and industry commentary.