Daniel Slotta
Research expert covering Greater China
iPhone - statistics & facts
The year 2007 witnessed a revolution in the mobile phone market, when Apple released the first iPhone, a smartphone with innovative features such as touchscreen interfaces and virtual keyboards. The iPhone radically changed the perception and usage of mobile devices and became a lifestyle product that is difficult to give up, even after its 16 released models. Furthermore, the iPhone is the center of the American tech giant's best product, its ecosystem, where it can seamlessly connect to Apple's PCs, speakers, and TVs.
As technology progresses, smartphone manufacturers need to keep up with shifting consumer demands and strive for innovation. Apple and iPhone will also need to continue doing so to retain their reputation and position in the global consumer electronics and smartphone industries.
iPhone is Apple鈥檚 most successful product
Much of the iPhone鈥檚 success can be attributed to Apple鈥檚 ability to keep the product competitive throughout the years with new releases and updates.鈥iPhone sales jumped from around 40 million units in 2010 to more than 228 million units in 2024. In Apple鈥檚 2024 financial year,鈥iPhone sales brought in revenue鈥痮f over 201 billion U.S. dollars. As sales increased, the iPhone's importance to the company's success increased as well 鈥 the iPhone has become Apple鈥檚 most successful product and shapes Apple鈥檚 business in fundamental ways. However, as other segments and services gained popularity, namely the Apple Watch and the Apple App Store, the鈥iPhone鈥檚 share of the company鈥檚 total revenue鈥痵lightly declined compared to a decade earlier, reaching around half of the overall revenue in the company鈥檚 2024 fiscal year.Clash among consumer electronics titans: Apple vs. Samsung
Back in 2007, Apple鈥檚 iPhone was the primary driver of growth in the smartphone market, pushing competitors to develop new products and operating systems to respond to market demands. Today, the smartphone market includes numerous players from around the globe, with the leading position is mainly disputed between Apple and Samsung. In 2024, for a second time ever, Apple surpassed Samsung in terms of smartphone shipments, occupying just above 19 percent of the global smartphone market share. Similar dynamics shape the global smartphone operating system market. Particularly, iOS by Apple and Android by Google are the most popular operating systems. However, while only iPhones can run on iOS, Android is compatible with many other smartphone brands, such as Google, Samsung, and Xiaomi - a feature that makes Android the clear leader in the smartphone OS market.As technology progresses, smartphone manufacturers need to keep up with shifting consumer demands and strive for innovation. Apple and iPhone will also need to continue doing so to retain their reputation and position in the global consumer electronics and smartphone industries.
