The wait to release the new iPhone is costing Apple some ground in China. Apple’s 19 percent share of smartphone sales in the country was nearly cut in half to 10 percent in the second quarter, according to research firm IDC. At the same time, Apple once again finds itself competing with Samsung as the South Korean firm led the pack of smarphone sellers with 19 percent of the China market.
Apple’s “fall is mostly a result of consumers waiting for the launch of its newest iPhone this fall, writes the Wall Street Journal. The iPhone 5 is widely expected to appear around Sept. 21, according to multiple indications. Although foreign brands remain in charge of the high-end smartphone market in China, more local names are gaining traction.
China’s Lenovo reached No. 2 with 11 percent of the China smartphone market, increasing from between 5% and 8% in the first quarter, according to IDC. Likewise, ZTE Corp ranks in third spot with 10 percent and Huawei is listed in fifth with 9 percent.
At 51 percent of handset sales during the second quarter, smartphones now outnumber feature phones, according to IDC.