Canalys analyst Runar Bjørhovde said in a statement, “The rebound is particularly connected to product launches, which drove an increase in sell-in volume. Still, Samsung will have to navigate through a difficult landscape going forward, particularly as entry-level device inventory remains high… Meanwhile, Apple had robust performance in Q1, particularly in the Asia Pacific region. Here, Apple’s sustained investments into offline channels enabled it to attract a burgeoning middle-class, which places high value on the in-store purchasing experience.”
“Canalys expects the smartphone market will gain momentum in the second half of the year as channel inventories reach healthier levels,” Canalys research analyst Lucas Zhong said in a statement.
