China becomes Apple’s fastest growing iPhone market

By Jeffrey Van Camp April 21, 2011

apple-china-store-pudong — Apple

Yesterday, Apple announced its financial figures for the first three months of 2011 (which it reports as Q2 2011). The numbers are quite impressive, with strong growth across the board. One country that we didn’t mention, however, was China. PC World reports that during the call, Apple’s acting CEO Tim Cook said that iPhone sales in “Greater China” grew by nearly 250 percent from the same period (Jan. – March) last year.

In addition, the Cuppurtino company made roughly $5 billion from China in the last six months, about 10 percent of Apple’s revenues. “So we’re extremely happy with how we’re doing in China,” said Cook. The U.S. put up a valiant fight though; iPhone sales grew by 155 percent here in the west.

While earlier versions of the iPhone didn’t quite click with Chinese consumers, the iPhone 4 has been a hit since its debut last September, according to analysts. Thanks to the success of the device, Apple has somewhere around 10 percent of the Chinese smartphone market, up from about 5 percent at the beginning of 2010. Internationally-savvy competitors like Nokia, Samsung, and Motorola continue to dominate sales. China has more than 850 million mobile phone users. Total Chinese smartphone sales are expected to reach 95 million in 2011.

Not bad. It would be interesting to see how Android devices are doing in the Chinese market, as Samsung and Motorola are some of Google’s strongest partners.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Jeffrey Van Camp

Former Digital Trends Contributor

As DT's Deputy Editor, Jeff helps oversee editorial operations at Digital Trends. Previously, he ran the site's…

Mobile

How to fast charge your iPhone

iPhone 12 Mini with charger

While they may not be some of the longest-lasting smartphones on the market, modern iPhones boast more than respectable battery life that should be able to get you through an entire day's use without breaking too much of a sweat. Of course, that assumes a lot of things — including a battery that's still relatively new and in good health, plus a usage pattern that doesn't include all-day streaming or gaming.

If you fall into either (or both) of these categories, then overnight charging isn't going to cut it, and you'll want to get your battery topped up again as quickly as you can so you can get back on the road. Thankfully, every iPhone released in the past six years supports much faster charging, but the downside is that with very few exceptions, Apple has never supplied you with the right adapter to get the best possible charging speeds from your iPhone.

Mobile

These are the only 2 reasons I’m excited for the iPhone 15 Pro

The App Library on the iPhone 14 Pro.

It’s peak summer right now, though fall is just around the corner with back-to-school season on the horizon. With that also comes Apple’s annual iPhone event.

This year, we are definitely expecting the iPhone 15 lineup, as well as Apple Watch Series 9, and maybe a new Apple Watch Ultra. The rumors for the iPhone 15 series have been going strong for months, though there has also been a lot of back-and-forth too, mostly relating to the iPhone 15 Pro models.

Mobile

Apple may face ‘severe’ iPhone 15 shortage over production issue, report says

Hoping to get your hands on an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max when the new phones come out in the fall? Well, you may be in for a wait.

Apple is experiencing production issues caused by a new manufacturing process designed to significantly reduce the size of the bezel around the display, according to a report from The Information on Thursday.