The global smartphone market limped through Q2 2025 with just a 1% year-over-year growth, according to IDC’s latest figures. 
While that might seem underwhelming, given the economic turbulence-from inflation to currency swings and lukewarm demand in China-it’s still a sign the industry isn’t flatlining just yet.
Samsung held tight to its top spot, shipping an estimated 58 million units and claiming a 19.7% global share. The budget-friendly Galaxy A36 and A56 helped drive those numbers, showing Samsung knows where the real mass-market money is: affordable phones with just enough sparkle.
Apple followed with 46.4 million shipments and a 15.7% share. Its emerging market push paid off with double-digit gains, though it hit a speed bump in China with a 1% dip in sales-even while topping the charts during the 618 shopping festival.
Xiaomi landed third with 42.5 million shipments and 14.4% share. That’s almost flat from last year, but enough to stay ahead of Vivo (27.1 million, 9.2%) and Transsion-whose Infinix, Tecno, and itel brands shipped a combined 25.1 million units, earning 8.5% market share.
Interestingly, Transsion, once a breakout star in emerging regions, saw a stall in momentum this quarter, largely due to downgraded chipsets and vague update policies that put off buyers.
Despite the lukewarm growth, the market shows signs of gradual recovery. But the bigger picture? Major brands aren’t in a rush to reinvent the wheel. As long as minimal tweaks keep the sales rolling, there’s little incentive to gamble on radical innovation.
In short: evolution, not revolution. Phones still sell, even when they barely change. Because for every tech geek waiting for a foldable that folds itself, there’s a million regular folks just replacing their old phone from 4 years ago.