The memory crisis is impacting the smartphone industry with no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Now, it has become common to see some smartphone or the other getting a price hike almost every other day. And while phonemakers have no choice but to charge higher prices as they struggle to get enough RAM and NAND for their devices, consumers seem unwilling to pay these prices. It is estimated that smartphone shipments just reached the lowest level since 2013. At the same time, Samsung has managed to reclaim the No. 1 spot globally.
As per a report from Counterpoint Research, global smartphone shipments fell 11 per cent year-on-year in Q2 of 2026. The Q2 shipments now stand at the lowest level since 13 as per estimates. To give you some context, back in the middle of 2013, we were still using phones like the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S4. While companies like Nokia and Blackberry were still competing in the market, OnePlus or Realme did not even exist.
The report says that the ongoing memory crisis has only gotten worse, pushing up costs and weakening demand for smartphones. As memory suppliers continued to prioritise AI data centre demand over consumer electronics, phonemakers were forced to pass on this increase to consumers with price hikes.
Counterpoint Senior Analyst Shilpi Jain called the memory crisis as the “single biggest drag” on the smartphone industry. She explained, “The entry and mid-tier devices, which account for a majority of the world’s smartphone volumes and are the most exposed to BOM (Bill of Materials) economics, become structurally unfeasible at previous price points.”
According to Jain, some OEMs have raised prices and accepted margin pressure, some have extended the life cycle of older-generation models and used promotions to retain budget-conscious buyers, while others have pulled back on launches and production.
Samsung takes back No. 1 phonemaker crown
Despite the market conditions, Samsung managed to regain the crown of the No. 1 smartphone maker in the world from Apple, with a 24 per cent market share in Q2. The company also recorded the strongest year-on-year growth among the top five global brands – Samsung, Apple, Oppo, Vivo, and Xiaomi.
As per the report, Samsung held up relatively well in India and the Middle East, helped by better product availability, fewer price rises and aggressive summer promotions. The Galaxy S26 series, and the Galaxy S26 Ultra in particular, saw strong demand.
While Apple may have lost the top spot to Samsung in this quarter, the company managed to see a rise in shipments by 3 per cent year-on-year, with a 20 per cent market share. The Cupertino giant is also the only major OEM to avoid a smartphone price hike so far, albeit it has raised prices of other devices.
The iPhone 17 series remained the top-shipped global model, though Apple saw declining shipments overall in China.
On the other hand, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo posted steep declines due to greater exposure to memory-sensitive entry and mid-range segments weighed on volumes.
Why are smartphone shipments slowing down?
Apart from the memory crisis, the report also pointed towards geopolitical tensions in the Middle East that led to a rise in oil prices and shipping costs, impacting the industry as a whole. Consumers, too, are now delaying purchases or deciding to trade to older-generation models instead of buying new phones.
The report states that the outlook for the rest of 2026 remains challenging, with expectations of global smartphone shipments to decline by about 14 per cent for the full year. The memory shortage is also estimated to persist into 2027.
OEMs were likely to prioritise value over volume by trimming low-margin models, adjusting configurations and storage tiers, and relying more on refurbished and previous-generation devices. On the other hand, premiumisation was expected to hold up relatively better through financing, ecosystem loyalty and AI-led retail experiences.
Separately, an Omdia report also pointed to weaker shipments across most major smartphone brands in the quarter, with Samsung and Apple standing out as exceptions.
