The Victorious Return of the iPhone

By Douglas A. McIntyre Published May 30, 9:15AM EDT

Quick Read

The iPhone was the top-selling smartphone in the world in the first quarter.
This was among the few pieces of positive news Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has received recently.

Follow 24/7 Wall St. on Google

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

The Victorious Return of the iPhone — © Stockfoo / iStock Editorial via Getty Images

The Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) iPhone was the top-selling smartphone in the world in the first quarter. It mauled the competition, taking the top four spots on research firm Counterpoint’s list.

There were concerns that the iPhone 16 might not gain traction because it lacked a strong artificial intelligence (AI) component and offered only modest upgrades over the iPhone 15.

The best-selling smartphone in the world during the first quarter was the iPhone 16, followed by the iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 15. Apple’s biggest rival, Samsung, held the fifth, sixth, seventh, and ninth places.

The iPhone’s success is not entirely because of sales in the two largest smartphone markets, which are the United States and China. Counterpoint researchers noted that it performed exceptionally well in the Middle East and Africa, as well as in Japan.

Only one Chinese smartphone made the top ten list. Chinese manufacturers may excel in China, but they struggle in most other markets. Xiaomi’s Redmi 14C 4G ranked eighth on the Counterpoint list. Chinese companies offer a lower price point compared to most phones on the list, which has helped them gain traction in Africa and Latin America.

The Counterpoint data is among the few pieces of positive news Apple has received recently. President Trump stated that he could impose a 25% tariff on iPhone imports. He wants Apple to locate more manufacturing in the United States. Instead, to avoid Chinese tariffs, it plans to relocate a significant portion of this work to India.

Apple has also been criticized for not having strong AI software products. It has delayed the launch of this until 2026. It does not have a Chinese AI partner at all. China is the world’s largest smartphone market, with nearly a billion users.

Friction with Trump has put Tim Cook, who was once a favorite of the administration, on the back burner. While he rides out that storm, he will need to rely on the iPhone brand to carry the company’s revenue load.

Trump Wants iPhones Made in the USA, but Is It Even Possible?

About the Author Douglas A. McIntyre →

Douglas A. McIntyre is the co-founder, chief executive officer and editor in chief of 24/7 Wall St. and 24/7 Tempo. He has held these jobs since 2006.

McIntyre has written thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St. He is an expert on corporate finance, the automotive industry, media companies and international finance. He has edited articles on national demographics, sports, personal income and travel.

His work has been quoted or mentioned in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, NBC News, Time, The New Yorker, HuffPost USA Today, Business Insider, Yahoo, AOL, MarketWatch, The Atlantic, Bloomberg, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, Forbes, The Guardian and many other major publications. McIntyre has been a guest on CNBC, the BBC and television and radio stations across the country.

A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College, McIntyre also was president of The Harvard Advocate. Founded in 1866, the Advocate is the oldest college publication in the United States.

TheStreet.com, Comps.com and Edgar Online are some of the public companies for which McIntyre served on the board of directors. He was a Vicinity Corporation board member when the company was sold to Microsoft in 2002. He served on the audit committees of some of these companies.

McIntyre has been the CEO of FutureSource, a provider of trading terminals and news to commodities and futures traders. He was president of Switchboard, the online phone directory company. He served as chairman and CEO of On2 Technologies, the video compression company that provided video compression software for Adobe’s Flash. Google bought On2 in 2009.