사진 확대 At a media briefing on Samsung Electronics’ new Galaxy product in July, officials are introducing the new foldable smartphones Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Flip 7. [Samsung Electronics]

In the second quarter, Galaxy’s market share fell 23% ->31% Apple fell from 56% to 49%. Apple will also respond to the success of Samsung’s foldable phone. iPhone foldable will be released next year

Samsung Electronics, which recently released Galaxy Z Fold and Flip 7, is closely chasing Apple in the U.S. market share. Apple, which lost its leadership to Samsung in the form factor market, is also expected to respond by launching its first foldable phone next year, which is expected to lead to full-fledged form factor competition in the smartphone market.

According to CNBC on the 17th (local time), Samsung Electronics’ smartphone market share in the U.S. recorded 31% in the second quarter, up sharply from 23% in the same period last year. Apple, on the other hand, fell from 56% to 49% during the same period.

Although Galaxy’s share rose primarily due to its strategy to respond to Trump’s tariffs, Samsung’s form factor “comparative advantage” and various product lines contributed to the increase in the share, CNBC analyzed.

In fact, Samsung’s product line has the advantage of being wide in the spectrum from low-cost to high-end. “The Galaxy and Z series lineup ranges from $650 to up to $2,400,” Canalis said. “We can target customers at all price points.”

In particular, CNBC analyzed that Samsung’s recently released Galaxy Z Fold and Flip 7 could repeat Samsung Electronics’ challenge and Apple’s response to the U.S. market hegemony in 2014. In 2014, consumers began to prefer watching large-screen videos, and Samsung immediately responded with a large-screen smartphone, but Apple turned a blind eye to the iPhone 5S model. In the end, Apple responded to market changes belatedly with the iPhone 6, which has grown its screen size in 2014.

At that time, Apple succeeded in maintaining market dominance, but 10 years later, as foldable smartphones settle in the market, Apple will also respond more actively. “Apple is expected to launch a foldable phone as part of the iPhone 18 lineup next year to compete with Samsung’s Z Fold,” said JPMorgan Chase analyst Samick Chatterjee.

Samsung expects to further close the gap with Apple with this Z-fold and flip. According to CNBC, Samsung predicts that the Zfold 7 will have 25% more pre-orders than the previous model, so sales will outpace the previous model.

The rising demand for the best foldable phones is great for Samsung and not so great for Apple. Now, a new report shows Samsung is eating into Apple’s market lead in the U.S. after the iPhone maker saw a rare double-digit dip last quarter. In the second quarter of 2025, Apple’s market share in the U.S. fell from 56% to 49%, while Samsung’s share surged from 23% to 31%, according to data from Canalys.

That means Samsung managed to close the market share gap between it and Apple from 33% a year ago to 18% last quarter. Much of Samsung’s second-quarter improvement hinged on its more affordable Galaxy A series, like the Galaxy A36. That just goes to show that the race for the best cheap phones is heating up alongside rising prices. Samsung’s premium offerings, particularly the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Z Flip 7 that debuted last month, have also gained plenty of traction on social media for their surprising durability and value.

Canalys credits Samsung’s record Q2 growth to its strategy of “smart volume,” a focus on offering a wider range of products at different price levels compared to Apple’s line-up. Samsung’s Galaxy and Z phone lineups start at $650 (for the Galaxy S24 FE) and go up to $2,400 (for the 1TB storage option Galaxy Z Fold 7).

“That is a massive span of devices,” Canalys analyst Runar Bjorhovde told NBC News. “There is an idea that you can target people at every single price point, and you can meet them at every spot.”

All eyes are on Apple’s fall product launch

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Though the overall U.S. smartphone market barely grew during the same period, up to 27.1 million units compared to last year’s 26.7 million, Samsung enjoyed the strongest performance of any phonemaker. The company shipped 8.3 million units in Q2 2025, a 38% increase year over year. Apple, on the other hand, saw shipments fall by 11% to 13.3 million units, down from 14.9 million a year ago.

Apple still holds the crown for most smartphone sales in the U.S., but for the first time in over a decade, its position is beginning to look shaky on its home turf. The last time we saw Samsung seriously challenge Apple’s top spot was back in 2014, when the Korean smartphone manufacturer embraced big-screen phones and phablets while Apple was still dragging its feet.

Consumer preference isn’t the only thing fueling the market share shift, though. As Canalys notes, “Samsung’s performance in Q2 was boosted by frontloading of inventory into the U.S. amid tariff concerns,” one of several strategies smartphone makers used to minimize the impact of Trump’s tariffs.

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If Apple wants to regain its standing in the U.S. market, it’ll have to pull out all the stops at its iPhone 17 event this September. This year promises a big shake-up for the iPhone lineup, with the Plus model expected to be replaced by the super-thin iPhone 17 Air.

The iPhone 17 Air is a direct competitor to the Galaxy S25 Edge, Samsung’s thinnest phone yet, but it may not be enough to change Apple’s fortunes. Counterpoint Research, a research firm that estimates smartphone sales, found Samsung only saw a “slight year-over-year boost” in sales after the S25 Edge was released in May. If consumers are as blasé about the Air as they were about the Edge, Apple’s going to be in trouble.

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U.S. CNBC Report Increases Samsung Electronics’ Share in Q2

사진 확대 Samsung Electronics Galaxy Z Fold 7 [Photo = Yonhap News]

While Samsung Electronics is chasing Apple in the U.S. market with the launch of its new foldable smartphone, it is predicted that Apple will also respond by preparing to launch its first foldable phone next year.

사진 확대

According to market research firm Canalis data cited by CNBC on the 17th (local time), Samsung Electronics’ smartphone market share in the U.S. in the second quarter was 31%, up from the previous year (23%). On the other hand, Apple’s share fell from 56 percent to 49 percent during the same period.

Samsung’s Progress Created by Customs Policy and Product Diversification

The advancement of Samsung Electronics’ smartphones has been significantly influenced by the U.S. administration’s tariff policy, but reflects its ability to provide a range of form factors at different price points compared to its rival Apple, CNBC said.

In particular, as Samsung Electronics released its new foldable smartphones, Galaxy Fold 7 and Flip 7, it analyzed that Samsung Electronics’ challenges and Apple’s response to the U.S. market hegemony in 2014 could be reproduced.

In 2014, consumers began to prefer large screens while watching videos on smartphones, but Apple was passive in increasing the size of smartphone screens to iPhone 5S models while ignoring consumer demands.

On the other hand, Samsung Electronics responded quickly to changes in consumer demand by releasing a large-screen smartphone, and Apple eventually had to respond to changes in the market with the iPhone 6, which expanded its screen size in the fall of 2014. Apple maintained its market share even though it was a late response.

CNBC evaluated that Apple is likely to take a similar response strategy as it did when the iPhone 6 was released in 2014 even at a time when the expensive foldable smartphone market is becoming more and more established.

사진 확대 Samsung Galaxy ‘Fold7 Flip7′ [Photo = Yonhap News]

Foldable smartphones have been frequently pointed out for durability problems at the beginning of their launch, but over time, reliability in durability has accumulated. Samsung’s recently released Galaxy Z Fold 7 is receiving favorable reviews for innovatively reducing thickness and weight while maintaining durability.

Experts predict that Apple will launch its first foldable phone next year, starting with a thinner iPhone scheduled to be released next month, to beat Samsung’s pursuit.

In a report released after Samsung Electronics’ foldable phone announcement late last month, JPMorgan analyst Samick Chatterjee said, “Investors’ attention has already shifted to the launch of new products in the fall of 2026, while the upgrade of the iPhone 17 to be released this fall is expected to be somewhat limited.”

“Apple is expected to introduce a foldable iPhone similar to Samsung Galaxy Z Fold series for the first time in September next year as one of the iPhone 18 series,” he said.

Chatterjee, an analyst, told CNBC, “Apple’s method is to watch and see that the technology is maturing and that there are no major obstacles to the introduction of the technology before moving forward.”

In 2014, Apple and Samsung were duking it out to rule the U.S. smartphone market. Samsung was selling devices with large screens, and iPhone fans were demanding a response.

It took Apple some time, but the company finally released the iPhone 6, breaking with previous iterations and giving consumers a large-screen option. The iPhone won.

But more than a decade later, recent smartphone sales and shipment figures signal that the Apple-Samsung fight has returned. And once again, it’s all about the screen.

In the second quarter, shipments from Samsung surged in the U.S., with its market share rising from 23% to 31% from the prior period, according to data from Canalys. Apple’s market share during the quarter declined to 49% from 56%.

Apple remains on top of the U.S. smartphone market, taking the majority of new smartphone sales in the U.S. It’s often in second place around the world, but the recent slips point to turbulence for Apple for the first time in well over a decade.

That’s one reason investors have sent Apple shares down 7.5% this year, underperforming all of the U.S. megacap tech companies other than Tesla.

Samsung’s stock, meanwhile, is up about 35% in 2025.

Apple reported a 13% increase in year-over-year iPhone sales in its July earnings.

In July, Samsung introduced a pair of innovative new phones that feature foldable screens. One model, the Z Fold 7, can effectively turn into a tablet, while the Z Flip resembles an old-school flip phone with modern smartphone features. They were added to Samsung’s catalog of phones released this spring under its Galaxy brand, including a thin-and-light phone called the Galaxy S25 Edge.

The devices are also getting a lot of traction on social media, particularly around durability tests.

One user posted a livestream that showed him bending the Z Fold 7 over 200,000 times in a row. The video has been clipped and shared widely on social media, with one version of the clip accumulating more than 15 million views on YouTube.

In the past month, Samsung’s premium devices, including the Z Fold 7, were mentioned over 50,000 times on social media, and 83% of those mentions were positive or neutral, according to data from Sprout Social, a social media analytics company.

The market share numbers aren’t just the result of user preferences. Much of the shift in shipment figures in the June quarter, analysts said, can be attributed to tariffs, which are causing “disruption” in the industry as smartphone makers use different strategies to minimize the impact on their business.

But Samsung’s gains also reflect the company’s ability to offer a much wider range of products at different prices compared to Apple. That includes low-end phones, which accounted for much of Samsung’s second-quarter U.S. improvement, as well as high-end devices that cost more than any individual iPhone.

Samsung’s Galaxy and Z phone lineup “stretches from $650 up to $2,400. That is a massive span of devices,” said Canalys analyst Runar Bjorhovde. “There is an idea that you can target people at every single price point, and you can meet them at every spot.”

The iPhone has pretty much looked the same since 2017 — a rectangular piece of glass with a touchscreen on the front, and a few cameras on the back. These days, the company offers a series of four slates ranging from $829 to $1,599. Samsung and others are starting to go beyond the so-called candy bar shape and experimenting with new form factors.

Apple is expected to start doing the same — beginning with a potential launch next month of a slimmer iPhone that will compete with Samsung’s Galaxy Edge.

“Apple is clearly betting that its 5.5mm Air model is going to lift its fortunes as testing suggests a strong desire for the new form factor,” wrote Loop Capital managing director John Donovan in May.

JPMorgan Chase analyst Samik Chatterjee wrote in a report last month that Apple may release a folding phone next year to compete with Samsung’s Z Fold.

“Investor focus has already turned to the 2026 fall launches with Apple expected to launch its first foldable iPhone as part of the iPhone 18 lineup in September 2026,” Chatterjee wrote.

Trying new form factors offers Apple the opportunity to sell devices at higher prices, according to Bjorhovde.

Apple’s most expensive phone, the iPhone 16 Pro Max, currently starts at $1,199 for 256GB of storage and can go up to $1,599 for a version with 1TB of storage. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, which was announced last week, starts at $1,999 for the 256GB version and tops out at $2,419 for the 1TB version.

Chatterjee said he thinks Apple’s version of a folding phone could start at $1,999.

Folding phones finally mature

Samsung’s first folding phone was released in 2019, but got off to a rocky start. The initial launch was delayed after reviewers — including CNBC — discovered that the early devices would break along their folding crease.

But Samsung says this time is different, and that folding phones are finally ready to go mainstream, especially with respect to durability.

“There really are no longer trade-offs towards owning a foldable device,” said Drew Blackard, vice president of mobile product management at Samsung Electronics America.

The South Korean company doesn’t provide sales numbers, but Blackard said the Galaxy Z Fold 7, the latest version, had 25% more preorders than any previous Samsung folding phone and that sales are outpacing the device’s predecessor by nearly 50%.

“Samsung with the foldable is able to actually optimize for innovation,” said Bjorhovde. “Try to be ahead, show that something is different, and there’s a certain halo effect from that.”

According to Counterpoint Research, a firm that estimates smartphone sales to customers, Samsung’s sell-through increased 16% during the June quarter, thanks to demand for high-end devices, including a “slight boost” from the slim S25 Edge.

The rise of artificial intelligence is also heralding new form factors for consumer electronics that could one day replace the iPhone.

OpenAI in May acquired the startup of former Apple design guru Jony Ive for $6.5 billion. The AI startup plans to develop the next generation of hardware, and other AI startups have released pins, pendants and glasses that rely on users’ voice to control the devices.

Samsung devices, as well as other Android phones, get access to Google’s Gemini, which is widely considered to be one of the best AI models alongside OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Gemini has several features that users can’t get with Siri and Apple Intelligence.

Blackard said folding phones, with their larger displays, are well suited for AI. Google’s circle-to-search feature, which allows a user to simply circle something on the screen that they’d like to learn more about, is an example, Blackard said.

On a Samsung folding phone, he said, users can still see the original screen with the content they circled, as well as another screen with supplementary information.

“It’s much more productive being able to go back and forth,” Blackard said.

Investors have worried that Apple’s AI delays, including its next-generation Siri that’s now scheduled to come out next year, could start hurting sales. But many analysts say that Apple’s brand loyalty and lock-in will give it a period of years before iPhone customers start defecting for competitors.

Chatterjee told CNBC that Apple’s strategy with devices is to wait until a technology is ready for the mainstream before embracing it. That time may be now for foldable devices.

Apple has “never been about trying to be the first to market,” Chatterjee said. “It’s about being watchful, seeing a technology mature, knowing that there are no big roadblocks to that technology adoption, and then moving ahead.”

The fierce rivalry between Apple and Samsung is back. And, this time, the battlefield isn’t the app store or camera specs—it’s the screen itself. For years, the traditional “slab” smartphone ruled the market, but recent trends show that Galaxy foldable phones are starting to change the game. The success of these devices led to a growth in Samsung’s phone market share in the US.

Samsung gains US market share for Q2 2025, driven by foldable phone sales

New data reveals a notable shift in the US smartphone market. In the second quarter of this year (Q2 2025), Samsung’s market share rose from 23% to 31%, while Apple’s dropped from 56% to 49%. This isn’t a coincidence. Samsung recently launched new foldable phones, like the Galaxy Z Fold 7, which turns into a small tablet, and the Z Flip 7, which offers a nostalgic flip-phone design. These innovative devices are making a splash, gaining momentum and positive social media buzz for their improved durability. In fact, one user’s video of him bending a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 over 200,000 times went viral. Things like these are helping to change the public’s perception of foldable phones.

Samsung has been a trailblazer in this space, and it’s paying off. The company’s foldable phones have become a highly profitable venture. Currently, they account for a significant portion of its high-end revenue despite being a smaller percentage of its overall sales. Beyond their improved designs, these devices also give Samsung a competitive edge with new AI features. The larger screen of a foldable is ideal for tools like Google’s circle-to-search and for multitasking.

Apple working on its own foldable iPhone

But don’t count Apple out just yet. True to its strategy, Apple has a history of waiting for a new technology to mature before entering a market. This “late-mover advantage” allows the company to refine a concept and deliver a polished product from the beginning. As one analyst noted, Apple’s approach is to be “watchful, seeing a mature technology, knowing that there are no big roadblocks… and then moving ahead.”

Analysts believe Apple is preparing to make its move. There’s a rumored foldable iPhone expected to launch as early as 2026. This device, likely to be called the “iPhone Fold,” aims to be the most expensive phone ever. It will directly compete with Samsung’s top-tier models in this section.

The battle is just beginning. The foldable market is growing rapidly, and both companies are in a race to define the future of what a smartphone looks like. For years, the classic rectangular design dominated. However, Samsung’s push and Apple’s upcoming entry could finally make the foldable phone a mainstream reality.