Google has become the fifth largest smartphone brand at the start of 2022 reports IDC. This is for the United Kingdom market and for this year’s first quarter, i.e. January to March. This is also the first time the search giant’s Pixel lineup of smartphones have entered the top five list. 

Google becomes top 5 brand in UK in Q1 2022

Google shipped 1,63,900 Pixel phones during Q1 2022 and secured a 3.3 percent market share. It is a significant improvement during the same period last year when the company sold 50,900 units. Google is widely criticized for limiting the Pixel series to select markets, however, the approach seems to be working since it has entered the top five smartphone brands in the UK. 

Back in Q4 2021, Google’s Pixel series recorded the best sales numbers. This was attributed to the Pixel 6 series with an all-new design and in-house processor. The flagship offerings were available at all four major carriers in the UK i.e. Vodafone, Three, O2, and EE. 

The IDC report adds that Apple led the smartphone market with a 48.4 percent share and 2.4 million shipments. Samsung came second with 1.58 million sales. HMD Global (Nokia) and OPPO bagged the third and fourth spots in the list with 2,05,900 and 2,10,700 units respectively.

It’s anticipated that Pixel shipments will decline in the current quarter as the Pixel 6 series becomes older. But since the mid-range Pixel 6a launched earlier this month, the demand should pick up once it hits the market. 

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