"Black Friday" fired the first shot of the traditional Western shopping season war. From Thanksgiving to Christmas, the nearly one-month shopping season has always been relied on by many technology companies. As early as a month or two ago, Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, Nokia, etc. launched the latest products one after another, and traditional PC companies such as HP and Dell, which have gradually retreated to the second line, have also increased orders to suppliers to do well for the shopping season Fully prepared.
But unlike in previous years, for the mobile device field where the pattern has gradually become clear, this year's shopping season battle may be the most fierce battle between the kings of Apple and Samsung, while other companies can only fight for the third position. , Or open up another battlefield.
In addition, this year is also the year when wearable devices are concentrated, and smart watches, smart bracelets and other products are spewing out. However, from the currently published information, the sales of wearable devices are not perfect. Whether it can usher in the first round of panic buying boom since the advent of the shopping season will also be a highlight of this year's shopping season.
Apple Samsung becomes the protagonist of the shopping season war
In the smartphone market, according to the latest data from Gartner, in the third quarter of this year, Samsung sold 80.36 million smartphones and Apple ’s iPhone sales were 30.3 million. The combined market share of the two reached 44.2%. Of Lenovo's mobile phones have a share below 5%. Even more frightening is that the two companies have jointly monopolized the industry's 109% profit share.
In the tablet market, according to the latest data from IDC, Apple ’s iPad shipments reached 14.1 million units in the third quarter of this year, with a market share of 29.6%. Samsung ’s sales reached 9.7 million units, with a market share of 20.4%. Google, Lenovo and other manufacturers Market share is below 8%, the gap is also obvious.
It can be seen from the data that in the entire mobile device market, Samsung and Apple have obvious advantages, and the pattern of duopoly has basically taken shape. If last year's shopping season, Samsung and Apple also tried their best to maintain their dominance, then this year, Samsung and Apple can sit back and relax. As a competitor, other manufacturers can no longer compete with it. Even with the most demanding shopping season, they can only fight for the third position and try to narrow the gap with Samsung and Apple.
Looking at the competition between Apple and Samsung separately, both have their own strengths in the field of smartphones and tablets, and no one can claim to be an absolute "boss" in the field of mobile devices. Therefore, during the entire shopping season, the most "tragic" fight may be between Samsung and Apple.
From the current point of view, the promotional activities launched by Apple and Samsung are also the most violent. Apple ’s preferential strategy this year revolves around gift cards. If consumers buy Apple products on the "Black Friday" day, they will get gift cards worth $ 50-150. In addition, Apple has launched similar preferential activities in Europe, Australia and other places, trying its best to seize markets outside the United States.
At the same time, many online and brick-and-mortar retailers branded Samsung smartphones, tablets, ultra-clear TVs and other almost all products with "promotional labels", with discounts ranging from US $ 50-800.
Of course, we must also see that due to the shopping efforts of Samsung and Apple during the shopping season, which has increased marketing costs, to some extent, it may have an impact on the fourth quarter earnings report. Samsung executives have stated that the company's fourth-quarter profit is likely to fall from the record level in the third quarter.
Avoiding the enemy's edge: Microsoft Sony is fighting the game console
In addition to smartphones and tablets, the game console market will also usher in a fierce battle in the shopping season.
Sony and Microsoft may realize that in the field of mobile devices, they are no longer able to compete with Samsung and Apple, so they have avoided their sharp edges and turned their attention to the game console market that the two giants have not yet entered, and successively launched the latest product PS4 in mid-November. And Xbox one to market.
Although the mobile tide has hit the game console market to a certain extent, from the current point of view, the demand for game consoles is still quite huge. Sony PS4 has just been listed in North America for 24 hours, and sales have reached 1 million. Yesterday evening Beijing time, PS4 officially landed on the European market: in Germany and Britain, the police are required to maintain the order of the sales site; in Italy, the locals described the sale site as "the last time this atmosphere was when the World Cup won the championship." Some analysts predict that the first day of PS4 sales in Europe will also easily break the million mark.
In addition, although Microsoft's Xbox One is one week later than PS4, its sales are also hot. Microsoft said in a statement that this new game console is on sale in 13 countries, with sales reaching 1 million on the first day, setting a new record. Most retail stores have sold out.
With the arrival of the shopping season, a fierce battle in the field of game consoles is on the verge.
Can wearable devices usher in an explosion?
Wearable devices are a "new army" in the consumer electronics market. Especially this year, Samsung, Nike, Adi and other companies have released smart watches, smart bracelets and other products, and Google Glass has also handed over to developers. . For a time, the sound of "wearable devices will subvert smartphones and tablets" is heard all the time.
But from the current point of view, wearable devices will not be on the stage of mainstream electronic products in a short time. Earlier, South Korean media broke the news that Samsung Galaxy Gear smart watches sold only 50,000 units. This shows the overall downturn in the wearable device market. Analyst Gartner simply said that smart watches and other products are unlikely to become the star products of this year's shopping season.
Gartner believes that so far, the design and functionality of wearable devices has been fairly bland, and there are not many applications available. Therefore, wearable devices will still be smartphone accessories. At least until 2017, less than 1% of users will use a combination of wearable devices + tablets to replace the currently widely used smartphones.
In addition, judging from the promotional information displayed, there is not much information about wearable devices. Does this also mean that major companies are also expecting the outbreak of wearable devices in the shopping season and do not have too many expectations?
Shenzhen Hongyian Electronics Co., Ltd. , https://www.hongyiancon.com