New Sales Figures Show iPhone 6s Was The Best Selling Smartphone In 2016

IHS Markit today released data in which it compares the sales of 350 different smartphone models throughout last year, and it makes for interesting reading.

According to the figures, the iPhone 6s was the best selling smartphone throughout the twelve month period, beating the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus as well as every Android smartphone on the market, including Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S7.

Of course, not all of this should come as a huge surprise to anyone who is familiar with a calendar. Both the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus were around from January 1st through December 31st, while the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus did not go on sale until almost October.

The fact the older iPhone outsold the newer release makes absolute sense given its nine month sales head start. The same goes for Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge, although to a lesser extent – both went on sale in March of 2016.

Of course, the three months extra sales time is not going to stop people from waxing lyrical about how Apple’s year old devices trounced the competition.

Apple again has demonstrated that its new iPhones integrate enough innovations and new features to drive sales and remain successful in the market. The company is also capable of selling older devices for an extended period of time. For instance, the year-old iPhone 6s and 6s Plus were both among the most-shipped models in 2016… Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and S7 ranked fifth and ninth, respectively. Sales of these two devices have outperformed their immediate predecessors, S6 and S6 Edge.

Of course, it is entirely possible the iPhone 6s would have beaten out all new comers even if they all had the same amount of time on sale, and the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus clearly outsold the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge despite being on sale for a shorter time. To us, that’s a more compelling story than the iPhone 6s sales, but maybe we’re the odd ones out.

You might also like to check out:

You can follow us on Twitter, add us to your circle on Google+ or like our Facebook page to keep yourself updated on all the latest from Microsoft, Google, Apple and the Web.