iPhone 5s Is King Of Smartphones…For Now

Apple has made itself into an iconic brand with throngs of followers all over the world, and that popularity has put the company’s iPhone sales on top of the smartphone marketplace. Not only has Apple‘s iPhone 5s been on top of the sales charts since its launch six months ago according to Forbes, but but the 5c is also holding down second place on a recent report that was released, listing the top 10 selling smartphone brands from around the world.

The report was published by Counterpoint Technology Research, and shows the top 10 selling smartphone brands from February 2014. Apple‘s iPhone 5s and 5c hold the top two spots on Counterpoint’s list, but another company broke into the top 10 for the first time.

“The big surprise is little known Xiaomi as two of its newest devices enter the ranks of the Global top 10 in February,” the report states.

In another report from AppleInsider, the iPhone 5s also sets atop the list of smartphone sales in March of this year by the four top service carriers, including AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile. In this report, Samsung‘s Galaxy S4 was the runner up with AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile, while the new HTC One M8 took second place with carrier Verizon. These numbers were revealed by Canaccord Genuity analyst T. Michael Walkley on Thursday morning. Walkley also believes the iPhone 5s top spot could soon be in jeopardy.

Walkley stated that he believed the HTC One M8 was a serious contender to the iPhone 5s throne, as he believes Android customers have been waiting for the release of the One M8, and that the next reports should show a surge in the sales and popularity of the newest feature-laden Android smartphone to hit the market. Although Walkley believes the One M8 could temporary topple the iPhone’s position at the top, he says that due to Apple‘s customer loyalty, a brand new iPhone 6 release would be all it would take to get another iPhone back on the top of the sales charts.

“We believe Apple will win back meaningful high-end market share during H2/C2014 based on our belief new iPhones with larger screen sizes could create a strong upgrade cycle among Apple’s loyal base,” Walkley wrote in his report.

The Canaccord Genuity report also says that Apple‘s focus on selling early upgrade plans to its customers, rather than the standard two-year contract, could also help boost the iPhone’s growth in the smartphone marketplace. The early upgrade plans helps put Apple’s newest iPhone devices in customer’s hands, even if they already own relatively new technology.

“With our surveys indicating strong customer loyalty for the iPhone, we believe Apple could strongly benefit from a broader adoption of these early upgrade plans,” the report states. “Further, with these plans facilitating annual upgrades to new smartphones, we believe these plans in the coming years could in fact boost iPhone replacement sales and help Apple grow sales in the more saturated and mature developed countries that sell a greater mix of high-end smartphones.”

Even with the stiff competition being provided by the HTC One M8, the iPhone 5s should still maintain a strong position in the smartphone marketplace, and it looks like Apple is still in a position to keep it’s iPhones on top of that list for the foreseeable future.