The Galaxy S24 Ultra breaks new ground for Android flagships

Summary

Samsung’s Galaxy S24 Ultra made the top 10 bestsellers list in 2024, the first Samsung flagship that has done so in six years.
The smartphone market saw seven percent year-over-year growth in 2024, and Samsung’s budget-friendly Galaxy A15 outperformed the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Samsung shipped 222.9 million smartphones in 2024, slightly trailing Apple’s 225.9 million units. The iPhone 15 was the best-selling phone in 2024.

Samsung has a long-standing presence in the smartphone market through its Galaxy S series. Yet, several of its flagship devices have struggled to be best-sellers in recent years. That has now changed.

According to new data from Canalys, Samsung’s flagship smartphone has made the top 10 bestsellers list for the first time in six years. The Galaxy S24 Ultra, Samsung’s 2024 flagship handset, secured a ninth-place position thanks to its strong sales performance. While Apple still maintains a strong lead in the smartphone market, with the iPhone 15 shipping the most units in 2024, Samsung’s flagship series is officially back on the map.

“Samsung delivered its strongest S-series volume since 2019, skewed more toward the Ultra than ever before,” Canalys said in its report.

Galaxy S24 Ultra

Brand: Samsung
SoC: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
Display: 6.8in, Dynamic AMOLED 2X @ 3088 × 1440 (505ppi), 120Hz adaptive
RAM: 12GB
Storage: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB
Battery: 5,000mAh

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The global smartphone market is recovering from the pandemic

In 2024, Samsung also saw two other phones, the Galaxy A15 and its 5G version, make the best-seller list, outperforming the Galaxy S24 Ultra. The Galaxy A15 is a budget-friendly phone from Samsung, offering consumers a solid $200 option for a basic smartphone.

Other smartphone manufacturers, including Oppo, Huawei, and Vivo, also saw modest growth in 2024. Overall, the global smartphone market experienced year-over-year growth of 7 percent, with shipments reaching 1.2 billion units. This marks the highest annual growth rate reported since the pandemic.

“2024 has been a comeback year for the smartphone industry, delivering the highest annual global shipment volume post-pandemic,” said Canalys analyst, Runar Bjørhovde. “Demand has been soaring in the mass-market segment, driven by a refresh cycle of pandemic-bought smartphones.”

Samsung shipped 222.9 million smartphones last year, slightly trailing Apple’s 225.9 million units. The South Korean tech giant is likely hoping to perform even better in 2025 thanks to the recent launch of the Galaxy S25 series and the upcoming release of the Galaxy S25 Edge.