The iPhone XR is the best-selling smartphone of 2019. Who’d have thought that, right? Apple made some changes to its iPhone strategy by launching a seemingly ‘budget’ iPhone, calling it the iPhone XR. It had some expected compromises but surprisingly some much-needed advantages as well, including better battery life and a larger screen. A new report from IHS Markit now claims Apple sold around 26.9 million units of the iPhone XR in the first quarter of 2019, making it most popular smartphone in the world. The iPhone XR was launched in 2018, alongside the iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max.
Part of the reason for the iPhone XR’s popularity could be the swift price-cuts Apple undertook within months of the phone launching. In India, the iPhone XR was first launched at Rs 76,900 for the 64GB model while the 128GB variant was priced at Rs 81,900 and the 256GB at Rs 91,900. Certainly exorbitant considering the flagship iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max were equally expensive.
However, within a few months the iPhone XR’s price was slashed as part of a promotional strategy. Effectively, the phone then started from Rs 53,900 for the 64GB variant. A massive drop from the original price. The 128GB model’s price fell to Rs 64,900 while the 256GB retailed at Rs 74,900.
The analyst report claims that Apple managed to sell 13.6 million iPhone XR in the first quarter of 2019 and 13.3 million in the second quarter, thereby arriving at the 26.9 million units by the first half of 2019. The report further claims that the iPhone XR’s pole-position is followed by the Samsung Galaxy A10 (13.4 million units), Samsung Galaxy A50 (12 million units), iPhone 8 (10.3 million units), Redmi Note 6A (10 million units), Redmi Note 7 (10 million units), Galaxy J2 Core (9.9 million units), Oppo A5 (9.7 million units), iPhone XS Max (9.6 million units) and the Samsung Galaxy A30 (9.2 million units).
The iPhone XR is scheduled to get a successor at the Apple event that’s happening on September 10. It will supposedly be called the iPhone 11, indicating that Apple no longer wants to signal a budget phone. Along with that, Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 11 Pro and the iPhone 11 Pro Max.