The No. 3 spot for global shipments of smartphones changed hands once again as LG narrowly wrested control from China's Huawei, according to a report.
Strategy Analytics pegged LG's first-quarter shipments at 10.3 million (4.9% market share) vs. 10.0 (4.8%) for Huawei. Samsung and Apple, respectively, took the top spots at 69.4 million (33.1%) and 37.4 million (17.9%). ZTE took fifth place with 9.1 million (4.3%).
LG, which, like Samsung, is based on South Korea, covers a wide range of the market with its Optimus line. The company's most recent overture to the high-end market in the U.S. is the release of its LG Optimus G Pro, which retails for $199 with a two-year contract via AT&T. LG began taking orders for that phone on May 3 and intends to start shipping on May 10. The company also plans to release a smartphone with a flexible OLED display sometime this year.
The brand's chief rival for the No. 3 spot, Huawei, recently announced it was giving up on the U.S. market. Huawei and ZTE were both named security threats in a recent House intelligence report.