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More people are trading their iPhones in for Androids, study says

While more than a quarter of iPhone X owners moved to Android, just 7.7% of Galaxy S9 users switched to iOS, according to a company that lets you turn in your old phones.

Corinne Reichert Senior Editor
Corinne Reichert (she/her) grew up in Sydney, Australia and moved to California in 2019. She holds degrees in law and communications, and currently writes news, analysis and features for CNET across the topics of electric vehicles, broadband networks, mobile devices, big tech, artificial intelligence, home technology and entertainment. In her spare time, she watches soccer games and F1 races, and goes to Disneyland as often as possible.
Expertise News, mobile, broadband, 5G, home tech, streaming services, entertainment, AI, policy, business, politics Credentials
  • I've been covering technology and mobile for 12 years, first as a telecommunications reporter and assistant editor at ZDNet in Australia, then as CNET's West Coast head of breaking news, and now in the Thought Leadership team.
Corinne Reichert
2 min read
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More people are trading in their iPhones for Samsung phones, a report says.

Angela Lang/CNET

Fewer iPhone owners are trading in their old handset for a new Apple phone, according to a report by BankMyCell. The company which lets you sell your used phone and upgrade to a new one, collected data from over 38,000 people trading in their phones since October through June to track Apple brand loyalty during the upgrade cycle. It found that 18.1% of iPhone owners were trading in their phone for a Samsung device in June, the highest level it's been in the study. 

Read: iPhone to Android: The fastest way to move from iOS to Android | Best portable chargers and power banks for Android devices  

Samsung loyalty was higher, BankMyCell said. Just 7.7% of  Galaxy S9  users switched over to an iPhone and 92.3% remained on the Android operating system. In comparison, 26% of people trading in their iPhone X moving onto another brand. 

These numbers more point to a trend that reflect the overall picture of Apple or Samsung loyalty. BankMyCell is basing its data from people who use its service, and readily acknowledges that they don't represent overall sales, which include auction sites, carrier stores and Apple itself.  

Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Earlier Wednesday, Kantar reported that during the quarter ending in June 2019, iOS-based devices accounted for 36% of phone sales in the US, down 2.4 percent from the same quarter last year. Android phone sales were up 2.5% to 61% of all sales.

Gartner also reported phone shipments are seeing their worst decline ever, estimating that global shipments will fall by 68 million devices this year.

The story originally published on July 17 at 2:09 p.m. PT. 
Update, July 18 at 12:22 p.m. PT: To include additional background and context on the study. 

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