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OnePlus was a big winner in the US following LG's exit

The firm started off from a low base and only recently launched budget wares, but it's still good news.
By
July 27, 2021
OnePlus 9 Pro showing back
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
TL;DR
  • OnePlus was the fastest-growing OEM in the US in the first half of the year.
  • According to Counterpoint Research, it achieved growth of 428% compared to a year ago.
  • The tracking firm attributed this growth to LG’s exit and new budget phones.

OnePlus entered the US market a few years ago via T-Mobile, and it’s only been stepping up its presence in the US and North America in general since then. We’ve seen flagship phones come to the market as well as several budget-focused Nord phones.

Now, the manufacturer has announced that it was the fastest-growing OEM in the US for the first half of 2021, citing Counterpoint Research. More specifically, the firm claimed 428% growth compared to a year ago.

So how does this compare to other brands, then? Well, OnePlus cited Counterpoint data to note that Motorola, Apple, Nokia, and Samsung all lagged behind in terms of US growth. Check out that graph below.

OnePlus North America H1 2021 Counterpoint
OnePlus/Counterpoint

OnePlus and Counterpoint also asserted that the manufacturer sold over a million Nord N series units since January 2021. It didn’t hurt that T-Mobile and Metro offered the likes of the Nord N10 5G for free when subscribers added a line.

“With the introduction of the N100 and N10 5G in January, OnePlus quickly gained market share in Metro by T-Mobile and continues to push its premium device presence at T-Mobile with the latest OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro,” Counterpoint senior analyst Maurice Klaehne was quoted as saying.

“OnePlus further expanded its presence in Q2 due to LG’s exit from the smartphone market while the N100 has been one of the top-selling smartphones within Metro for months.”

This isn’t the first time OnePlus has reported noteworthy statistics in the US. It previously claimed that it was the only manufacturer to achieve year-on-year sales growth in the US in 2020 (163%).

Do you believe in OnePlus's strategy in the US?

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It bears repeating though that OnePlus is still a relatively new player in the market, so growth will look more impressive coming from a low base. We’ve previously seen this trend when brands like Xiaomi and realme enter regions like Europe, Latin America, and Africa. Furthermore, OnePlus only recently launched budget and mid-range phones, which drive more volume than high-end devices.

Nevertheless, LG’s exit along with the aforementioned foray into the budget segment does bode well for the firm’s US market share ambitions. Do you think OnePlus has a winning strategy in the market? Let us know via the poll above.