Google's Pixel series reportedly saw its best shipments figures in 2019 despite the lacklustre Pixel 4 launch response, research firm IDC executive claims. Associate VP for EMEA Devices at IDC, Francisco Jeronimo says that 2019 was the best performing year for the Pixel series, and the shipment numbers outpaced OnePlus as well. He attributed the success to strong performances in USA, Western Europe, and Japan regions. Even though the Pixel 4 series was received with mixed reviews, Google's expansion to three new markets helped drive more shipments. Furthermore, the Pixel 3 series strong shipments contributed to the numbers.
Jeronimo tweeted that the Google Pixel smartphone series saw a 52 percent year-on-year increase in 2019. A total of 7.2 million units of the Pixel smartphones were shipped in the last year, making it the company's best performance since launch of the Pixel series in 2016. He notes that the Google now ships more Pixel phones than OnePlus due to the growing shipments. The company was able to reach the highest volume ever due to strong performances in the USA, Western Europe, and Japan.
He attributed the growing shipments numbers to the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL phones launched late in 2018. He said that the Pixel 3a and Pixel 4 series saw fewer units shipped in the first two quarter of shipments than the Pixel 3. The second quarter of shipments of the Pixel 3 series was in 2019 and this helped in boosting Google's position in the smartphone market. IDC executive claims that while the shipments numbers are growing, the Pixel series is still far from reaching top 10 list. While he did say that Pixel phones saw more shipments than OnePlus, he didn't reveal actual shipments figures for OnePlus phones in 2019.
Based on IDC's findings, the Pixel 4 series' lacklustre reception had little impact on Google's momentum in the smartphone market. The Pixel 3 and the Pixel 3a series have managed to drive the shipments numbers to make 2019 the company's best ever yet. However, Google's 2020 numbers may be impacted due to less than encouraging response for the Pixel 4 and the ongoing COVID-19 crisis that has caused several delays in smartphone launches, apart from causing production difficulties.
