iPhone 6 Plus Takeover: Apple Grabs 41 Percent Of The Phablet Market In One Month

Watch out, Samsung Galaxy Note 4, not only has Apple now entered the phablet market, the iPhone 6 Plus has steamrolled all other large-screen smartphones to acquire the largest market share. The iPhone 6 Plus now makes up 41 percent of the phablet market, according to Kantar World Panel data published Wednesday.

The 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus has firmly established itself as a mainstay in the phablet market, which at 10 percent of the overall smartphone market (up from 2 percent in 2013) is a small but growing segment. In comparison, the Galaxy Note line makes up 5 percent of phablet sales in the U.S. and 8 percent of sales in China, Kantar World Panel analyst Carolina Milanesi said in September.

Though the iPhone 6 Plus has proven itself as the phablet to buy, it is far from the most popular iPhone. The iPhone 6 Plus ranks fourth in overall iPhone sales behind the iPhone 6, iPhone 5s and even the iPhone 5c. The most popular, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6, composes 33 percent of iOS smartphone sales, while the iPhone 5s makes up 26 percent, the iPhone 5c composes 18 percent and the iPhone 6 Plus makes up 10 percent.

Apple dipped its toe in the large-screen space, largely to reach a demographic of consumers it had been avoiding since the inception of the iPhone, but overall sales show that many consumers still prefer their phones on the smaller side. Having polled consumers purchasing new Apple smartphones, 60 percent told Kantar that they chose the iPhone 6 due to its screen size, while 58 percent said they chose the iPhone 6 Plus for its screen size.

Many competitors such as Google and LG have also launched phablets this year. The Motorola-made 5.9-inch Nexus 6 smartphone launched in October, while LG announced the 5.5-inch LG G3 Stylus in August. But the majority of smartphone growth remains among smartphones under 5 inches, with Apple finding a sweet spot with the screen size of the iPhone 6, Recon Analytics analyst Roger Enter said in September, which has likely driven sales of the device.