Apple’s share of the US smartphone operating system (OS) market dropped in the three months to end-November despite the launch of the iPhone X, data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech shows.

The market research company said the US market share for Apple’s iOS slipped 3.8 percentage points during the period to 39.8 per cent. In terms of shipments, Kantar noted the iPhone X (which went on sale on 3 November) ranked in third place behind the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus during November, leaving Apple’s flagship comfortably ahead of Samsung’s top-selling Galaxy S8 model, which ranked in sixth place.

iOS also lost ground in the UK in the three month period (with its share down 4.2 per cent), Japan (5.5 per cent) and Australia (2.5 per cent), but grew 4.6 per cent in mainland China: a boost for Apple as it seeks to maintain a recent return to sales growth in the world’s largest smartphone market.

Dominic Sunnebo, Kantar’s global director, acknowledged the iOS market share figures make it appear Apple struggled during the three months to 30 November, but explained the mixed bag belies some “strong performances”.

Notably, Sunnebo said Apple achieved its highest share in the UK in more than three years during November and pointed out the iPhone X was the best-selling model in the country with a 14.4 per cent share of smartphone sales. Additionally, Sunnebo noted iPhone X was the top-selling model in urban China in November, with a market share of 6 per cent.

Sunnebo said Apple’s success in China is a big deal given fierce competition with domestic titans like Huawei: “Apple was riding on the back of some momentum before the iPhone X release but demand for latest model in urban China has been staggering given its price point,” he commented.