One in five Pixel 3 buyers came from iPhone, but over half are former Samsung owners

Ben Schoon | Apr 9 2019 - 10:48 am PT

Google’s Pixel hardware is slowly but surely getting more popular, and stealing users away from the competition. According to a new study from CounterPoint Research, over half of Google Pixel 3 buyers were previously using a Samsung device.

A report released this week from CounterPoint Research breaks down the numbers when it comes to who is buying the Pixel 3. Apparently, Google’s current flagship is mostly pulling its sales away from other Android OEMs, while largely failing in tempting iPhone users away from Apple’s devices.

The study found that a whopping 51% of Pixel 3 buyers were actually former Samsung owners. Specifically, about 37% of sales came from users who were upgrading from the Galaxy S7 family of devices. Meanwhile, 14% of buyers came from a Motorola device.

These numbers are actually somewhat surprising, as Google has clearly positioned the Pixel lineup as an iPhone competitor since it first launched. This is clear even down to today, as we see the company push the Pixel’s camera performance over what the most recent iPhones offer. A Research Director at CounterPoint says:

The newest Google Pixel lineup was certainly successful in terms of disrupting the premium market space at Verizon. The Pixel was built to lead Android innovation and be a device to sway the iOS base over to Android. Over 80% of volumes are coming from its Android partners. This is probably seen as a disappointment.

CounterPoint Research – Data from Q4 2018

Another point of this study was to look at the same numbers for the OnePlus 6T. The company’s most successful smartphone to date also saw most of its sales pulling users away from Samsung devices. Apparently, sales at T-Mobile saw Samsung J2 Prime and Galaxy S7 owners updating to the new OnePlus hardware. Meanwhile, Apple and LG upgrades took up 16% and 15% respectively.

The study also found that in Q4 of 2018, the Pixel 3 made up 7.3% of Verizon’s total smartphone sales. Meanwhile, the OnePlus 6T made up 2.4% of T-Mobile’s total sales.