It seems consumers in the US aren’t splashing out and buying new phones this year, according to a report by Argus Insights, Inc., a Silicon Valley-based market intelligence company. The report, compiled with data from around 622,000 reviews, shows that from June 2014 to June 2015 smartphone demand is down by 8 percent in the United States.

iPhone continues to dominate

Despite the fact that Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. has introduced new flagships, and there has been ongoing interest in the latest iPhones, the report also states that since January 2015, “Consumer demand and interest has fallen off significantly.” Have we reached a point of smartphone market saturation? This is what the report concludes, adding that as long as manufacturers keep giving us much of the same in terms of features consumers will “continue to flock to iPhones.”

Samsung and Apple are leading the smartphone war at the end of Q2, and in terms of mindshare (customer awareness/interest) the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge saw considerable attention when released last April. This attention, though, has since waned. Only Apple’s iPhone 6 and iPhone 5 continue to generate steady consumer interest, according to the report. “Samsung’s Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge launch was another failed attempt to challenge Apple’s smartphone dominance, as consumers are not budging for more of the same,” says the report.

Microsoft receives top smartphone rankings so far this year

Although in terms of consumer “delight” (based on consumer reviews), it has been Microsoft that has topped the rankings so far this year. While Apple and Samsung gained positive reviews, Microsoft’s Lumia 640 and Lumia 535 handsets saw the highest customer satisfaction. These phones, however, have a much lower market share and far fewer reviewers. As far as delight for mid-tier phones is concerned, Motorola ranked above LG and HTC.

During this time of consumer disinterest, John Feland, CEO and founder, Argus Insights, wrote that it is Apple that is set to keep attracting the fewer customers. He writes, “In fact, iPhone 6 demand, as measured by consumer review analysis, jumped when customers waiting to purchase and apparently open to buying a Samsung, instead chose an Apple iPhone. Even the early launch of the Note 5 is unlikely to take share away from Apple unless Samsung delivers more than just upgraded hardware.”

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