Apple Inc shipped more smartphones than any other company in the fourth quarter of 2020 and has again become the world's largest smartphone maker since 2016, market research firm Gartner said in its latest report on Monday.

Another market research company, IDC, said in a report at the end of last month that, driven by the popularity of iPhone 12 phones in the global market, Apple Inc shipped 90.1 million smartphones in the fourth quarter, increasing its market share to 23.4%, making it the world's largest smartphone manufacturer.

Apple Inc shipped nearly 80 million smartphones in the fourth quarter, surpassing all other smartphone makers, including Samsung Electronics, Gartner said in the report.

Apple Inc's strong holiday season performance and the latest Gartner data continue to show that iPhone 12 series devices that support 5G networks and new external designs are very popular in the market. The results also show that Apple Inc fended off the COVID-19 pandemic better than his smartphone competitors.

Apple Inc did not disclose iPhone shipments in his previously released financial results. Apple Inc's iPhone revenue reached $65.6 billion in the fiscal first quarter to the end of 2020, up 17 per cent from a year earlier. Apple Inc's business is seasonal, and the first quarter was the company's highest revenue quarter. Apple Inc's latest iPhone 12 series is not even fully sold for a quarter.

Shipments in the global smartphone market fell 5.4 per cent in 2020 under the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, but Apple Inc's shipments rose 3.3 per cent against the market, Gartner said in a report. Samsung Electronics will remain the world's largest smartphone maker by shipments in 2020.

Gartner also pointed out in the report that although Huawei remained the world's third-largest smartphone maker in 2020, its shipments fell 24.1% from a year earlier. Gartner pointed out that although Samsung Electronics did not face the same challenges as Huawei, its shipments also fell by 14.6% in 2020.