The global sales race in the smartphone market is a competitive one that's been dominated by a couple of familiar names at the top end of the scale for some time. The Samsung-Apple hegemony has been an established part of the phone market.

Now, though, a shift has been confirmed, as Xiaomi's continued growth and impressive sales have finally seen it break into the top two, replacing Apple as the second-biggest phone seller on the planet in Q2 2021.

Its market share was a chunky 17 percent, behind Samsung's lead on 19 percent, and that's a level it's never hit before, with Apple languishing on 14 percent. This still represents growth for every single one of those companies, though.

For Apple it's a measly 1 percent of expansion, which is why it's lost second place. Xiaomi, by contrast, saw 83 percent growth year-on-year to further demonstrate how it's been rocketing up the charts.

The stats come from Canalys, and it's added some explanation to the sales figures, noting in particular that Xiaomi's sales surge was powered by its lower-cost handsets, and that pushing the sales of its flagship handsets, like the Mi 11 Ultra, would therefore likely be a priority for the manufacturer moving forward.

Whether it'll maintain its position, of course, is another question - Apple will surge back later this year with the launch of new iPhone models, as always, so you can expect its numbers to bounce back to some extent.