Global Smartphone Shipments by Manufacturer (2010-2023)
A complete IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 question with a model answer of 208 words, plus a breakdown of the sentence structures, cohesive devices and vocabulary that answer uses. Write your own version first, then compare.
Written by Manish Sharma · CELTA and DELTA qualified · 8 years teaching IELTS
Score my answer to this questionThe question
You have 20 minutes. Write at least 150 words.
The line graph below shows worldwide smartphone shipments (in millions of units per year) by four major manufacturers between 2010 and 2023. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words. [Chart Data] Year | Samsung | Apple | Huawei | Xiaomi 2010 | 24 | 47 | 3 | 0 2013 | 314 | 153 | 49 | 19 2016 | 311 | 215 | 139 | 61 2019 | 296 | 197 | 240 | 125 2020 | 257 | 206 | 188 | 146 2023 | 226 | 234 | 35 | 146
How to approach it
- 01Group manufacturers by trend in the overview, not one by one
- 02Use a mix of trend verbs: 'surged', 'plummeted', 'climbed steadily', 'plateaued'
- 03Highlight the crossover points where one brand overtakes another
- 04Don't list every single year — pick peaks, troughs, and crossovers
- 05Use approximate numbers when the trend matters more than precision
- 06Stay in the past tense throughout — the data covers a finished period
Model answer
208 words in 5 paragraphs. Read it after you have written your own, not before: the point of a model answer is to show you what you missed, and you cannot miss anything you have not attempted.
The line graph illustrates annual worldwide smartphone shipments, expressed in millions of units, for four major manufacturers — Samsung, Apple, Huawei, and Xiaomi — from 2010 to 2023.
Overall, all four companies expanded rapidly in the early years of the period, but their trajectories diverged sharply after 2019. Samsung dominated the market for most of the decade, while Apple ultimately emerged as the leader by 2023. Huawei experienced the most dramatic reversal of fortunes.
Samsung's shipments rose from just 24 million units in 2010 to a peak of approximately 314 million in 2013, after which they entered a long, gradual decline, finishing the period at 226 million. Apple followed a more measured path, climbing steadily from 47 million in 2010 to 234 million in 2023, when it overtook Samsung for the first time.
Huawei displayed the most volatile pattern. Its shipments surged from a negligible 3 million units in 2010 to a peak of 240 million in 2019, briefly overtaking Apple. However, following international trade restrictions, its figures collapsed dramatically to just 35 million by 2023.
Xiaomi, which had no presence in 2010, grew steadily throughout the period to reach 146 million units by 2023, establishing itself as a major global player while remaining well behind the leading two brands.
What this answer actually does
Measured from the text above, and compared against the other 38 answers of the same type in this library. These are counts, not band scores: they describe what the writing does, which is the part you can copy.
0.5 more than the median answer for this task type
6 words at the shortest, 34 at the longest
the same as the median answer for this task type
carry a subordinate or relative clause
Sentence rhythm
Sentences average 20.8 words and vary by 9 words either side of that, running from 6 words to 34. Variation is the point. Grammatical Range and Accuracy rewards a mix of simple and complex sentences, and an answer where every sentence is the same length reads as flat no matter how correct it is. 3 of the 10 sentences here carry a subordinate or relative clause.
The cohesive devices it uses
5 in total, spread across 2 different functions. Range matters more than count: an answer that opens every paragraph with a sequencer signals its structure but never signals a relationship between ideas, and Coherence and Cohesion is marked on both.
however, while
ultimately, overall
Vocabulary and repetition
Ignoring grammar words, 72 per cent of the content words in this answer are distinct, and 59 per cent appear exactly once. Lexical Resource is where repetition costs the most marks, and the usual cause is not a small vocabulary but reaching for the same noun every time the topic is named.
The longest run of words copied straight from the question is 4 words. Examiners discount wording lifted from the question, so a short run here is the right outcome: the answer restates the topic in its own words rather than borrowing the question's.
What you are marked on
All four criteria carry equal weight, and your Writing band is their average rounded to the nearest half band.
Task Achievement
Identify key trends, peaks, and crossovers across all four lines
Coherence & Cohesion
Organise by trend or company in a clear sequence
Lexical Resource
Use varied vocabulary for describing trends and change
Grammatical Range & Accuracy
Accurate use of past tenses and comparative structures
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