Android, iOS account for 80 percent of Q1 smartphone sales
updated 06:46 pm EDT, Thu May 24, 2012
Samsung, Apple largest single manufacturers
Research firm IDC has published its latest smartphone market-share report, finding Android and iOS to be responsible for eight out of 10 smartphones shipped in the first quarter of 2012. Android captured 59 percent of all sales, while iOS took 23 percent of the 152 million smartphones shipped in the first quarter. Linux phones maintained the same small share held for four quarters. Symbian and Blackberry shipments continued to drop precipitously.
Android's large numbers are attributable to the lengthy list of smartphone manufacturers utilizing Google's mobile OS. Samsung provided 45.4 percent of all Android-based smartphones.
Apple's iOS has sustained demand for the iPhone 4S after the holiday quarter as well as multiple small operators offering the iPhone for the first time. An anticipated release of the next iPhone is expected to buoy these numbers even further.
Symbian saw the largest drop, as a result of Nokia's shift to the Windows Phone platform for many of its high-profile releases this year. Windows Phone has yet to make significant gains in marketshare worldwide, but more handsets are expected to release this year using the new OS.
Samsung is almost single-handedly responsible for the Linux smartphone marketshare. A whopping 81.6 percent of all Linux phones are manufactured by the Korean electronics leader.
BlackBerry-powered phones continued to drop in marketshare, as demand for devices running RIM's OS decreased amid a pause in purchasing as consumers wait for the BlackBerry 10 operating system. US government purchases have also slowed as more agencies allow personnel to use their own smartphone for official duties.
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2010
Samsung loves Tizen
Re: "Samsung is almost single-handedly responsible for the Linux smartphone marketshare. A whopping 81.6 percent of all Linux phones are manufactured by the Korean electronics leader. "
And they could easily dump Android in favor of Tizen. Tizen, the OS all fandroids are deathly afraid of, is free. And it's actually truly open-source. And it uses actual open standards. And it's 100% Googlespam free.
Tizen is also backed by Intel. And the Linux Foundation. And by Samsung as well.
Tick tock. Just a matter of time before Samsung goes with Tizen instead of Android.