Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile

Android Sees Huge Market Growth in Second Quarter

By
Image used with permission by copyright holder

New reports from market analysis firms Gartner and IDC confirm what most industry watchers already knew: the second quarter of 2010 was a boom time for smartphone sales, with both firms agreeing worldwide smartphone sales increased 50 percent compared to the second quarter of 2009. The firms also agree that Google’s Android platform also benefited significantly from that growth, with Gartner saying Android has overtaken Apple’s iPhone to become the third most-popular mobile operating system on the planet—and the top-selling mobile operating system in the United States, beating out RIM’s BlackBerry line. But the king of the hill? Still Finland’s Nokia, with either 38.1 percent (IDC) or 34.2 percent (Gartner) of the worldwide mobile phone market.

Gartner attributes Android’s success to a variety of manufacturers bring devices to market at a number of different price points. “A non-exclusive strategy that produces products selling across many communication service providers and he backing of so many device manufacturers, which are bringing more attractive devices to market at several different price points, were among the factors that yielded its growth this quarter,” said Gartner research VP Carolina Milanesi, in a statement.

Recommended Videos

According to IDC, Nokia remained the top smartphone vendor worldwide, but notes that Nokia’s year-on-year progress in the smartphone sector didn’t match the overall growth of the market, meaning Nokia is effectively losing ground. IDC found Research in Motion was the number two smartphone vendor, shipping over 11 million units in a quarter for the first time in the company’s history. Rounding out the top five: Apple, HTC, and Samsung. HTC managed to double its shipment volumes compared to a year ago, and Samsung knocked Motorola out of the top five. HTC and Samsung—both heavily investing in Android—also posted the highest year-on-year growth rates, with HTC coming in as the top supplier of Android devices.

Related

Gartner ranks phone makers differently, lumping all mobile phone manufacturers together rather than singling out smartphones from the pack. Even still, HTC posted impressive numbers, for the first time entering the top ten phone makers worldwide with a number eight ranking.

Gartner also found that the success of tablet devices—particularly the Apple iPad—has not dampened smartphone sales. “We believe that most tablet users still feel the need for a truly pocketable, yet highly capable, device for those situations when it’s inconvenient to carry a device with a larger form factor,” said Milanesi.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Geoff Duncan
Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
iOS 18 could make my iPhone look like Android, and I hate it
The Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max and the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra's rear panels.

If rumors are to be believed, iOS 18 will allow you to customize the home screen on your iPhone more substantially than ever before. This feature will be familiar to Android phone owners, but I don’t want my iPhone to look like an Android phone.

It’s a weird double-edged sword, as by giving you more freedom to make the home screen look unique, iOS may also lose what makes it unique compared to the less constrained world of Android.
iOS 18 and your iPhone home screen

Read more
How to get new emojis on your iPhone or Android device
Emoji reactions on Google Messages running on OnePlus 11.

Text messaging has quickly become the default form of communication on smartphones. Sure, you can give your buddy a call to update them on your plans for the weekend, but it's not quite as quick and streamlined as a simple text. And combined with the ever-growing library of emojis available on iPhone and Android, it's easier than ever to ensure your tone and true meaning are received loud and clear by your recipient.

Read more
The 10 best apps for a second phone number in 2024
OnePlus 5 soft gold with the phone app open.

Having a second phone number can be handy for a variety of reasons. Perhaps you want to separate your business and personal calls, or you want a junk second number that you can use to sign up for services so you can avoid giving out your personal number to so many places. That's particularly importance with the frequency of annoying spam calls and messages that can pile up when your phone number is made public. You might also want a second number to use in situations where you want to be able to contact people occasionally but you don't necessarily want them to be able to reach your personal device directly, like when internet dating or using an app like AirBnB. Whatever the reason, there are many situations where having a number that you can give out which you can make use of but isn't directly tied to your personal life like your main phone number is can be important for safety and security.

While you could get a second SIM card (or even an eSIM), an easier option for casual use is to use an app that lets you set up a second phone line. Whether you're after an Android app or an iPhone app, you'll find plenty of options to get a second phone line, including some which are free to use. We've hunted down some of the best options for apps that will give you a second phone number for whatever reason you need it, and we're sharing them with you below.
Vyke

Read more