ABI Research is going through the total number of handsets shipped to discover the trends in the mobile phone design.
Last year, global mobile handset shipments totaled approximately 1.15 billion, with enhanced phones and smartphones account for about 81% of all devices (kinda steep figure?). And here’s what ABI has found out:
- 3.5G – 56% of handsets models in 2009 were 3.5G-enabled (HSPA) devices, while the number of 2G and 2.5G models dropped in comparison.
- GPS handsets – the penetration rate of GPS-enabled handsets in new models reached 48% in 2009 compared to 29% in 2008.
- Form factors – candybars ruled the year 2009, accounting for 51% of announced handset models. Sliders followed with 27%, while clamshell models picked up 19% of the market.
- Operating systems: Microsoft Windows Mobile had the highest adoption rate among operating systems of newly launched models, with Symbian taking second place. And I thought, Android is leading the way…
- Handset chipsets: While Qualcomm’s Snapdragon, TI’s OMAP, Intel’s Atom and Nvidia’s Tegra are driving the markets for 3G and 3.5G technology, the development of 4th Generation LTE and WiMAX chipsets is primarily led by Altair Semiconductor, Wavesat, and Comsys Mobile, among others.
And you can get additional information from ABI Research’s “Mobile Device Model Tracker” report.