Gartner said Google Android devices have outsold the Apple iPhone globally and outpaced Research In Motion’s BlackBerry in the United States for the second quarter. Yes friends, the Android invasion is on in full force.
This isn’t very surprising, as other research firms have noted that Android is going strong. Gartner said Android devices shipped 10.6 million devices for the quarter, edging iOS for third place overall, and this was good for a 17.2% share of the market. What’s spectacular is that this is an 850% growth for Android from the same period last year.
Android was able to sell well in this quarter because it was available on multiple mobile operators and on numerous devices. It has also been powering high-profile smartphones like the HTC EVO 4G on Sprint and the Samsung Galaxy S devices.
“A non-exclusive strategy that produces products selling across many communication service providers, and the 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 researcher Carolina Milanesi, in a prepared statement.
The report said Apple sold 8.7 million iPhones in the quarter, which was good for about 14.2% of the market. This included the successful launch of the Apple iPhone 4, which sold more than three million units in three weeks. Apple may not have the largest market share but it stills rakes in the dough because it has a high profit margin for each device.
Before we get too excited about Google Android and the Apple iPhone, we should note that Nokia and RIM are still the kings of the mountain, in terms of market share. The Symbian OS is the world’s most popular smartphone platform with about 41.2% of the market, while BlackBerry has about 18.2%. Both titans of the industry have lost market share since the same quarter last year.
[Via Gartner]