Apple Becomes the Largest Smartphone Vendor in Q4 2011

Strategy Analytics has issued the results of its latest research on global smartphone shipments, naming Apple the top dog of smartphone vendors in Q4 2011.

Handset shipments grew 54 percent annually to reach a record 155 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011, said the firm. “Apple reclaimed top position as the world’s number one smartphone vendor during the quarter,” according to the report.

Alex Spektor, associate director at Strategy Analytics, highlighted that Apple overtook Samsung by volume with 24 percent market share.

The Cupertino giant’s global smartphone shipments “surged 128 percent annually to 37.0 million units, as distribution of the iPhone family expanded across numerous countries, dozens of operators and multiple price points,” he said.

“While Apple took the top spot in smartphones on a quarterly basis, Samsung became the market leader in annual terms for the first time with 20 percent global share during 2011,” added Neil Mawston, executive director at Strategy Analytics.

“With global smartphone shipments nearing half a billion units in 2011, Samsung is now well positioned alongside Apple in a two-horse race at the forefront of one of the world’s largest and most valuable consumer electronics markets.”

Citing Nokia’s lackluster touchscreen smartphone portfolio and a limited presence in the United States market, Tom Kang, director at Strategy Analytics revealed that the Finnish phone maker saw its global smartphone market share cut in half from 33 percent in 2010 to 16 percent in 2011.

Kang believes “Nokia’s partnership with Microsoft will be very much in focus during 2012, and the industry will be watching closely to see how swiftly the two companies can expand in the high-value 4G LTE market that is rapidly emerging across the United States, Japan and elsewhere.”

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