Android pulls ahead in smartphone race

Android is leading the smartphone oepratings system race for the second quarter in a row, according to analyist Canalys.

In the first quarter of the year 35.7 million hansets shipped with the Android operating system, which means the OS has increased its market share to 35%.
Android was boosted by good performances by a number of key vendors.

“HTC, Samsung, LG, Motorola and Sony Ericsson drove Android shipments in the first quarter, with each vendor shipping well over 3 million devices,’ said Canalys principal analyst, Pete Cunningham.

Samsung also shipped nearly 3.5 million smartphones with its own bada operating system, outperforming total shipments of Windows Phone devices by more than a million units.

Nokia has recently committed its smartphone future to the Windows phone operating system.

“Nokia is under considerable strain in the smart phone market as it transitions strategy, platforms and people,” said Canalys Principal Analyst Pete Cunningham. ‘Its worldwide reach, however, should never be underestimated.”

“Samsung’s own operating system development, combined with the branding and investment in its Wave smart phones at mid-tier prices, has led to good uptake in developed markets, such as France, the UK and Germany,” said Cunningham.

Asia Pacific became the largest smartphone market with 37.3 million units shipped, putting it ahead of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) for the first time since Q3 2007. 

Nokia held onto its worldwide leadership position with 24.2 million units shipped – a 13% year-on-year rise.

Apple continued to make market share gains, reaching 19%. 

Nokia, Apple, RIM, Samsung and HTC were the top five global smart phone vendors, as in Q4 2010.