Android tops in smartphone OS market: Gartner

According to market researcher Gartner, over 100 million smartphones were sold worldwide during the first quarter of 2011.

Google's Android OS secured 36 per cent of market share, with consumers buying 36.2 million units with the OS during the period. Nokia's Symbian came in at the second spot, with 27.4-per cent of the market and 27.6 million units sold. Apple's iOS platform and Research In Motion's BlackBerry were placed third and fourth with 16.8 per cent and 12.9 per cent market share, respectively.

Microsoft found itself far behind the rest of the pack, with Gartner saying just 3.6 million smartphones using a Microsoft mobile OS were sold last quarter, for a 3.6 per cent market share and what would surely set alarm bells ringing in Redmond, the newer Windows Phone OS saw unit sales of only 1.6 million.

According to analysts, Gartner's figures show just how much of a difference a year can make.

The first quarter of 2010, saw Android's market share at around 9.6 per cent, at the fourth place, with Symbian at the time taking a 44.2 per cent market share, followed by BlackBerry OS and iOS with 19.7 per cent and 15.3 per cent market share, respectively. The older Windows Mobile had 6.8 per cent market share.

The Gartner study reveals that Android sales are obviously beating all others.

However, whether Microsoft can turn the tide in the smartphone OS market with the help of Nokia is yet to be seen. Meanwhile, earlier this year, the companies signed a deal that would make Windows Phone 7 the "principal" operating system in Nokia's line of smartphones.

Nokia devices would come with Widows Phone 7 from as early as next year. In the first quarter of 2011 Nokia smart phones were running Symbian.

According to Gartner, the Microsoft-Nokia deal "will precipitate a competitors' rush to capture Symbian's market share," adding that "in the long term, Nokia's support will accelerate Windows Phone's momentum."

Last month, Gartner said it believed Windows Phone's market share would surge to 19.5 per cent in 2015 and Android would lead the market in 2015 with 48.8 per cent market share.

As regards handsets (smartphone or otherwise) rather than operating systems, Gartner found, Nokia outpaced the rest with 107.6 million units sold during the period. Samsung and LG came in next with 68.8 million and 24 million mobile phone sales, respectively. During the first quarter Apple sold 16.8 million mobile phones while RIM sold 13 million devices.

In all, 427.8 million mobile phones were sold last quarter. This was up from the 359.6 million sold during the first quarter of 2010.

Among the lot, Apple's year-over-year growth has been most impressive according to Gartner and during the first quarter of 2011, Apple more than doubled its first-quarter 2010 mobile phone sales of 8.2 million.

"This strong performance helped Apple consolidate its position as the fourth largest brand in the mobile communication market overall," Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner, said in a statement. "Considering the higher-than-average price of the iPhone, this is a remarkable result and highlights the impact that a strong aspirational brand can have on a product."