Research firm IDC reports that smartphone sales continued to show strong growth in Q3 2010. A total of 81.1 million smartphones were shipped during the quarter, an 89.5 percent increase over the same quarter a year ago when 42.8 million were shipped. According to Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst with IDC’s Mobile Devices Technology and Trends team,
“Increasingly, users look to smartphones as their next devices while carriers have broadened selection and offered generous subsidies. To keep up with demand, vendors’ plans to emphasize smartphones in their portfolios have resulted in sharp growth as evidenced by Motorola, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson. We expect more vendors to do the same.”
Nokia continued to be the top smartphone vendor with 26.5 million units shipped but its market share continues to drop. Apple jumped into second place, ahead of Research In Motion (14.1 million and 12.4 million units respectively). Samsung held down fourth place with 7.2 million shipments and year-over-year growth in excess of 450 percent. HTC, with 176.2 percent year-over-year growth, was in fifth place.
Smartphone shipments in the first three quarters of 2010 have topped 200 million units. IDC predicts that the smartphone market will continue to grow at a strong pace as 2010 wraps up.