According to the latest numbers from research firm Strategy Analytics, Samsung’s Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) is the world’s most popular selling smartphone model with 10.7 percent of the global smartphone market in the third quarter. The highly popular, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone 4S grabbed second place with 9.7 percent of the market, after two years at the top of the list, while the latest iPhone 5 held 3.6 percent of the global share.
“A large touchscreen design, extensive distribution across dozens of countries, and generous operator subsidies have been among the main causes of the Galaxy S III’s success,” said Neil Shah, senior analyst with Strategy Analytics. “Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shipped an estimated 16.2 million iPhone 4S units worldwide for second place, as consumers temporarily held off purchases in anticipation of a widely expected iPhone 5 upgrade at the end of the quarter”.
As per the research firm, the Galaxy manufacturer shipped 18 million Galaxy S3 units in the third quarter, up from 5.4 million in the second quarter. The rival, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), shipped 16.2 million iPhone 4S units in the same period, down from 19.4 million in the second quarter. For the third quarter, Apple shipped 6 million iPhone 5’s since its launch in September.
Strategy Analytics executive director Neil Mawston said: “Samsung’s Galaxy S3 has proven wildly popular with consumers and operators across North America, Europe, and Asia”.
He also remarked, even though Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) won the third quarter, it may have to return the title in the run up to the December holiday season. “The Galaxy S3’s position as the world’s best-selling smartphone model is likely to be short-lived. The Apple iPhone 5 has gotten off to a solid start already, with an estimated 6.0 million units shipped globally during Q3 2012. We expect the new iPhone 5 to out-ship Samsung’s Galaxy S3 in the coming fourth quarter of 2012 and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) should soon reclaim the title of the world’s most popular smartphone model”.
AppleInsider revealed in early September that Galaxy S III was the top selling smartphone in the U.S. in August, beating iPhone 4S for the first time in the history of that device’s availability. Another amazing fact is with only a week’s worth of availability; iPhone 5 was the third most popular smartphone in the quarter, with 6 million units sold; Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) beware.
