Apple Inc. (AAPL) & Google Inc (GOOG) Grab 92% Of Smartphone Market

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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) reign supreme in the smartphone market.  When combined, they made up about 92% of all smartphone sales throughout the world, during the last quarter.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) & Google Inc (GOOG) Grab 92% Of Smartphone Market

According to data found from Strategy Analytics, Android currently takes the lead with 70% of the global market last quarter, a number up from 51% the year before. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s iOS comprised of 22% during the 4th quarter of 2012. The remaining smartphones own about 7.9 percent.

Senior analyst for Strategy Analytics, Scott Bicheno reports, “The worldwide smartphone industry has effectively become a duopoly as consumer demand has polarized around mass-market Android models and premium Apple designs.”

It’s estimated that phone makers shipped about 152.1 million Android-based phones throughout the world during the fourth quarter. As for the whole year, there were almost half a billion Android phones shipped worldwide.

SA’s executive director, Neil Mawston, reminded us that the key challenge for Android this year will be defending their brand against competitor Apple, as well as other companies such as Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Firefox, Blackberry, and Tizen.

There is more good news for Apple, the Cupertino-based company grew twenty-nine percent over the year as they shipped 47.8 million smartphones last quarter. They also sold 136 million in total during 2012.

Overall global shipments grew 38 percent over the year, which came to 217 million units last quarter. That number is up from 157 million last year. As for the full year, shipments for smartphones hit the record of 700 million units, a significant increase from 490.5 million in 2011.

These numbers show that consumers have a strong and healthy interest in smartphones. The fact that Android and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) dominate the market doesn’t come as much of a surprise considering the best selling smartphones include the iPhone 5 and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:005930) Galaxy S III. 2013 could prove to be the year of smartphones.

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