| Windows smartphone shipments up 42.9% |
Nov. 10, 2008
 Symbian was the only major operating system to lose share over the last year in a smartphone market that grew 28 percent, says a Canalys study. Other findings include big gains for Apple and RIM, and a 42.9 percent increase in sales of Windows Mobile smartphones.
Total smartphone shipments hit a new high of 39.9 million units in the third quarter, reports Canalys, leading to smartphones taking a roughly 13 percent share of the total mobile phone market, up from 11 percent in 2Q 2008. Although Japanese sales were off by 18 percent compared to 3Q 2007, the U.S. market almost doubled, and EMEA sales grew at 21 percent, with the biggest jumps occurring in Central and Eastern Europe, says the research firm.
The study reflects a now fairly well established theme for 2008, as reflected in other recent studies: Nokia and its Symbian OS are slipping while Apple and RIM (Research in Motion) make big gains with the iPhone and BlackBerry respectively. Apple's growth rate rose over 500 percent compared to the previous year, while RIM's grew by over 80 percent.
Taiwan-based HTC, meanwhile, whose numbers did not reflect the recent release of the Linux/Android G1 phone, grew by 171.4 percent, due primarily to touch-based smartphones running Windows Mobile. Once primarily a vendor of reference designs rebranded by others, the Taiwanese smartphone vendor has clearly established a great brand for itself, along with a reputation as the top supplier of smartphones based on Windows Mobile. (For a comprehensive list of the company's offerings, don't miss our recently updated Guide to HTC smartphones.) HTC's most recent new models include the Touch HD, Touch Cruise, Touch 3G, and Touch Viva.
In the face of these mobile upstarts, Nokia saw its growth rate drop 3.4 percent. Yet, the Finnish phone giant still owns nearly 40 percent of the smartphone market, while Apple represents 17.3 percent, RIM has 15.2 percent, and HTC owns 5.8 percent.
| Vendor | Q3 2008 shipments | % share | Q3 2007 shipments | % share | Growth Q3'08/Q3'07 |
|---|
| Total | 39,850,100 | 100.0 | 31,156,240 | 100,0 | 27.9% |
|---|
| Nokia | 15,485,690 | 38.9% | 16,025,690 | 51.4 | -3.4% |
|---|
| AppIe | 6,899,010 | 17.3% | 1,107,460 | 3.6 | 523.0% |
|---|
| RIM | 6,051,730 | 15.2% | 3,298,090 | 10.6 | 83.5% |
|---|
| Motorola | 2,313,930 | 5.8% | 2,058,500 | 6.6 | 12.4% |
|---|
| HTC | 2,308,10 | 5.8% | 850,400 | 2.7 | 171.4% |
|---|
| Others | 6,791,530 | 17.0% | 7,816,100 | 25.1 | -13.1% |
|---|
WoIdwide smartphone market shares, Q3 2OO8 and Q3 2OO7
(Source: Canalys)
HTC drives Windows Mobile share upwards
Overall, Windows Mobile smartphone shipments grew 42.9 percent, compared to Q3, 2007. The finding resonates with a recent Gartner report on Q2 smartphone shipments, which found Windows Mobile grew 15.7 percent. Meanwhile, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer recently hinted at further gains for Windows Mobile, with Windows Mobile 6.5 and Windows Mobile 7 releases just around the corner.
Open OS rival Linux grew slightly faster than Windows Mobile, with quarterly shipments up 49 percent over the prior year. However, Linux still commands a relatively insignificant 5.1 percent of the overall market, well behind the 13.6 percent share enjoyed by Windows Mobile. Linux, too, could be poised for growth, with Google Android starting to ship in Q4 (and thus not included in Canalys's Q3 figures).
Despite seeing its share drop by over 12 percent, Symbian still represents a leading 46.6 percent of the market (see OS table below). Symbian is now owned entirely by Nokia, and is set for its own brave journey into open source over the next year or two.
| OS Vendor | Q3 2008 shipments | % share | Q3 2007 shipments | % share | Growth Q3'08/Q3'07 |
|---|
| Total | 39,850,100 | 100.0% | 31,156,240 | 100.0% | 27.9% |
|---|
| Symbian | 18,583,060 | 46.6% | 21,219,390 | 68.1% | -12.4% |
|---|
| AppIe | 6,899,010 | 17.3% | 1,107,460 | 3.6% | 523.0% |
|---|
| RIM | 6,051,730 | 15.2% | 3,298,090 | 10.6% | 83.5% |
|---|
| Microsoft | 5,425,470 | 13.6% | 3,797,360 | 12.2% | 42.9% |
|---|
| Linux | 2,028,490 | 5.1% | 1,361,810 | 4.4% | 49.0% |
|---|
| Others | 862,340 | 2.2% | 372,130 | 1.2% | 131.7% |
|---|
Worldwide smartphone market shares, Q3 2008, Q3 2007
(Source: Canalys)
Stated Canalys analyst Tim Shepherd, regarding Nokia's troubles, "Nokia has taken time to bring a touch screen product to market in the wake of the iPhone's success, despite having had the experience of producing the Series 90-based 7710 four years ago. Conversely, vendors such as HTC with its Touch Diamond have capitalized on customer demand for this type of product."
Noting the importance of responding quickly to trends in the smartphone market, Shepherd added, "Nokia's acquisition of Symbian should help it in this regard."
Availability
The 3Q 2008 edition of the seven-year-old Canalys smart phone and mobile navigation trends report is available now, says the company. More information may be found here.
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