One in four Britons own an Android phone
Summary: With half of all Britons now owning a smartphone, Android now powers half of those sold. Where does it leave the other big-name mobile operating systems?
New figures show that just under half of the UK's population owns a smartphone, with Android powering half of all smartphones sold, according to new marketshare figures released today by Kantar ComTech.
But instead of the mobile operating systems going head-to-head in marketshare war, the real battle is between which Android handset manufacturers have the most sales: HTC, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson.
(Source: Flickr, CC)
At 43.8 percent, nearly half of the British population own a smartphone, with 49.9 percent owning an Android powered smartphone. Research in Motion's BlackBerry marketshare accounted for 22.5 percent, with Apple's iPhone dropping from 33 percent a year ago to 18.5 percent this quarter.
Yet, only a few days after Nokia held its annual conference in London, the British public are week-on-week rejecting the Finnish manufacturer's phones, as Symbian scrapes just above 6 percent of sales, compared to 20 percent a year ago.
HTC mopped the floor with the other Android handset makers, holding its UK handset marketshare at 44.8 percent, with Samsung at 37.9 percent, up from last year, and Sony Ericsson holding out for leftovers.
Sony Ericsson, the joint venture by mobile giant Sony and telecoms firm Ericsson, which recently announced it would split after a 10-year pact, saw its mobile marketshare drop from 20.5 percent last year to 8.5 percent this quarter.
Samsung has yet to achieve the same levels of share as it has in the United States, with one in four U.S. smartphones owing to the Korean phone firm. Globally, Samsung remains the world's largest maker of smartphones.
In just 18 months, Android has achieved the most used mobile operating system in the UK at present, swallowing the Symbian platform all but completely, and forcefully pushing aside major players, like BlackBerry and Apple's iOS.
Growing exponentially since mid-2010, there has been a sharp rise from around 8 percent to 30 percent the following quarter, with iOS, Symbian and Windows Phone all tumbling in marketshare, with the exception of the BlackBerry operating system, which gained slightly.
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Talkback
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
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RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
I think it is a toss up between Android and WP7. Neither stutter, both are good, but in different ways.
As to apps, the key apps I use look pretty much the same on all 3 platforms.
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
Yep. My iPhone 3GS feels slow also. But at least Apple lets me load iOS v5 on it. If you got the "flagship" Nexus 2 years ago you will not be able to load up Android v4 on it.
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
How dull. TO buy a phone and all you can talk about is 'app' this and 'app' that ... Grow up and give someone a call, it is a phone after all.
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
Stupid people using gear they don't understand are always at risk ... how are you doing? These iScare stories are just lame.
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone
Please allow me to clarify a couple of points.
[I]Samsung has yet to achieve the same levels of share as it has in the United States, with one in four U.S. smartphones owing to the Korean phone firm.[/I]
Yet the story you linked to inside the first table we see that Samsung owns 25.5% of all phones, in the US. Not just smartphones. In that same story, the 2nd table says that Google's platform is at 41.8% and Apple's at 27%.
[I]Globally, Samsung remains the world???s largest maker of smartphones.[/I]
Yes they are the number one maker since they ship the most. Yet that story you linked to says nothing about actual sales. In fact Samsung hasn't disclosed its actual sales anywhere.
RE: One in four Britons own an Android phone