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Usually a perfect storm is a phrase used to describe a set of events resulting in a very negative outcome. But in the case of the smartphone market, it’s being used to describe a market that is looking very good, indeed – maybe perfect.
According to research firm IDC, the worldwide market for smartphones blew past expectations and soared by 56.7 percent in the first quarter on a year-over-year basis. Vendors shipped a total of 54.7 million units in the quarter compared to 34.9 million units in the first quarter of 2009, said IDC.
In contrast, the overall mobile market grew 21.7 percent -- a healthy figure, but when you consider that smartphones more than doubled that growth, you get a picture of how strong the consumer love affair for smartphones has become.
“More consumers are aware of smartphones now due to positive referrals from friends and family and manufacturers’ mass media campaigns,” IDC analyst Kevin Restivo said in a statement. “Coupled with increased confidence on the part of consumers, these factors will create a perfect storm of demand for suppliers this year.”
If the smartphone sector is experiencing a perfect storm, then Apple must be in the eye of the hurricane. IDC said sales of the company’s iPhones reached 8.8 million units – a 131.6 percent growth year-over-year. That now gives Apple 16.1 percent of the overall market, still a fair way’s off Nokia’s 39.3 percent market share. Apple grew its share of the market by five percentage points from 10.9 percent a year ago.
So where did the growth in market share come from? It did chip a small piece away from Research in Motion. RIM saw sales of its BlackBerry devices rise 45.2% in the quarter. But RIM’s market share fell only slightly from 20.9 percent in the first quarter of 2009 to 19.4 percent in 2010.
And it didn’t come from Nokia. Nokia’s share of the market was virtually unchanged on a year-over-year basis at 39.3 percent.
The bulk of Apple’s gains appear to have come from the “Others” segment, which saw its share of the market fall to 16.3 percent from 20.6 percent. It appears consumers are gravitating increasingly towards a handful of well-known and highly-hyped brands.
Palm’s Pre devices, which didn’t make it into the top five vendors, were in the “Others” category. Palm’s Pre has repeatedly received high marks from reviewers and are among the coolest looking devices, but it hasn’t been enough to win over consumers.
“Consumers will gravitate to smartphones not just because the devices themselves look ‘cool’ and ‘slick’, but because the overall experience aligns with their individual tastes and demands,’” IDC analyst Ramon Llamas said in releasing the findings.
For the record, here’s how the vendors ranked in the first quarter of 2010:
1. Nokia - 21.5 million units sold; 39.3% market share
2. Research in Motion – 10.6 million units; 19.4%
3. Apple – 8.8 million units; 16.1%
4. HTC – 2.6 million units; 4.8%
5. Motorola – 2.3 million units; 4.2%
6. Others – 8.9 million units; 16.3%
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