The number of smartphone shipments reached almost 200 million in the first quarter of 2013, representing a growth of 30 percent from Q1 2012, according to Juniper Research.
Samsung increased its smartphone market share by shipping an estimated 68 million smartphones and accounting for approximately 34 percent of all smartphone shipments in the quarter. Samsung announced a steady pace in sales of the Galaxy SIII, and improved sales of the Note II for the quarter.
And, despite profits falling for the first time in a decade for Apple, the Cupertino based company posted better than expected iPhone sales at around 37.4 million, a 7 percent growth compared to the first quarter of 2012.
“With another product cycle due to be released soon, Apple needs to innovate, with the next product release being critical in maintaining their position as innovation leaders,” Juniper noted. “Apple will also need to ensure that they are attractive to emerging markets to retain their title as global brand leaders.”
Juniper also said that a battle is brewing for market share among the other vendors. And, despite a positive start, the BlackBerry and Nokia ecosystem will indeed need some more time to grow and drive further competition and innovation within the smartphone and OS marketplace.
LG posted its highest ever smartphones sales quarter, shipping 10.3 million in Q1 2013, driven by sales of the Optimus G and Nexus 4. The company improved its smartphone market share from last quarter to reach just over 5 percent.
Huawei, which previously posted impressive sales in 2012 with the introduction of a range of new smartphones and tablets, shipped an estimated 10 million smartphones. The company along with fellow Chinese vendor ZTE accounted for approximately 10 percent of the shipments market.
Nokia meanwhile shipped 6.1 million smart devices in the fourth quarter and posted higher Lumia sales of 5.6 million compared to the previous quarter, a 27 percent rise.
BlackBerry’s (previously RIM) recent results – which run to a different financial schedule – are expected to account for almost 6 million smartphone shipments for Q1 2013. The Canadian company has sold 1 million new BlackBerry 10 devices.
