[The handset market grew 13 percent year-on-year in Q2 2010, slower than the 17 percent average over the previous two quarters.]

Boston -- According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global mobile handset shipments grew 13 percent year-over-year, to reach 308 million units in Q2 2010. Among the top five brands, RIM and Samsung outgrew their major rivals, due to robust demand for QWERTY phones and touchphones.

Bonny Joy, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics said, “Global mobile handset shipments reached 308 million units during Q2 2010, rising from 273 million in Q2 2009. The market grew 13 percent year-on-year in Q2 2010, slower than the 17 percent average over the previous two quarters, but still well above the minus 8 percent annual rate recorded in the recession of Q2 2009.”

Top Five Global Handset Vendors:

Nokia 111.1 million handsets shipped Q210

Samsung 63.8 handsets shipped Q210

LG 30.6 million handsets shipped Q210

RIM 11.2 million handsets shipped Q210

Sony Ericsson 11.0 million handsets shipped Q210

Others 79.8 million handsets shipped Q210

Neil Mawston, Director at Strategy Analytics, added, “Global handset volumes slowed a little in the second quarter of 2010. There are no credible signs yet of any major double-dip downturn in the handset industry, but that could of course change quickly if overall economic conditions were to deteriorate again across the major markets of North America, Western Europe and Asia in the coming months.”

Other findings from Strategy Analytics’ Q2 2010 Global Handset Market Share Update report include:

* RIM and Samsung outgrew their major top five rivals, due to robust demand for QWERTY phones and touchphones. Samsung captured 21 percent global share, while RIM maintained fourth position with 4 percent share. Samsung continues to edge ahead of LG and nearer to Nokia;

* Motorola and Sony Ericsson continued their steady transformation into smartphone specialists, as they ramped up their Android portfolios. Smartphones now account for one-third of Motorola’s total handset shipments and these high-value devices are helping to stabilize the company’s financial outlook;

* Apple shipped 8.4 million iPhones worldwide in Q2 2010, up 61 percent from 5.2 million units in Q2 2009. Its global marketshare has edged up from 2 percent in Q2 2009 to almost 3 percent in Q2 2010. Apple, however, had a mixed second quarter of 2010, as criticism about its products and production methods mounted.

More...

Back to Headlines...