Android edges Windows Mobile in global smartphone share

Worldwide sales of smartphones running Google's Android mobile operating system now exceed sales of devices powered by Microsoft's rival Windows Mobile OS according to new market share data issued by research firm Gartner. Consumers purchased 5.2 million Android phones in the first quarter to claim 9.6 percent of global marketshare, for the first time surpassing Windows Mobile smartphone sales at 3.7 million/6.8 percent; Android is now the planet's fourth bestselling smartphone OS, behind Symbian (24.0 million units in Q1/44.3 percent market share), Research In Motion's BlackBerry (10.5 million sales/19.4 percent share) and Apple's iPhone (8.3 million sales/15.4 percent share). Total smarpthone sales to end users reached 54.3 million units in Q1, a year-over-year increase of 48.7 percent, and now represent 17.3 of all mobile handset purchases; Gartner adds Android and iPhone were the only two operating systems among the top five to increase market share year-on-year.

Gartner points to innovations like Apple's iPad and Android-powered ereader solutions as evidence mobile OS ecosystems continue to evolve beyond smartphones, but adds services like mobile email, rich messaging and social networking will continue to drive demand for next-generations handsets. "To compete in such a crowded market, manufacturers need to tightly integrate hardware, user interface, and cloud and social networking services if their solutions are to appeal to users," said Gartner principal research analyst Roberta Cozza in a prepared statement. "Just adding a qwerty keyboard will not make a device fit the communication's habits of today's various consumer segments."

For more on Q1's smartphone OS breakdown:
- read this release

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