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Android's dominance of the smartphone does not look as if that fact will change any time soon. Three out of four devices shipped during the third quarter of 2012 ran Google's mobile platform according to data collated by IDC.
In total, 136 million Android devices were shipped during this time frame, up from 71 million during the same Q3 period last year. Apple's iOS shipment share also increased from 13.8% to 14.9% year-on-year.
The biggest losers over the last 12 months have undoubtedly been BlackBerry and Symbian. BlackBerry shipments have dropped t0 7.7 million, down from 11.8 million. Meanwhile Symbian dropped from a 14.6% shipment share to a mere 2.3% this quarter.
Microsoft's Windows Phone platform was the best improvement, with shipments increasing 140% year-on-year to a still meagre 3.6 million. However, the launch of Windows Phone 8 should boost figures over the coming quarters to replace the stagnating Windows Phone 7.
KitGuru says: Another strong performance put in by Google and its hardware partners but expect iOS to make a comeback with the recent iPhone 5 launch.
Seems that the desktop phenomenon is repeating itself to the T! Previously Apple launched it’s GUI on the desktop and changed the world. Then MS launched Windows and dominated the market. Now Apple is facing the same challenges on the phone platform and eventually the results will be the same with Apple being relegated to a niche (but probably profitable) segment.