Smartphone sales rise again in Q2

Research conducted by Gartner has shown smartphone sales continue to soar, with worldwide sales equating for 25% of the 438.7 million mobile phones sold worldwide in Q2.

Unlike most other phone companies, Nokia experienced very low smart phone sales, which is being attributed to both inventory problems in Europe and the decline in competitiveness of its own operating system Symbian. Despite this, Nokia remain the biggest seller of mobile phones in the world, with a 23% market share.

This, compared to 30% of last year, is worrying for Nokia. However, its competitors are not closing the gap. Samsung and LG, in second and third position respectively, still lurk behind on sales figures despite larger growth in the smartphone market – particularly Samsung, which is now the third largest smartphone distributor in the world.

Apple have astonishingly have become the forth largest distributor of mobile phones in the world purely through its huge smartphone sales. Recently the company was confirmed to be the largest supplier of smartphones in the world.

Operating systems have become hugely influential to sale of mobile phones, up to the point it is as important to many people as the model itself.

Android leads the charge with 43.4% of the market – more than double the figure of last year. Nokia’s predicament is mirrored by its fall in influence with regards to its operating system.

It’s Symbian operating system fell from 40.9% last year to 22.1% this year. If dips in sales continue it could push the communications giant out of the smartphone market, which has been predicted to grow a further 12% in the second half of 2011.