Android leads the way with 50% of UK smartphone market

[3GScottishUser]

Google’s Android has beaten rivals to claim almost half of the UK smartphones market, but a new battle is now emerging between manufacturers that use Android, new statistics have revealed.

According to the latest report from analyst Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, after securing its position as the number one OS across Europe, in the 12 weeks ending 2 October 2011, Android handsets claimed a 49.9% share of the UK smartphone market, followed by BlackBerry (22.5%) and Apple (18.5%).

The analyst claims the new battle is between Android handset manufacturers rather than manufacturers running rival operating systems. The key players, including HTC, Samsung and Sony Ericsson, are all vying to be recognised as the top Android manufacturer.

HTC has managed to maintain its UK share of the Android market over the year by claiming 44.8% of Android sales in the past 12 weeks.

However, Samsung is slowly picking up its pace and increased its Android market share to 37.9% from 25.2% a year ago after successful sales of its flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S II, and its Ace handsets.

Full Story: http://www.mobiletoday.co.uk/News/13091/Android_leads_the_way_with_50__of_UK_smartphone_ma rket_in_Q3.aspx

[Hands0n]

This little OS has done so very well over its short life. I still have the image in my mind of Nokia completely dissing Android when it first arrived on the G1. My, look how the tables have turned in just those three short years.

Android has turned out to be a very versatile smartphone OS, both for official and unofficial distributions. Its versatility is boosted by an ever-growing set of apps from Android Market. Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) has turned out to be a very reliable version of the OS and there is a lot to look forward in Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich as it spans smartphones and tablets with a single OS. The benefits of a unified OS across these two platforms has already been seen in another fruity paradigm of the technologies.

Samsung are certainly making a push against the likes of HTC - I like their design but am put off somewhat by the amount of plastic they use. HTC's aluminium monoblock construction is very robust, but the paint seems to come off too easily. Swings and roundabouts I guess.

[gorilla]

You might be interested in this article (http://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-apple-smartphone-market-share-2011-10) by Henry Blodget over on business insider:


But the better Android phones get, and the more market share Android gains, the more Android's network effects will increase, and the more Apple's leverage over the iPhone ecosystem will diminish. And that can only be bad news for Apple's ability to continue to command exploding profits from iPhones, app developers, musicians, media companies, and others who now must pay it big distribution fees because they have no other choice.

A little bit pessimistic but whether you like it or not, Android is a major force in the smartphone arena and has the potential to cause further shake-ups in the market place.

[Ben]

I don't buy the Android is big = Android wins argument that so many analysts rush to make. Apple have that end-to-end distribution channel coupled with a very high spending customer base. Android, ironically, is the mobile OS 'for the rest of us'. However, there being such a shockingly few manufacturers making the majority of Android handsets is certainly intriguing, as it could ultimately reduce fragmentation to levels that do result in a realistic challenge to Apple's content haul.

[htcaddict]

I don't buy the Android is big = Android wins argument that so many analysts rush to make. Apple have that end-to-end distribution channel coupled with a very high spending customer base. Android, ironically, is the mobile OS 'for the rest of us'. However, there being such a shockingly few manufacturers making the majority of Android handsets is certainly intriguing, as it could ultimately reduce fragmentation to levels that do result in a realistic challenge to Apple's content haul.

True. iOS is a pure money-maker while Android is still kinda failing on the app front (it has gotten better, I'll admit). High spenders are still choosing iPhone (by looking at my father's generation I can just say that Iphone is really the go-to phone for middle-aged middle class men. Android is too 'alternative' for them.

[DaveC]

I'm middle age (well not quite retired) and middle class and don't have an iPhone. :D

[htcaddict]

I'm middle age (well not quite retired) and middle class and don't have an iPhone. :D

As the wise man once said ,exceptions only prove the rule :D

[DBMandrake]

I'm middle age (well not quite retired) and middle class and don't have an iPhone. :D
Ah, but you used to have one :D

(Shhh....)

[The Mullet of G]

Android phones have gotten so cheap that they have effectively become a replacement for dumb phones, even the lowly calculator is in danger of being replaced with a slew of uber cheap Android bricks. While this is good for shifting a lot of hardware and boosting your market share, it isn't good for the platforms eco system or profit.

The Android market place is effectively a barren wasteland full of horribly bad apps and games that feel like betas, you know something is seriously wrong when the dev community ignores your platform even though you are the market leader. Until Google get a handle on fragmentation then Android simply isn't a credible option, what is the point of paying a premium for high end hardware if no one will make software to actually leverage said hardware, you'd be aswell buying a low end Android phone, only then there would be no point buying apps and games as none of them would actually run properly. :)

[Wilt]

That might have been true two years ago but these days Android apps are no more buggy or 'horribly bad' than their iPhone counterparts.

Fragmentation is not that much of a problem. Windows developers have dealt with it for years and seem to be doing okay. Forcing developers to not be lazy and build versatile apps is not really a bad thing - relying on a hardware/OS vendor to do it for you is silly and will only lead to problems when something is finally changed. It isn't that hard to cater for different screen sizes etc.

[Ben]

Android phones have gotten so cheap that they have effectively become a replacement for dumb phones, even the lowly calculator is in danger of being replaced with a slew of uber cheap Android bricks. While this is good for shifting a lot of hardware and boosting your market share, it isn't good for the platforms eco system or profit.

Forcing developers to not be lazy and build versatile apps is not really a bad thing - relying on a hardware/OS vendor to do it for you is silly and will only lead to problems when something is finally changed. It isn't that hard to cater for different screen sizes etc.
Potentially both valid points. I do believe Android serves a great purpose in the mid to low end, proving an enabling smartphone that really will 'change the world' in ways far more pronounced than we'll ever see in the West. Verdict's still out on high-end Android for me... perhaps because, in my mind, high end smartphone = iPhone.

[gorilla]

Apps rarely force close for me on my Galaxy SII, where as on the iPad it's a daily occurrence. I'm looking at you safari, iPlayer, filterstorm and twitter.

Android needs fewer models on the market and I believe HTC have stated that they will produce fewer variations going forward. Surely, if Samsung really want to copy Apple then all they have to do is produce one iGalaxy per year :p

[htcaddict]

That might have been true two years ago but these days Android apps are no more buggy or 'horribly bad' than their iPhone counterparts..

But still, in the Appstore you can choose from many more applications, Android still has that feel of just another addition to the system. At the same time, the Appstore is a main reason why people buy iPhones. Not too mention the lack in availability of specialised proffesional apps.

My Dad is a doctor with a lot of workload. his friends showed him all the great iPhone apps that help medical proffesionals. Obviously, I'd been advising again buying an iPhone for months( I'm an Android person , obviously) but when he came to me and asked : "Will I have all of those apps available on a HTC?" I told him to go for the iPhone. there are android alternatives but they just can't compete with whats on the Appstore. I'm sure this is the case for many different proffesions.