By 
Samsung may have had a late entrance in the overall Android race, but boy have they caught up quickly thanks to their line of Galaxy devices. A report published by IDC Corp (via Reuters) claims that Samsung now owns 9.6% of the global smartphone market, nearly tripling their share and multiplying their shipments by a factor of five.
HTC, who have been a fixture in the Android space since producing the first ever Android phone (the T-Mobile G1), now own 8.5% of the market after tripling their shipments. For Samsung and HTC, the statistics are impressive indeed.
Manufacturers who have gotten aboard the Android rocket have seen smartphone sales surge while former limelighters like BlackBerry and Nokia are struggling. But I think there’s also something to be said about Android enjoying success BECAUSE of the caliber of manufacturers who have put their full efforts behind the OS. Without heavyweights like Samsung, HTC, Motorola, Sony Ericsson and other big names offering top of the line hardware, Android wouldn’t be enjoying such high levels of success so quickly.
There is definitely a level of synergy and between the OS, the manufacturers, and the carriers. Android has allowed them a great amount of leverage, and by putting their resources towards Android, it’s created and unstoppable momentum whose ceiling we probably won’t see any time soon.
A lot of it is simply good timing… right? Smartphone shipments in the 4th quarter rose to more than 100 million, an 87% increase year-over-year. Would Android be having such success if smartphones hadn’t become so hot? I’d argue that Google and the Android OS are largely responsible, acting as a catalyst for increased capabilities at lower cost, igniting what has become hottest consumer electronic category in all the land.
Minus SE.
F*@k you samsung! And all your products from the vibrant on out!
LG Optimistic x2 review please!! ;)
inb4 imminent angry Samsung fans that are ignorant to the fact the HTC were being branded in the same light about updates less than a year ago.
The hardly surprising headline award goes to…
lmao @ mrjoeyloke
but man!
it feels good to pick a winning horse :)
i come from winmo. i was there almost 8 years before android…enough said.
Just saw a LG X2 review and it got a very bad review because even with a dual core the UI was still buggy and slow. I’m pretty sure that people are still going to fall for the hype and then complain how Android sucks later. Damn manufacturers just couldn’t wait for proper dual core support for phones.
Samsung is such a let down. I will never but another samsung device again!
Android does suck for not having hardware acceleration already.
I do love my epic to an exten the phone and screen are beautiful but the software glitches and lack of fixing them is starting to try my patience and put a sour taste in my mouth. Not sure if i would buy another samsung device as this is my first. Usually stgick to htc and moto and have never had any complaints
Samsung should not be allowed to manufacture phones…. Talk about the definition of horrible customer service
Love my epic…but wish there was more. An update would of course be nice, i mean cmon now really? Its not like it was a 50 dollar phone, shouldnt the best os come standard? I must have lucked out with a great phone out of the box as well, no buggyness runs great and etc. Would love to see a better build on the media store as well. More options.
If Samsung wants to be a big player in the android market then they should get their heads out of their a$$es and update the phones. There is no excuse for delaying 2.2 as long as they have. The Fascinate has so many bugs there are too many to list. This will be my last Samsung android device, I don’t care about their new 4G LTE phone with the super LCD plus display. If you won’t update your device then don’t make android devices.
I agree with the previous post. Making the initial sale is one thing. Keeping customers is another. With the fiasco of the Froyo update for Galaxy S phones in the US, I’m sure that some people are going to think twice about buying from Samsung again. They’re sacrificing long-term loyalty and repeat business to get a short-term gain in sales and a market boost. Let’s see what happens when people’s contracts are up and they start looking for new phones. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Samsung to lose ground then (if not sooner). The longer it takes to update my Epic — and I’m *still* waiting — the less and less likely I am to ever buy another Samsung phone again. I know I’m not alone in this.
If only they knew how to update their devices…
They got my money once, but not again… I’m sure i’m not the only who feels this way so I’ll be less then shocked when they can’t sustain this growth.
Behold III. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
I used to be in the anti Samsung camp over the froyo debacle until I took a chance and rooted my Vibrant and found Team Whiskey ROMs. Now I get updates every two weeks and and as of the last update you no longer need to wipe, you can just install it without losing your previous data. The phone gets faster with every update and the battery life keeps getting better too. The Galaxy S is a fantastic device if you free yourself from relying on Samsung or your carrier:-)
Because so many of you complained about these phones, be it Samsung, HTC and others not getting the updates on time and are stuck with the old OS, I held out until getting the Nexus S. Sure Nexus S did not have the latest tech, and no SD card yadi yata, but they do get the latest OS updates as it comes out first. Although Nexus S is made from Samsung, phone is fantastic and runs blazingly fast and I haven’t find any bugs so far after using it for 2 month. I love this phone compared to my wife’s Iphone 4. To make android phone the best in the market, All manufacturer’s must update their phone as soon as Google turns out the updates. As indicated by one of the poster on LG Optimus X2, its the software that will make the user experience enjoyable, and not not so much the hardware.
ahh.. the beauty of Android.. if you don’t like something.. you can change it.
I think that hardware wise, Samsung puts out the best hardware, the Galaxy line has a sweet cpu (hummingbird) and and a sweet screen (AMOLOED, or is it the super kind?). However, their touchwiz software seems to not be a fan favorite. Good thing people have found a way to root it and make custom roms for it.
I’d say to stay away from Samsung till they become reliable with the updates. I feel for 10+ million people who bought the Galaxy S
I make a point to tell my non-phone-geek friends to stay far away from Samsung.
I have been very happy with my Samsung Vibrant. VERY happy. It has an amazing HD screen, full flash web browsing. A great camera for a phone. GPS has always been spot on. I have the best custom rom on it, Axura with multiple themes to choose from. And the custom rom development team has fantastic support and frequent updates on thiee well run and maintained site. The device is unbrickable and can be flashed back to stock for warranty issues if needed.
Samsung owners should stop whining about the maker of thier device and learn how to root their phones and unlock the full power of Android and the free open community it has created. That’s what having an Android device is all about.
Sent with my Rooted full Android Nook Color Tablet