Samsung takes more smartphone market share from Apple

Reuters: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. grabbed more smartphone market share from archrival Apple Inc. in the latest quarter, with sales of its phones jumping to account for one third of the global market.

Sales of the iPhone 5 helped Apple’s volumes grow 6.6% to 37.4 million phones in the quarter from a year earlier, but that was not enough to stop its share of the market dropping to 17.3% from 23%, research firm IDC said.

A flood of cheaper Android-powered devices from the South Korean maker lifted its shipments about 60% to 70.7 million, giving it a 32.7% of the market, up from 28.8% a year earlier.

During the first quarter Samsung shipped more smartphones than the next four vendors combined, IDC said.

The research firm said it was eager to see how new phones from Samsung using its Tizen operating system will look and fit into the company’s product line-up.

Of the top five vendors, only Apple lost market share, with LG Electronics Inc., Huawei and ZTE Corp making incremental gains.