Samsung shipped 27.8 million smartphones in the last quarter, taking 23.8 percent of the market, Milton Keynes, U.K.- based Strategy Analytics said in an e-mailed statement today. Apple’s 17.1 million shipments, comprising 14.6 percent of the market, pushed the Cupertino, California-based company to second place. Nokia Oyj (NOK1V) maintained its third position, it said.
Apple, which released its iPhone 4S this month, held the top spot for only one quarter after dislodging Espoo, Finland- based Nokia earlier this year. Samsung, based in Suwon, South Korea, has turned to Google Inc. (GOOG)’s Android software to boost sales of its Galaxy smartphones and tablet computers.
“Samsung has come out with products that appeal to all the different form factors and specifications out there,” said T.Z. Wong, a Beijing-based analyst at researcher IDC. “That is a strategy they have executed very well.”
