William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor | Feb 06, 2012 12:07PM EST
Worldwide smartphone shipment volume jumped 54.7 percent in the fourth quarter to 157.8 million units, spurred by the release of new products that provided a flood of new electronics shipping last year, according to International Data Corp.
For the full year, smartphone shipment volumes climbed 61.3 percent to 491.4 million units in 2011, higher than IDC’s projected estimate but slower than the 2010 growth rate.
The release of Apple’s iPhone 4S smartphone in the fourth quarter led to record-high shipments for the company, which claimed 23.5 percent of the market.
“Apple’s iPhone 4S played a key role in smartphone growth to capture pent-up demand,” said Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst with IDC.
But rival Samsung made the greatest market share gains year-over-year in 2011, according to IDC. It shipped a record 36 million units in the fourth quarter.
Smartphone shipments rose 75.7 percent in 2010. However, IDC still expects double-digit year-over-year growth in volumes for the foreseeable future.
Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com.
