Android gathers 81% smartphone market share in Q3, Windows Phone sees huge growth

The latest market share statistics from Strategy Analytics are in, and unsurprisingly Android is still the king of the hill, dominating the global smartphone market with a whopping 81.3% share. However, the best results for Q3 2013 lay in the Windows Phone camp, with Microsoft seeing its share double from 2.1% to 4.1% year-on-year on the back of 10.2 million device shipments.

Apple's market share dipped year-on-year for Q3 this year, despite the company selling more phones than the same period last year. Meanwhile, BlackBerry continues its dive into obsolescence, having taken a significant market share and device shipments hit.

Strategy Analytics: Global smartphone OS shipments and market share (units in millions)

Operating System	3Q13 Shipments	3Q13 Market Share	3Q12 Shipments	3Q12 Market Share	Year-over-Year Change
Android	204.4	81.3%	129.6	75.0%	57.7%
iOS	33.8	13.4%	26.9	15.6%	25.6%
Windows Phone	10.2	4.1%	3.7	2.1%	176%
BlackBerry OS	2.5	1.0%	7.4	4.3%	-66.2%
Others	0.5	0.2%	5.2	3.0%	-90.3%
Total	251.4	100%	172.8	100%	45.5%

Strategy Analytics notes that Android will find it hard to grow its market share any further, especially with the recent launch of the iPhone 5s and 5c. However, Apple won't reclaim its share easily, as the high-end Android-powered Nexus 5 selling for just $349 off-contract is sure to attract a wide range of buyers.

Android gathers 81% smartphone market share in Q3, Windows Phone sees huge growth