Android rules smartphone market during first part of 2012

Six out of every 10 smartphones shipped in the first part of 2012 ran Android, two ran iOS and the other two were a tossup, according to a new report released Thursday.

Android, Google’s smartphone operating system, held a 59% market share during the first quarter of this year, which gave it a year-to-year growth of 145%, according to the International Data Corp.

During the first few months of 2012, nearly 90 million Android phones were shipped -- more than twice as many as those by Google’s closest competitor, Apple.

While iOS didn’t come close to any of Android’s results, it still had a solid showing. Apple shipped 35.1 million units in the quarter, giving it a 23% market share and a year growth of nearly 89%.

Together, Android and iOS continue to lead and very much control the smartphone market.

Coming in a distant third was neither BlackBerry OS or Windows Phone 7, but rather Symbian, the system preferred by Nokia before its recent shift to Windows Phone. Though Symbian was third with a 6.8% share, it also posted the largest year-to-year decline, with a 61% decrease.

BlackBerry OS landed in the fourth spot, shipping nearly 10 million units, a nearly 30% decline over the last year.

Linux was in fifth place, and in the sixth spot was Windows Phone, which only accounted for 2.2% of the market. More than 3 million Windows Phones shipped in the first part of 2012, and growth over the year was almost 27%.

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