We use our SpecTRAX online database to indicate popular smartphones. We found that in the first half of 2012 smartphones from Nokia and RIM joined those from Apple and Samsung as most widely available.

The complete top 20 list of global smartphones ranked according to their shelf-share are shown below.

Samsung pipped Apple to the top spot with the Galaxy S II i9100 (16GB), closely followed by Apple’s iPhone 4S 16 GB.  Impressively the Galaxy SII is available from every network operator and retail channel analyzed by the SpecTRAX team.

Our report also summarizes the key specifications of the top 20 smartphones including display size, camera resolution, processor speed and operating systems.

Over 50% of devices profiled were Android; however iOS, Windows Phone, Blackberry OS and Symbian all held their ground in the top 20 smartphone list.

The key finds of the report include;

• Samsung’s Galaxy S II i9100 (16 GB) shows universal availability (only absent from the iStore shelves); the Apple iPhone 4S 16 GB comes in a close second.
• Nokia’s Lumia 800 gained traction early in its lifecycle being available through 77% of global channels just months after launch;  beating Samsung’s heavily publicised Galaxy S III i9300 16 GB launched in Q2 2012.
• HTC’s One X quad-core device (launched at MWC in February 2012) came in 12th place showing across 2/3 of shelves; an impressive positioning for this ultra-high-end product.
• The HTC Wildfire S and RIM Blackberry Curve 2 8520 entry level smartphones continue to be available from more than 60% of channels despite their age.

Samsung has the most devices in the ranking with five smartphones in the top 10 by shelf-share.  When the list is expanded to the top 20 widely available smartphones then devices from Sony, HTC and Motorola feature as popular in network operators product portfolios.

The data in the SpecTRAX online database is constantly updated and customers use it to track global and regional markets in terms of the popularity of handset and the associated specifications of those devices. This is particularly powerful information for product managers and development teams.
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SpecTRAX, a comparison tool from Strategy Analytics, records the specifications of new cellphone handsets and tablets as they are announced; tracking availability through over 300 carrier and retail channels. 

Click here to try the SpecTRAX for yourself
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Alternatively CONTACT THE TEAM to arrange a SpecTRAX demo.

Steve Entwistle

Clients can access the full details in the report “Results Are In: Samsung’s Galaxy S II was the most widely-available device in 1H 2012” ranking.

SpecTRAX availability and shelf-share data revealed Nokia's Lumia 710 in poll position for smartphones launched in Europe during Q1 2012. This means that during its launch quarter, the Lumia 710 made its way onto 33% of European carriers. The Sony Xperia S (27%) and LG Prada K2 (22%) came in second and third place, with the Lumia 800 featuring on 17% of operator's shelves; meaning Nokia's new launches were in the top 4 smartphones by shelf-share at launch. Download SpecTRAX's latest complimentary extract: Most Widely Available NEW Smartphones in Europe Q1 2012 for the full story, summary spec details, and the methodology.

The analysis revealed European Carriers Top 20 newly released handsets were from Samsung (with 6 models) and HTC (5 models). Nokia, Sony, LG and RIM all featured 2 new smartphones a piece. The Apple iPhone 4S, Samsung Galaxy SIII and Nokia Lumia 900 did not feature in this report as they were launched either side of Q1 2012 in Europe.

SpecTRAX is a tactical database which tracks detailed handset specifications for smartphones, mobile phones, tablets and USB dongles. There are now over 14,000 unique models listed in the database. Click here to try the SpecTRAX database for yourself, or CONTACT THE TEAM to arrange a SpecTRAX demo.

SpecTRAX contains detailed spec analysis for over 13,000 handsets including mobile phones, tablets and 2100 smartphones to date. The latest complimentary SpecTRAX insight The Smartphone Shift tracks product annoucements since Q1 2010 to Q1 2012 and demonstrates an interesting trend in product type annoucements and the evolution of individual OEM portfolios. The impact of trades shows such as CES and MWC on Q1 annoucements each year are also discussed.

Smartphone and tablet announcements are on the up, whereas mobile phones (untargeted feature phones and mobile voice) annoucements have fallen significantly since their peak in 2010, and are now the remit of budget manufaturers. Smartphones and tablets share common technologies and have similar developmental pathways which result in two products for the price of one.

Interestingly, larger OEMs such as Samsung now show a clear preference for smartphones and tablets over mobile phones. The mobile phone appears to have settled into a niche for new OEMs gaining traction in developing countries, but for how long?

SpecTRAX is a tactical database which tracks detailed handset specifications for smartphones, mobile phones, tablets and USB dongles. Currently there are over 13,000 unique models listed in the database. If you want to try the SpecTRAX database for yourself, just click HERE or contact the team to arrange a SpecTRAX demo.

Despite market share trends, network operators are still backing Nokia.  The simple fact is that Mobile Network Operators need week-by-week to stock their shelves with the most popular handsets, and when it comes to smartphones, the majority are voting for Nokia with Apple a very close second.

How do we know this?…. because we closely track the portfolios of 140 mobile network operators in 30 countries worldwide using SpecTRAX*, Strategy Analytics' mobile handset tracking tool.

The detail of the shelf-share tussle between Nokia's N8 handset and Apple's iPhone 4 (plus which other handsets are chasing those leaders) is contained in Stuart Robinson's in-depth analysis in his latest 'Insight'.  Read this in full by clicking HERE.

If you want to find out more about SpecTRAX, just click here.