Android topples Symbian as top smart phone

Google's Android dethroned Nokia's Symbian as the most popular smart phone platform in the last quarter of 2010, ending a reign that began with the birth of the industry 10 years ago.

Research firm Canalys said on Monday phone makers sold 32.9 million Android-equipped phones in the last quarter, roughly seven times more than a year ago, compared with Symbian's sales of 31 million.

Meanwhile, in the United States, The NPD Group said Android phones now comprise more than half of smart phones, with a 53 percent share, although Apple's iPhone 4 remains the best-selling phone.

The research firm also said even with Android winning the mobile operating system race, it was Apple's iPhone 4 that led the ranking of mobile phone handsets purchased by U.S. consumers, and that for the first time, all of the top-five handset models purchased by consumers in the fourth quarter of 2010 were smart phones, vs. feature phones.

Here are the rankings for the U.S. of the top five cell phones, according to The NPD Group:

1.    Apple iPhone 4 (Apple iOS)
2.    Motorola Droid X (Android OS)
3.    HTC EVO 4G  (Android OS)
4.    Apple iPhone 3GS (Apple iOS)
5.    Motorola Droid 2 (Android OS)

Missing from the top five list: BlackBerrys, made by Research In Motion, and for years, considered the Cadillac of smart phones; phones using Microsoft's Windows mobile operating system; and those using the Palm WebOS.

The global landmark shared by Canalys piles pressure on Nokia as it struggles to reassert itself at the top end of the mobile handsets market.

The success of the open-source Android operating system, which has become the standard for most phone makers, leaves Google well placed as cell phones are due to surpass computers as the devices used for accessing the Web.

Hit models from Samsung Electronics, HTC and LG Electronics helped Android in the quarter, and telecom operators in many regions aggressively promoted Android phones.

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"We have seen some strong products from a number of vendors," said Canalys analyst Tim Shepherd.

In the last quarter Symbian suffered from the troubles of its owner and main user, Nokia.

Last week Nokia warned of a grim start to 2011 after rivals ate even more of its smart phone market share, highlighting the scale of the turnaround task facing its new boss.

Stephen Elop, who took over as chief executive in September, will unveil his plan to revamp Nokia's strategy on Feb. 11.

Elop said last week he aimed to reopen markets such as the United States and flagged possible change in software strategy in comments that experts said suggested Nokia could introduce new smart phone models using Android.

Canalys said the overall smart phone market grew 89 percent from a year ago in the fourth quarter, with all vendors in total selling 101.2 million smart phones.