Trends Report

2009: The Year Of High-End Phones

Smartphones And Quick Messaging Devices Make Up A Third Of US Phones

January 14th, 2010
Charles Golvin, null
Charles Golvin
With contributors:
J. P. Gownder , Laura Wiramihardja

Summary

As 2009 drew to a close, many in the press were keen to label it "the year of the smartphone." That's true, but it's not the whole story: The past year saw massive growth in mobile phones that carry a richer set of features and enable a better data experience. While smartphone growth maintained the pace set in 2008, the category of quick messaging devices (QMDs) — QWERTY and/or touchscreen devices powered by lower-end proprietary software — continued to outpace the growth of smartphones. These two categories combined rose from 20% of mobile subscribers to nearly one in three. Despite Apple's iPhone growing its share of the smartphone market at a 20% clip, RIM's BlackBerry maintained its dominant share.

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