The Digitimes analytical resource has informed that smartphones market exceeded level of pre-crisis period (2007) for the first time in the first quarter of 2010. During the 1Q 55.2 millions of smartphones were sold, and market growth amounted to 67% (compared to the first quarter of 2009).

Nokia becomes a leader on the market; it shipped 21.4 millions of smartphones and considerably strengthened its position in all the regions, particularly in South America. It is also noteworthy that share of Nokia touch screen models for the first time exceeded 50%. So, mobile software developers should consider this fact as a good sign for their innovative applications.

The second player on the smartphones market is RIM: it sold 10.59 millions of devices in the first quarter. It also managed to improve its position in Latin America: the growth was an impressive (297 percent!!!).
Apple is on the third place with 16% of the market. Last year it had only 11%. We sure that specialists who work at apps development for iPhones are happy for their beloved company .

In the fourth quarter of 2009 world smartphone supply grew by 39% and reached a record peak of 54.4 million devices. Apple was the most active player in the smartphones market. Nokia was still on the first place by the quantity of produced devices (this figure grew to 20.8 million units, while market share was 38.2%). The second place gone to Research in Motion with 10.7 million smartphones. So the market share of the popular BlackBerry smartphone producer was increased to 19.6%.

Such a result shows great future prospects for companies that provide the following services:
• iPhone application programming;
• mobile apps development for BlackBerry platform.

According to the forecasts from business analytics more and more people in the world will gradually switch to smartphones. It means that mobile applications for such platforms as iPhone, BlackBerry, WM and Android will come to be in great demand.

Results for 2009: the companies produced 174.2 million smartphones and it was a 15% increase in deliveries comparing with the past year.

Steve Wozniak admitted in his last interview for NBC Bay Area, that he is a happy owner of the Google Nexus One smartphone. He so wanted to test this new gadget that bought it on the first day of Nexus One sales. Moreover, according to Mr. Wozniak’s words, now Google phone is one of his most favorite gadgets. Although he is still using iPhone as the main phone for communication.

Wozniak said that he regularly buys new models of mobile phones from different popular manufacturers. Besides Google Nexus One he used phones based on such mobile application platforms as iPhone and BlackBerry, also he tested the Motorola Droid Phone.

RIM products caused the most serious complaints from Apple founder. Mr. Wozniak has been using BlackBerry phone for a few months and as a result he has remained dissatisfied with it. And as for Droid and Nexus (which mobile apps were developed on Android OS), he considers them as excellent phones, stressing, however, that not every phone with the Android platform on board will be as good as Nexus One.

The number of Apple iPhone users has exceeded the number of sold mobile devices based on Windows Mobile operating system.

According to a study conducted by the ComScore company, Apple iPhone smartphones are very popular among Americans older than 13 years. Moreover, sales of Apple phones in the U.S. have overtaken the popularity of mobile devices with Windows Mobile OS for the first time in the U.S. market. ComScore experts get the following results in October of this year:

• 8.9 million of iPhone users vs 7.1 million of WM-smartphones.

This ‘’alignment of forces’’ should be taken into account by mobile software development companies. Especially because such a result can’t be considered as fortuitousness. The number of Apple smartphone lovers is growing at high rates this year:

• 5.2 million of people in February;
• 5.7 million of people in May;
• 6.6 million of people in July.

So the popularity of mobile apps development for iPhones is growing at corresponding rates.

But a top position hasn’t changed. The Research In Motion company with its BlackBerry remains as undisputed leader in the U.S. smartphone market.  The number of RIM customers has reached 14.9 million in October. So application development for BlackBerry can be considered as strategic direction for many software companies.