ABI Research has posted its report on the smartphone market in the final quarter of 2013 and according to it total shipments grew 38% Year-on-Year and 25% sequentially to 287.8 million units. iOS was the big winner in the three month period, increased its sales over Q3 of 2013 by 51% to snatch 18% of the market.

In comparison Android shipments grew just 20% sequentially, which caused its market share to dip to 77% from 80% in Q3. In fact, growth was mostly driven by what the analyst company calls AOSP devices – those that used a modified version of the Google platform and don’t have access to the Google services.

Windows Phone was in a similar position to Android, only managing to squeeze 19% of extra sales in the quarter including the holiday season. Even the multiple price drops didn’t help BlackBerry 10 improve its position as sales continued to slide, but surprisingly the old BlackBerry handsets saw an increase in sales. It still looks very much like game over for the Canadian manufacturer at this point, though and if the company’s to try and regain its positions it will have to start from scratch.

Comparing the current numbers to those for the same period of 2012, tells a slightly different story. Windows Phone is the quickest gainer, managing to more than double its sales, while Android gained 51%. iOS stagnated, adding just 7% to its sales, while BlackBerry saw its shipments fall to half what they were.

Source | Via