Smart mobile device shipments, which include notebooks, tablets and smart phones, have recorded a 37.4% year-over-year (YoY) increase during the first quarter of 2013 to 308.7 million units, according to a report by the Canalys.
Global tablet shipments led the market with 106.1% year-on-year growth to 41.9 million units, which includes Apple’s 46.4% share of the tablets shipped.
The operating system (OS) market was led by Google’s Android with 59.5% market share, followed by Apple and Microsoft that held 19.3% and 18.1% market shares respectively.
Canalys Senior Analyst Tim Coulling said that the commoditisation of the tablet market has happened sooner than that of the wider PC market, as it was driven by Google and Amazon.
"Profit margins are being squeezed and vendors without a low cost structure will find it hard to compete. A solid range of must-have accessories and a software and services strategy are vital as vendors will increasingly need to make revenue around their devices," Coulling added.
During the quarter over 216.3 million smart phone were shipped, a 47.9% increase, with Android handsets accounting for 75.6% of them, while the Samsung’s shipments went up by 64.3% year-on-year.
For the quarter, notebook PC shipments grew 13.1% to 50.5 million units compared to the corresponding period prior year, as the Western European shipments decreased by 25.2% YoY.
