Samsung expects to rob Nokia of top maker title this year

The time of Nokia's unquestionable reign in the mobile phone market is drawing to a close it seems, as the Finns lost the smartphone shipment race last year. Samsung are reportedly gunning for the top, confident they can outsell Nokia in all categories in 2012.

They've beaten their 2010 sales records, moving the impressive 300 million phones in 2011, which seems to set them on the right track. They were on top in terms of smartphone volumes, but still trail Nokia when you consider all phones.

Analysts from Gartner are less certain that the South Koreans can steal the crown, saying that Nokia's strong position in emerging markets will allow it to maintain its lead. Especially, because the growth of the smartphone market is expected to slow down this year, except in emerging markets where Nokia reigns supreme. This is something Samsung will need to address if they really want the top spot, analysts say.

Reuters is predicting Nokia will sell 388 million phones in 2012, with Samsung following close by with 359 million. Their predictions for 2011 were 418 million and 320 million respectively, so predictions aren't always exact.

We'll see how things go. Samsung is pushing forward with Android, Bada and maybe Tizen, while Nokia is making Symbian (now Nokia OS, previously the top OS by market share) play second fiddle to their new love Windows Phone, which both Nokia and Microsoft expect to really pick up this year.

Source