Apple Claims Nearly 27% of World's LTE Device Market

Apple Claims Nearly 27% of World's LTE Device Market

Apple's late entry into the LTE market did not stop it from claiming a significant chunk of share in Q3 2012. 

According to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency, Apple was able to capture 26.7% market share with its iPhone 5 despite lacking the first-mover advantage. Although Samsung continues to lead with 40% market share, it dropped 10.9% from the previous quarter. Other handset makers such as LG Electronics and Motorola also saw their market shares declined. 

Overall, there is a huge increase in LTE usage thanks to the roaring sales of Apple and Samsung mobile devices. Strategy Analytics predicts that there will be about 50 million LTE users in the world by end of 2012 compared to 9 million at the end of 2011. The research firm also stated that Asia seems to be a hotspot of LTE usage.

It is expected that Apple will gain more market share in the next few quarters as its cellular models of the iPad mini and fourth-generation iPad just hit retail shelves recently. However, competition will be stiff as Nokia is making a comeback with its Lumia 920 and Lumia 820, and more LTE devices are likely to be released in the coming year. If you are shopping for a LTE smartphone, do check out our article where we round-up the 4G LTE-enabled mobile devices available in the market.

Source: Yonhap News Agency via All Things Apple