Looking for another recession-proof technology to sell or integrate into customer sites? Smartphone unit sales-including units from Nokia, the Apple iPhone, the Google Android-based phone from T-Mobile and RIM’s BlackBerry, among others-climbed to more than 36.4 million units worldwide, a 12.7 percent increase from the same period a year ago, according to a new report from Gartner.
That compares with sales of standard mobile phones, which fell 8.6 percent year over year in Q1, the market research company reports. Gartner says the channel increased its efforts to reduce inventory during Q1 in an effort to minimize capital investment in response to low consumer confidence.
Click here to read about Tech Data’s new Apple Lab for iPhone, iPod Touch and Apple computer integration demonstrations.Gartner says that smartphone sales represented 13.5 percent of all mobile device sales in Q1 2009, compared with 11 percent in Q1 2008. Services and applications helped drive the success of smartphones, according to Gartner.
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