Android shipped on more than a billion phones last year

Android shipments continue to grow, accounting for 81% of overall smartphone shipments in the last year. This figure comes from Strategy Analytics, which reports that in 2014, Google’s Android OS became the first smartphone operating system to ship more than a billion units in a single year. For 2014, Android accounted for 1.042 billion units, up from 780 million in 2013. Its total marketshare now stands at 81.2%, compared to 78.9% for 2013.

Overall smartphone shipments hit 1.3 billion in 2014 and Microsoft and Apple both saw an increase in shipments compared to 2013. However, both saw a decline in marketshare, with Microsoft’s 38.8 million units accounting for just 3% of the market, down from the company’s 3.6% marketshare in 2013.

Similarly, Apple snagged 15% of the market in 2014 with 192.7 million shipments but overall marketshare was down .5% over last year. Strategy Analytics credits the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus for Apple’s “re-energized growth” in shipments. Those devices arrived in the second half of the year and the 6 Plus is Apple’s first (and long overdue) crack at the larger device category dominated by the likes of the Galaxy Note.

Microsoft’s lack of major hardware partners and a lagging retail presence in China are key reasons for its ailing mobile OS. At least one of those things could change this year, as Microsoft has promised its own flagship device. That phone is expected to break cover late this summer, alongside an updated version of Windows Phone optimized for interoperability with Windows 10.

[source]Strategy Analytics[/source]