IDC says mobile device shipments up over five years

Just over two million mobile phone devices have been shipped into Australia in the first quarter of 2008 and 28 percent of those products were converged mobile devices.

Mark Novosel, market analyst, telecommunications at IDC, said it expects that by 2012 converged devices will account for almost 50 percent of all mobile devices shipped in Australia.

"Australia's fascination with GPS shows no signs of slowing. Consequently, Apple's new 3G iPhone has reacted to demand and will satisfy eagerly awaiting consumers," he said.

According to Novosel, being a HSDPA device with GPS, coupled with Apple's renowned design, the iPhone 3G will see strong initial demand and by the end of 2012 IDC expects Apple to have shipped in excess of 1.31M iPhones to Australia.

“It wouldn't be unusual to experience stock shortages in the initial months after launch and given that the HTC Diamond and Blackberry Bold should be launching shortly after, frustrated consumers may quickly opt for other comparable devices," he said.

Novosel claims that pivotal features driving the converged device market include user interface design and the use of touch-screens. "People are after an immersive, rich and highly interactive mobile experience. It is no wonder we are seeing so much innovation around the user interface, with smooth flowing graphics, multi-touch and gesture-based control among the key innovations leading touch-screen user interface designs.”

IDC's Q108 Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker also revealed that year on year shipments of mobile devices have increased 39.2 percent while Australia's mobile replacement rate is expected to exceed 42.9 percent in 2008, up from 40.7 percent in 2007.

Total 2008 shipments are expected to surpass 2007 and Q4 '07 saw a rapid handset boom due to Telstra's Next G migration.

According to Novosel, Q4 '08 is expected to fall short of last year's highs, however full year 2008 shipments are expected to exceed 2007 by 6.4 percent, fuelled by a flurry of advanced and exciting new devices in the second half of the year and the launch of Optus and Vodafone's national 3G networks.

“iPhone 3G to stir up the market. Apple's newly announced 3G iPhone is expected to take 7.38 percent of the converged device market by the end of 2012, as Australians continue to splash out on feature-rich converged devices. Further portfolio diversification and revolutionary new models could see this figure surpassed,” he said.

Nokia maintains market dominance at 51.9 percent. Despite only minor changes in its product portfolio and a slight slip in shipments, Nokia has managed to maintain market share above 50 percent for a second consecutive quarter. Compact and stylish devices remained most popular, and three of the top five Nokia devices were converged, an increase of one from Q4 2007, claimed Novosel.

GPS remains on top of consumers wish lists. Nokia's 6110 Navigator continues to outsell 99.4 percent of all mobile devices on the market, despite being available in Australia for almost a year. Strong demand is expected to continue until the introduction of its successor, the Nokia 6210 Navigator, later this year. Other vendors such as HTC, Samsung and Sony Ericsson are also focusing more on GPS-enabled devices. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter