Hasta La Gadget!

Microsoft must sometimes feel like its lead in the game market is a Pyrrhic victory. The Xbox 360 once again topped the NPD Group’s hardware charts in July, claiming a near-majority 49 percent market share of consoles — but the 203,000 units sold were a steep drop from the 257,000 units that traded hands in June, and a far cry from the glory days that would have given a victory more meaning. Nintendo and Sony haven’t shared their own figures, although the analyst group notes that only Nintendo’s 3DS and DSi had any kind of increase in the month. The industry as a whole was unmistakably feeling the combined effects of the pre-holiday doldrums and a console generation that’s long in the tooth: hardware revenue was down 32 percent in the month to $150.7 million, while the games in question saw revenue dip 23 percent to $260.7 million. If you need a culprit, earlier reports for the second quarter had credited similar shifts to sales of physical game copies declining faster than digital sales could replace them. Hope remains in the usual fall spike; even so, the July figures suggest the big three platforms might be living on borrowed time.

Filed under: Gaming

NPD: Xbox 360 ruled a steadily declining video game empire in July originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Aug 2012 16:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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According to NPD DisplaySearch, Apple and Samsung control more than half of the American smartphone market. The second-quarter figures reveal that while contract phone sales are flatter than month-old soda, those for pre-paid handsets have shot up by 91 percent compared to the same quarter last year. The upswing is credited to last year’s flagship handsets falling down the price ladder, snaring lower-income customers who were unable to afford to be early adopters. Cornering that element of the market has helped the battling duo increase their sales by 43 percent, leaving the rest of the technology pantheon scraping around for crumbs. Speaking of which, HTC is a distant third, having 15 percent of the market, while Motorola (12 percent) and LG (six percent) round out the top five.

Continue reading NPD: Apple, Samsung control 55 percent of the smartphone market, prepaid sales up 91 percent

Filed under: Cellphones

NPD: Apple, Samsung control 55 percent of the smartphone market, prepaid sales up 91 percent originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Aug 2012 15:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google’s Senior Vice President of Chrome & Apps Sundar Pichai confirmed to the crowd back at D10 that Chrome browser use was soaring — particularly in the consumer space — and StatCounter’s latest data most definitely backs that up. The newest report, ending July 2012, shows the Chrome creeping up to 33.8 percent worldwide from 32.8 percent in June. Internet Explorer is sitting at 32 percent, while Firefox is seen slipping a bit to 23.7 percent; meanwhile, Apple’s Safari picks up the Participation Award with 7.1 percent. As The Next Web points out, it’s also worth nothing that Chrome is doing particularly well in Europe, South America and Asia, while IE is still charging in the UK, US and Down Under. Granted, StatCounter is hardly the end-all when it comes to browser usage; that said, it’s definitely useful to get a general idea of which browsers are moving in which direction, and it’s certainly astonishing to see a piece of software that didn’t exist four years ago already claiming such a significant piece of the pie.

Google Chrome claims one-third of global browser share, according to StatCounter originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Aug 2012 13:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’re starting to see a distinct shift in US smartphone market share that leaves Android having to share the spotlight. ComScore’s results for this past June have Google hitting a new high of 51.6 percent share, which still gives it something to crow about — that’s both a small increase over a month earlier and a return to the 51 percent mark. However, Android is still competing with an iOS platform that’s been growing at a healthy rate, reaching 32.4 percent of the American space. The fuel for both sides comes from an all too familiar decline in BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows share. Samsung is still in the top spot as far as manufacturers, although it’s shrinking where Apple and HTC are on the way up. We’ll be looking to see how much the Galaxy S III affects the numbers during the summer, but less patient observers can get the manufacturer results after the break and the full scoop on current market share at the source.

Continue reading ComScore: Android back above 51 percent of US share, iOS still growing briskly

Filed under: Cellphones

ComScore: Android back above 51 percent of US share, iOS still growing briskly originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Aug 2012 12:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IDC’s latest figures offer some predictable reading. More phones are being sold than ever before; 406 million units were sold in Q2, against 401.8 million in the same period last year — with a 42 percent increase in smartphone sales. The winners? Perennial court antagonists, Samsung and Apple, with the duo doubling their combined market share over the last two years. Samsung maintains its lead, reaching over 50 million phones sold — and a new quarterly sales record — while Apple saw a quarter-over-quarter decline, as buyers presumably wait for Cupertino’s latest iteration, or go elsewhere. Nokia, meanwhile, had another “transitional” quarter, with sales of both Symbian and MeeGo devices shrinking, although its Windows Phones proved stronger. According to IDC‘s figures, Nokia and Microsoft’s team-up handset sales have doubled since last quarter. HTC misses out on a top three spot, but its fortunes appear to have improved over the last two quarters, with the IDC pointing the finger at a more streamlined product range from the Taiwan manufacturer. ZTE continues to nip at its heels, reaching the top five thanks to strong entry-level smartphone sales in China, while continuing to inch onto US shores. If you’re looking for a full breakdown of all phones sold, dumb and otherwise, read up at the source below.

Filed under: Cellphones

IDC: Samsung and Apple ship almost half of all smartphones, but Korean manufacturer maintains lead originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 03:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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