Strategy Analytics: China leapfrogs US to become world's top smartphone market

The winds of tech consumerism are changing course. More specifically, they're heading east. According to the latest Q3 figures from Strategy Analytics, China is now the world's largest smartphone market by volume, overtaking the US for the first time. According to the research firm, smartphone shipments in China reached a record high of 23.9 million units during the third quarter of this year, up 58 percent from Q2. Compare that with the US, which saw shipments decline by seven percent over the quarter, to 23.3 million units. The Boston-based firm attributed much of China's growth to a spike in cheaper, Android-based handsets from companies like ZTE, as well as a flowering of subsidized higher-end models, like the iPhone. Nokia leads the way within the People's Republic, accounting for 28 percent of all quarterly shipments, followed by Samsung, with an 18 percent share. Find more quotes and charts in the press release after the break, or hit up the source link below for the full report.