The popularity of Android-based mobiles is soaring in the UK with Android handsets now accounting for a fifth of all smartphone sales, according to new figures.
A study by research firm Gfk Retail and Technology found that Android phones experienced a fourfold increase in sales between mid-March and mid-April.
Its figures showed that mobiles using the Google software accounted for 12.3 per cent of all mobile phone contract sales in the week ending April 18, compared with just 3 per cent in the last week of March.
This helped increase Android’s share of the UK mobile market from 1.6 per cent to 6.7 per cent during the same period.
Sales have been driven by the growing number of Android devices available on the market, including the HTC Desire, Legend and Hero smartphones, the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, Samsung’s Galaxy Portal (i5700) and the new Nexus One device from Google, which was released through Vodafone last week.
A spokesman for Gfk said: “More and more of the major handset manufacturers are viewing Android as a useful solution and using it in their smartphones “.
Further Android offerings from Sony Ericsson, Samsung and LG are set to be released in the UK over the coming weeks.
