Global smartphone sales grew 47 per cent in Q4

Latest Gartner figures show Apple at the top of the tree in terms of smartphone sales, and third place in the mobile vendor league table

Global smartphone sales mushroomed 47 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2011, driven by demand for Apple's iPhone, according to the latest figures from Gartner.

Smartphone sales reached 149 million units for the quarter, with total-year sales reaching 472 million units, accounting for 31 per cent of all mobile device sales, a 58 per cent increase from 2010.

Gartner attributed the rise to record sales of iPhones, propelling Apple to the position of third-largest mobile phone vendor in the world, ahead of LG.

Gartner also crowned Apple the world's top smartphone vendor, with a market share of 23.8 per cent in Q4 2011, and the top smartphone vendor for 2011 as a whole with 19 per cent market share.

Roberta Cozza, principal research analyst at Gartner, said: "Western Europe and north America led most of the smartphone growth for Apple during the fourth quarter of 2011. In western Europe the spike in iPhone sales in the fourth quarter saved the overall smartphone market after two consecutive quarters of slow sales."

Samsung also further cemented its position at the top of the market, with LG, Sony Ericsson, Motorola and RIM recording disappointing results.

The stragglers were also exposed to a stronger threat from the "mid-range and low end" of the smartphone market, Gartner warned, with ZTE and Huawei gaining share during the quarter.