Based on the sheer number of people in China, you knew it had to happen sooner or later.
Researcher Strategy Analytics says China is now the world's largest smartphone market by volume after recording 24 million units shipped in the third quarter of 2011. That eclipsed U.S. shipments (23 million) for the first time.
"Smartphone shipments grew 58 percent sequentially to reach a record 23.9 million units in China during Q3 2011," said Linda Sui, analyst at Strategy Analytics. "In contrast, smartphone shipments fell 7 percent sequentially to reach 23.3 million units in the United States. China has overtaken the United States for the first time to become the world's largest smartphone market by volume."
One reason shipments dropped in the U.S. was anticipation of Apple's latest iPhone – the 4S – being released in October.
"China's rapid growth has been driven by an increasing availability of smartphones in retail channels, aggressive subsidizing by operators of high-end models like the Apple iPhone, and an emerging wave of low-cost Android models from local Chinese brands such as ZTE," said Tom Kang, director at Strategy Analytics.
As for manufacturers, Nokia is king of the heap in China, with 28 percent share. HTC is No. 1 in the U.S. with nearly a quarter (24 percent) of the market. The U.S. is still the largest smartphone market in terms of revenue.
