Counting down Europe's hottest smartphones
The rapid uptake of smartphones has surprised many within the industry, with the entry of Apple's iPhone being judged as a major turning point that left other handset vendors completely flatfooted.
Realising that the game had changed irrevocably, Nokia, RIM and the Asian manufacturers have slowly begun to claw their way back into contention with smartphones that are starting to offer some competition to the all-conquering iPhone.
From a European perspective, the iPhone set the benchmark for all other handset manufacturers, and the company was able to negotiate very favourable distribution deals with operators scrambling to sign exclusive supply contracts. The success of this product, measured in new subscribers and surging data traffic, has been beyond the wildest dreams of those able to secure an iPhone distribution deal, and misery for those that failed.
However, the European landscape has been flattened somewhat following a ruling by the French courts that other operators be allowed to sell the iPhone, which has been followed by Apple relaxing its exclusivity arrangements and allowing other operators access to this Holy Grail handset.
The almost overwhelming hype and marketing that continues to surround the iPhone can easily disguise the fact that relatively small volumes of the device have been shipped into Europe. But this doesn't stop the handset being judged as the clear winner of the smartphone ranking in Europe, while other contenders battle to overtake this upstart.
So how have the rest of the market's handset makers responded to the iPhone? What are the top smartphones in the European market today? Check out our guide through the hype, featuring commentary from Tim Shepherd of Canalys and Winsdor Holden of Juniper Research.
