Samsung Electronics is predicting it will sell 20 million to 25 million smartphones this year. The company also aims to ship 50 million smartphones in 2011, J.K. Shin, the president of Samsung's mobile communications division, told South Korean media outlet EDaily on Friday.

Shin said Samsung's robust smartphone sales predictions are based on the resounding success of the company's Galaxy S series in the Asia-Pacific and North America regions. More than one million handsets based on the Galaxy S platform shipped to AT&T and T-Mobile subscribers during their first 45 days of availability in the United States, the company said.

Verizon Wireless, U.S. Cellular, and Cellular South are all slated to introduce Galaxy S devices in the United States before Christmas. Moreover, on Aug. 31 Sprint Nextel launched the Samsung Epic 4G, which recorded one of the best first-day sales results for any mobile device on the carrier's network. "As we continue to build out our 4G network, more and more of our customers will realize the benefits of these amazing [Samsung Galaxy S] devices and the realities of life at these blazing-fast speeds," said Sprint Vice President Fared Adib on Friday.

High U.S. Expectations

According to IDC, global smartphone sales totaled 63 million units in the second quarter. What's more, Samsung supplanted Motorola as the world's fifth largest smartphone maker by shipping a record number of smartphones. Additionally, the Korea-based handset maker posted its highest smartphone growth rate since the third quarter of 2008, the firm's analysts said.

Nokia led the global smartphone market in the second quarter with a 38.1 percent market share on 24 million unit shipments, IDC's analysts said. Nokia was followed by Research In Motion (17.8 percent, 11.2 million), Apple (13.3 percent, 8.4 million), HTC (7.6 percent, 4.8 million) and Samsung (4.8 percent, three million).

Based on Samsung's 50 million-unit shipment target for 2011, the company seems likely to surpass HTC next year and perhaps even challenge Apple for third place. Research firm iSuppli estimates that Apple will ship 21.7 million iPhone 4 smartphones this year, representing 51 percent of the 42.6 million iPhone sales Apple is expected to reach this year.

Damage To Apple's Brand

Though many industry observers don't think the iPhone 4's antenna problems and supply issues will have a significant impact on iPhone sales for the entire year, they certainly have done some damage to the Apple brand, noted iSuppli Senior Analyst Tina Teng.

"Consumers, questioning Apple's supply-chain management capability, have started looking for alternative devices," Teng said. "In particular, consumers are not satisfied with Apple's response to the antenna issue causing poor reception and dropped calls."

Though this would appear to give Samsung an opening, nothing can be taken for granted in the highly volatile smartphone market. "That more smartphone models will be launched is a given, but just as important is the anticipated launch of several refreshed operating systems," said IDC Senior Research Analyst Ramon Llamas.

Both BlackBerry and Symbian 3 are poised with fresh, yet familiar experiences while Windows Phone 7 promises a complete break from previous versions, Llamas observed. "All these are expected to launch in the second half of 2010, and their reception among end users will indicate their future in this fast-growing segment of the market for 2011 and beyond," he said.

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