There are various reports out today, detailing the incredible growing popularity of smartphone devices. Firstly, iPhone sales in the UK are predicted to rise by an amazing 195% this year, taking Apple’s share of the UK market to 7.9%, with forecasts suggesting that by the end of 2012 the iPhone will account for one in ten of mobile handsets for UK users.

Pretty impressive numbers, and the same is to be said for Google’s increasingly popular Android OS. Available on a wide variety of devices, the Android operating system is available on handsets from leading manufacturers such as HTC, Samsung and Motorola. According to Google CEO Eric Shmidt, 200,000 Android devices are being activated worldwide, every day.

But topping even those impressive figures, the Symbian foundation claims that over 300,000 Symbian powered devices were sold every day during Q2 this year, equivalent to three phones every second. This comes in the face of growing reports that the Symbian OS is generally poorly perceived by the general public, in comparison to other smartphone products from RIM, Google and Apple.

What is clear from the above is that the smartphone sector is experiencing phenomenal growth, and it seems that the sales show no sign of slowing down. One of the key buying decisions facing consumers these days, is just which smartphone platform to go for, and the main driving force behind that decision is the apps available across the platforms. Whilst some applications operate across operating systems, there is a strong selection that are platform specific, and for some this may be the main motivator in their eventual buying choice.