Dubai: Samsung Electronics witnessed another record quarter for its telecommunications business in the Gulf.

The biggest smartphone manufacturer recorded a 214 per cent increase year-on-year in mobile-device sales for 2012 due to Galaxy S3, Note 2 and comprehensive portfolio of mid-range mobiles and media tablets.

In the UAE alone, Samsung recorded a 340 per cent increase in year-on-year within mobile communication devices sales and according to the GfK data, one of the world’s leading market research organisations, Samsung held 40.2 per cent of the global market share as of December 2012.

“The announcement at the end of 2012, that the Galaxy S III had surpassed 30 million global sales in approximately five months, is testament to the smartphone’s quality, design and innovation and reinforced consumer’s beliefs that it is the best in-class smartphone on the market,” Young Woo Jun, Director, Telecommunications Group, Samsung Gulf Electronics, told Gulf News.

For 2013, Samsung expects the demand for smartphones and tablet PCs to increase significantly, while the growth for feature phones is expected to remain static.

“The Galaxy S3 sales rose fourfold than Apple’s iPhone in the UAE and the company had a market share of 30 per cent in the UAE last year,” Hamza Saleem, senior research analyst at IDC, told Gulf News.

He said the South Korean company is expected to maintain its top ranking in the smartphone segment for another year. Too many models will be vying for the smartphone race this year with BlackBerry Z10 and Q10 joining the fray.

Emerging markets and the continued market adoption of LTE (Long-Term Evolution) wireless telecommunications technology “will also contribute to the growth of the smartphone market this year,” Young said.

“2012 has been an outstanding year, globally as well as regionally as customers across the Gulf have responded positively to the launch of our flagship products, the GALAXY SIII and the Galaxy Note II,” Young Woo Jun said in a statement.

“We expect smartphones and tablets to continue driving the market share in 2013 as we continue to launch new and innovative products that are in-line with our customer’s expectations in the region.” He added.

The company’s mobile communications devices generated worldwide quarterly revenues of $25.47 billion (Dh93.53 billion), a four per cent increase compared with the previous quarter.