A new report released by the International Data Corporation said smartphone shipments volume increased more than 25 percent in the third quarter of 2014 globally. Additionally, the report discovered smartphone shipments reached more than 300 million units for the second quarter in a row.

One of the takeaways from the third quarter was the major announcement from Apple, which released its new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones to the market. According to IDC, the company sold more than 10 million smartphones through the weekend of the new iPhone 6, which accounted for the largest third quarter for Apple ever recorded.

While the new iPhone 6 devices were in high demand, the IDC report found that strong interest in the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5C still lingered, which actually represented the majority of smartphone sales for Apple in the third quarter.

Average device cost down
According to the CSS Global Mobile Phone Forecast, the third quarter was the first time in four years when the average cost of a mobile phone declined. The more affordable costs of mobile devices increased smartphone global sales by 33 percent. Marina Koytcheva, director of forecasting at CCS Insight, explained that almost every smartphone manufacturer is feeling the wrath of Apple and is scrambling to compete with the mobile phone giant.

"Over the last four years, we saw sustained growth in the average selling price of mobile phones as consumers in developed markets embraced smartphones, in many cases fuelled by Apple's ascendency," said Koytcheva, according to the report. "This transition is almost complete, and the biggest volumes have shifted to growth markets where lower priced smartphones dominate, and driving average prices down."

Apple not the only company seeing growth
While all of the attention is on Apple and its iPhones, South Korean-based LG reported an 87 percent profit from the third quarter of 2014 compared to the same time last year, The Associated Press reported. The quarter was a record high for LG in smartphone sales as well.

The electronics company explained that its smartphone shipments increased 40 percent from last year, which totaled 16.8 million units sold, the source reported. Also, the company said it would continue its "two-track" system where it will continue to emphasize high-end G3 sales and its mid-tier L series in emerging markets.

Samsung still at the top
The boost in LG sales is closely battling its fellow South Korean opponent, Samsung, which recently reported a decline in smartphone business, the AP reported. According to the IDC report, Samsung was the only major smartphone manufacturer besides Apple, Xiaomi, Lenovo and LG to record a decline in shipment volume. However, the company still remained the largest smartphone provider in the market.

Ryan Reith, program director of the Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker for IDC, explained that while rumors of a slower mobile phone market surfaced, shipments showed record-breaking volumes across the world.

"We've finally reached a point where most developed markets are experiencing single-digit growth while emerging markets are still growing at more than 30 percent collectively," Reith said in the IDC report. "In these markets, smartphone price points are making mobile computing possible where we once expected feature phones to remain dominant. This is great news for overall volumes, but the challenge has now become how to make money on devices that are quickly becoming commodity products. Outside of Apple, many are struggling to do this."

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