Shelly Palmer

Mobile market shrinks; Gartner blames economy, iPhone 5

iPhone 5

The worldwide mobile phone market shrank in the second quarter of this year, with sales falling by 2.3 percent compared to the same quarter a year ago, according to research company Gartner. The reason for the decline was the “challenging economic environment,” Gartner said, as well as phone owners holding out for high-profile device launches later this year such as Apple’s iPhone 5. Gartner warned that the third quarter may be “weaker than usual” for Apple depending on when exactly the iPhone 5 is released. The device is expected to be announced in September and launched a month or two later. Read the full story at CNET.