New research shows that the Samsung Galaxy S smartphones are outselling Apple iPhones in Japan. The research applies to Q1 2011 and confirms that Android smartphones are outselling iOS smartphones in Japan.

"Japan was not the only market affected by changes in the handset vendor rankings," said Linda Sui, Analyst at Strategy Analytics ( above ). "In China, Huawei surpassed most foreign brands, such as LG and Motorola. Huawei even leaped ahead of local rivals like Lenovo and ZTE, entering the top-5 vendor list for the first time. The growth from smartphones and 3G devices is a serious disruptive force in Asia right now."

Tom Kang, Director of the Handset Country Share Tracker service at Strategy Analytics, said, "The Japanese market had always been tough to crack for foreign vendors as all previous attempts had failed. With smartphones, things are changing rapidly. First, Apple shook up the market with the iPhone, and now, for the first time, Samsung, is shipping more handsets than most local vendors, such as NEC, Casio and Kyocera."

More details here.