U.S. Cell Phone Sales Rise 14% to $2.4 Billion

U.S. cell phone sales grew 14% year-over-year to $2.4 billion, or 33 million units, in the second quarter of 2007, according to just-released research by The NPD Group; however, the total number of number of handsets sold represented a 17% drop from the previous quarter, as summer is traditionally a slow season for cell phone retailers.

According to the firm, 28% of phones purchased in Q2 were actually free due to promotions and rebates and an equal percentage cost less than $50. Only around 4% of handsets sold in the second quarter cost consumers more than $250 — indicating that models like the Apple iPhone continue to be the exception, not the rule, of the U.S. cell phone industry.

Popular features in Q2 included Bluetooth (70% of phones sold were Bluetooth compatible), music players (45% could play music) and smartphones. Smartphone/PDAs consisted of 11% of the total mix.

The most popular cell phone brand in the U.S. continues to be Motorola, which accounted for 32% of all cell phones sold in the U.S. last quarter. The world-leader Nokia came in 4th in the U.S. market with only 10%. Also rounding out the top 5 cell phone brands were Samsung (18%), LG Electronics (17%), and Sanyo (4%).