Market researcher International Data Corporation () on Thursday released the latest findings from its survey, and the news was stellar for Google and its mobile hardware partners. The global smartphone market grew a healthy 50-percent year over year in the second quarter of 2010 (2Q10), with much of that growth coming from mobile device vendors using Google's Android operating system.

Attack of the Androids

In IDC's Top 10 vendor rankings for 2Q10, Google's Android partners, including HTC and Samsung, posted the highest growth rates. Even more dramatic is the fact that four Android vendors in top 10 list had year-over-year growth rates topping 100 percent.

Not surprisingly, HTC shipped more Android devices than any other supplier last quarter. The Taiwan-based smartphone manufacturer has quickly risen to prominence in the high-end mobile market by launching several well-received handsets, including the and .

"Emerging smartphone suppliers, such as HTC, that are allied closely with Google gained share at the expense of the historic top smartphone players last quarter," said IDC analyst Kevin Restivo in a statement. "This is largely a result of greater consumer interest in smartphones generally and Android devices in particular."