It Ain't No iPhone: Microsoft Sells 40,000 Windows Phone 7 Smartphones On First Day

On Monday, HTC and Samsung each launched Windows Phone 7 smartphones on AT&T and T-Mobile, respectively. A source told TheStreet.com that the trio of smartphones combined to sell just 40,000 units in their first 24 hours available.

The Windows Phone 7 sales are a far cry from the roughly 200,000 Google Android devices that Google CEO Eric Schmidt says are sold each day; and Apple has said that it averages roughly 270,000 Apple iPhone sales per day. Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 needs a stronger showing to shoulder out its key competitors.

Still, 40,000 may be considered a solid showing by folks in Redmond, Wash. Compared to Microsoft's previous device launches -- the Microsoft Kin was killed shortly after launch due to dismal sales -- 40,000 Windows Phone 7 sales could be seen as a sweeping success.

Windows Phone 7, which is being heralded by some as Microsoft's first major move in the massive smartphone market, is also expected to boost Microsoft's mobility profile. Research firm Gartner Inc. said that Windows Phone 7 will push Microsoft's global mobile OS market share to 5.2 percent in 2011, a modest bump of 0.5 percent from the year before.

The 40,000 in sales for Windows Phone 7 smartphones was fueled by the OS's first three releases: the AT&T Samsung Focus and HTC Surround and the T-Mobile HTC HD7.

The Street added that Microsoft's anemic sales number doesn't include the 89,000 Microsoft employees that will be given free Windows Phone 7 smartphones.