More than one billion smartphones are in use around the world and analysts expect the figure to double in only a few years.

Boston-based market analyst Strategy Analytics says one billion 38 million smartphones were being used around the world in the third quarter this year.

The figure is up 47 percent from the same period last year, suggesting that one out of seven people uses a smartphone globally.

The market research firm predicts that the use of smartphones will double to top two billion by 2015, noting the surging demand in the emerging and developing markets.