Nokia Lumia sales reportedly hit record high for fourth consecutive quarter

This should please Microsoft. Sales of Nokia‘s Lumia range of smartphones have reportedly hit record highs for the fourth consecutive quarter.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Lumia sales for the period between June and September this year hit 8-million units. That’s up from the 7.4-million units it sold in the previous quarter and significantly higher than the 2.9-million units it managed to shift in the same period last year.

The information, which the Journal says comes from people familiar with the matter, has emerged on the eve of a massive event which will see the company launch at least six new devices, including a phablet and Nokia’s first ever tablet.

If Microsft’s Nokia buyout is to be seen as even remotely successful, Stephen Elop and the devices he brings with him will have to seriously deliver on the night.

Not helping matters is the fact that Apple is expected to the launch its latest iPad on the same day, meaning that Nokia will have some seriously stiff competition as it vies for the world’s attention.

The event will also be the first big public appearance for Elop since the acquisition, which saw him emerge as a leading candidate to take over from current Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer when he goes into retirement in 2014.

If that’s going to happen however, he’s going to have to reward Microsoft for its investment in Nokia. The upturn in sales is promising and the weight of the Redmond-based giant plus the high quality of entry-level Lumias it has on the market could help push it to the next level.

Expectations should be realistic however. It’s not going to supplant Apple or Samsung any time soon. Instead, if it continues to gain marketshare, it will do so in small increments, hopefully bringing in some more big name app developers along the way.