Apple, Research In Motion and ZTE Corp joined the ranks of the world’s 10 largest mobile phone makers in 2007, underlining how technology advances and emerging markets are producing a new cast of winners and losers in the industry.

Apple’s much hyped iPhone, which went on sale in the US and Europe last year and set a new industry standard in mobile web browsing, transformed the US computer maker into the 10th largest handset manufacturer in the fourth quarter of 2007, according to Gartner, the research firm.