SEOUL, Dec. 20 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Electronics Co., the world's top memory chipmaker, is also becoming a major supplier of laptop computers, more than quadrupling its global market share in just four years, market observers said Tuesday.

The company's global market share rose from 1.4 percent in 2007 to 6.5 percent in the third quarter of this year, they said.

The third-quarter figure is the world's seventh largest, placing Samsung ahead of other major suppliers including Japan's Sony Corp. and United States' Apple Inc.

Samsung's domestic sales also skyrocketed from 2.7 million units in 2008 to over 10 million units last year. They are expected to reach 14 million units this year, according to the market watchers.

The observers attributed the growth to Samsung's expanded lineup of products, including its latest tablet computer, the Slate.