ComScore released its latest report on the U.S. smartphone market, and it seems little has changed lately: Android claimed 52.5 percent of the market, up less than one percentage point from ComScore’s June study, and Apple grew its market share less than two points to 34.3 percent. Meanwhile, Research In Motion continued to bleed customers and Microsoft’s share actually shrank (a fact that is likely due to the fact that Windows Phone 8 won’t be backwards-compatible).

The smartphone market is a very tumultuous space, though, and I wouldn’t read too much into this snapshot. Indeed, things could change in a big way in the next few months as each platform is stepping up its game in advance of the holidays: Apple released the iPhone 5 in September, several compelling new Android handsets have come to market and Microsoft hopes to get a big boost from Windows Phone 8. The holiday season will go a long way toward indicating whether Microsoft can get back in the mobile gaming and make smartphones a three-horse race.