| Nielsen reported Monday that 28 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers had smartphones in the third quarter -- up from 25 percent in the prior three months and 23 percent at the end of March. And among those who acquired a new cell phone in the past six months, 41 percent opted for a smartphone over a standard feature phone -- up from 35 percent at the end of June.The advertising-ratings agency cited several factors behind accelerated smartphone adoption rates, including the high visibility of Apple's iPhone as well as the launch of new Android-powered handsets. Analysts have high expectations for Google 's Android in the current quarter, since there are enough new Android-based smartphones out for the holidays to once again drive market-leading growth at the expense of rival Research In Motion. "We do expect Android to ramp up to being the second leading OS worldwide in the fourth quarter of 2010 ," noted Gartner Research Vice President Carolina Milanesi in an e-mail. RIM's Challenge However, Google still faces the problem of having different versions of Android in the market at the same time, which is a headache for developers and consumers alike, Milanesi noted last month in a blog. "We believe this will become less of an issue as the OS matures and improvements become more cyclical," Milanesi observed. "On the UI side, Google itself has mentioned this and the intention with Gingerbread [Android version 2.3] to start addressing UI differentiation in the attempt to deliver more of a 'One Android Experience'." Meanwhile, RIM is struggling to appeal to a wider consumer audience, even as the BlackBerry maker is being attacked in the enterprise space. "Appealing to consumers beyond their messaging and e-mail proposition becomes crucial," Milanesi wrote. "Sales are still good, but competition is growing and apps and touch are becoming a bigger drive, especially in the high end." Though 22 percent of all smartphone purchases were BlackBerrys in the third quarter, RIM's percentage of the U.S. market fell six percent from the prior three months and 53 percent from one year earlier. "New high-end Android devices have been gaining momentum at carriers that traditionally have been strong RIM distributors," said NPD Executive Director Ross Rubin. Android's Youth Appeal Nielsen's latest mobile survey found that 19 percent of U.S. smartphone users are Latino, 10 percent are African-American, and six percent are Asian. By contrast, just nine percent of feature-phone users are Latino, eight percent are African-American, and four percent are Asian. According to an earlier survey from Nielsen released in August, Android smartphone users tend to come from a younger demographic than U.S. consumers attracted to other mobile operating systems, which increases the appeal of Google's platform among advertisers. A total of 50 percent of Android users are under the age of 35, the survey noted. By contrast, Apple has the most smartphone users under the age of 44. Still, the iPhone remains the most desired phone among mobile subscribers thinking about switching devices. According to Nielsen's August survey, 29 percent of BlackBerry users as well as 21 percent of Android users indicated they were considering the move to Apple. Despite the iPhone 4's antenna problems at midyear, 90 percent of U.S. iPhone users said they would remain loyal to Apple's brand. By contrast, about 50 percent of BlackBerry users said they could chose an iPhone or an Android phone for their next device. via TopTechNews |
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