2011 was a dynamic year of growth for mobile. The following 10 facts summarize the highlights of the US smartphone industry in 2011:
1. By the end of November, there were over 234 million Americans (age 13 and older) who used mobile devices.
2. Over 91.4 million people owned smartphones in the US compared to the 63.2 million in 2010, an increase of over 44% (study by comScore).
3. Smartphone penetration in the US was close to 44%, up from 25% in 2010.
4. Over 62% of 25-34 year olds who owned mobile phones owned smartphones in 2011, up from 41% in 2010. Following behind, 54% of 18-24 year olds owned smartphones in 2011 (study by Nielsen).
5. Google Android was the most popular OS claiming 46% market share, followed by Apple iOS with 28%.
6. The Apple iPhone was the most sought-after smartphone device based on the fact that the only phones that are powered by iOS are iPhones. In the third quarter of 2011, the top 3 best-selling phones in the US were the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, and HTC EVO 4G, according to The NPD Group.
7. Close to 7% of all US Web traffic was from smartphones and tablets, with smartphones accounting for about 2/3 of this figure (study by comScore). iOS devices accounted for around 58% of non-computer online traffic while Android accounted for 32%.
8. In 2011, the most popular activity amongst smartphone users was texting or messaging (70%), followed by emailing (60%), social networking (50%), talking on the phone (43%), and then surfing the Web (40%) (study by CloudTalk).
9. 38% of mobile subscribers downloaded apps. Among the smartphone users who downloaded apps, 83% had either an Android or iPhone device.
10. In December 2011, an average of 1.5 million smartphones were downloaded each day. On December 25th, however, it was estimated that more than 6.8 million iOS & Android devices were activated (study from Flurry).
The smartphone industry flourished in 2011, and will continue to experience growth in the new year; it is predicted that smartphones will outsell PCs in 2012 (according to multiple industry sources). So here’s to another great year in mobile!