Skip to main content

Nielsen: iOS smartphone marketshare up, Android flat in May

Nielsen smartphone marketshare May 2011

New survey figures released by market metrics firm Nielsen show that Google’s Android operating system remained the most popular smartphone platform in the U.S. market, accounting for 38 percent of smartphone users. However, Nielsen also finds that Android’s adoption by new smartphone buyers over the last few months has remained steady at 27 percent, while Apple’s iPhone has shown steady growth, jumping from 10 percent of new acquirers in February to 17 percent in May. In other words, Apple’s iOS is the only smartphone platform to have shown significant growth in recent months.

Nielsen also finds that 55 percent of mobile users who bought a new phone in recent months have purchased a smartphone—meaning 45 percent of new phone sales were so-called feature phones. A year ago, feature phones accounted for two thirds of new mobile phone purchases.

Related Videos

Industry watchers are attributing the iPhone’s market expansion largely to the device recently going for sale on Verizon Wireless, breaking AT&T’s multi-year exclusivity deal with Apple for the iPhone. However, it’s also worth noting that AT&T has had a minor hit on its hands offering the now two-year-old iPhone 3GS to mid-range buyers for just $50, on a new two-year contract.

Over the same February-to-May period, BlackBerry maker RIM saw its portion of new phone purchases drop from 11 percent to 6 percent, while Windows Phone held relatively steady at one percent.

Nielsen’s figures just account for smartphone sales; they don’t figure in tablets or other non-phone devices running Android or Apple’s iOS.

Editors' Recommendations

iPhone 15: release date and price predictions, leaks, rumors, and more
iPhone 15 render by 4RMD

As great as the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro are, they're both already a few months old at this point, and the rumors about the iPhone 15 are well underway. We still have several months before the iPhone 15 models drop, though, as Apple usually makes iPhone announcements in the fall. In other words, there's still a lot of time for rumors to circulate around the internet.

We're keeping all of the reports and rumors of the iPhone 15 here in a single place for your convenience, but do remember to keep in mind that these are all still just speculation. Nothing is final until Apple confirms it during an official announcement. Still, a lot of the rumors give us an idea of what to expect each year, which is unfortunate if you like surprises. Here's everything we know of the iPhone 15 so far!
iPhone 15: models

Read more
These Android apps are spying on you — and there’s no easy way to stop them
Illustration of a giant eye stalking through a phone

Android’s security woes need no introduction, but another threat that hasn’t received its fair share of awareness relates to spyware and stalkerware apps. These apps can secretly be installed on a victim’s phone to monitor their activity and can be exploited to harass victims of domestic abuse and engage in online stalking. All someone needs is physical access to the victim's phone to install these apps, which is not too difficult in cases of domestic abuse.

Call it an app-fueled version of AirTag stalking, but on steroids, because these spyware apps can steal everything including messages, call logs, emails, photos, and videos. Some can even activate the microphone and the camera, and secretly transfer these recordings to a remote server where the abuser can access it. Since Google Play's policies don't allow stalking apps, these apps are sold via third-party websites and need to be sideloaded.

Read more
You aren’t ready for this Galaxy S23 vs. iPhone 14 Pro camera test
Deep purple iPhone 14 Pro and Cream Galaxy S23 crossed over

Samsung’s Galaxy S23 is here, and it's quickly become one of the best phones you can buy in 2023. For $800, you’re getting a small but mighty phone with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy chipset, long-lasting battery life, and a powerful triple lens camera system with a 50-megapixel main shooter.

But how does one of the best Android phones stack up against Apple’s smallest flagship, the iPhone 14 Pro? It has just as many cameras as the Galaxy S23, a powerful 48MP main camera, and costs $200 more than Samsung's handset.

Read more