Android reigns in US smartphone market

The Google Android platform grabbed the majority of mobile phones in the US market in early 2014, as consumers all but abandoned non-smartphone handsets, a survey showed Friday. The poll by Consumer Intelligence Research Partners found 53% of new mobile phones activated by US customers were Android devices in the January-March period. Apple's iOS, the platform used by the iPhone, accounted for 42%, the survey found. Windows and BlackBerry devices each accounted for one per cent, while non-smartphones were just three per cent, the research firm said. Late last year 20% bought a "basic" mobile phone. Research firm co-founder Mike Levin said Apple's iPhone user base "grew a little faster than Android, from a smaller base, even though in absolute terms Android — used in Samsung phones — had a larger share. He added: "The long-term issue is where Android and iOS growth will come from when there are no more basic phones being retired. First-time smartphone buyers are key to that equation." The report was based on a survey of 500 US adults, from April 1 to 6, who activated a new or used phone in the first three months of the year. Recent surveys of global phone users show Android has a nearly 80% share of smartphone sales. AFP