Smartphone Adoption Gaining Momentum, Most First-Timers Go For Android

Measurement firm comScore today released some new survey data that show an increasing percentage of US feature phone owners are making the switch to smartphones when replacing their devices. As they do they overwhelmingly favor Android, followed by the iPhone and then Windows Phones.

Just over 61 percent of first-time smartphone buyers opted for an Android phone compared with 25 percent who bought an iPhone. In a hopeful sign for Microsoft, 7 percent of those first time buyers (which is where the opportunity is for Windows Phones) chose the Microsoft OS. A smaller percentage of existing smartphone users (3 percent) made the switch to Windows Phones however.

Apple iPhone owners and those who have BlackBerry devices are the most loyal according to comScore’s data.

Perhaps the most striking finding of the study is the following: “nearly half of feature phone subscribers who acquired a device during April 2012 switched to a smartphone.” Given the aggressive pricing of many Android devices and Windows Phones it’s a safe bet that trend will continue.

According to comScore 47 percent of US mobile subscribers own smartphones. According to the Pew Internet Project and Nielsen the number is between 50 and 53 percent.