Last week, research firm NPD released data showing that Apple's iOS had significantly closed the gap on Android in new U.S. smartphone sales in October and November, narrowing Android's 34 percentage-point lead to just four points in the wake of the iPhone 4S debut.

nielsen 4q11 recent smartphone acquirers
Nielsen now takes a look at its own data, showing similar momentum that had carried over through the end of 2011.

Among recent acquirers, meaning those who said they got a new device within the past three months, 44.5 percent of those surveyed in December said they chose an iPhone, compared to just 25.1 percent in October. Furthermore, 57 percent of new iPhone owners surveyed in December said they got an iPhone 4S.

Breaking the data down into monthly surveys of people who had acquired a new smartphone over the previous three months, that iPhone 4S effect resulted in iOS nearly matching Android in share of recent smartphone acquirers as of December.

Given the three-month windows of time covered by each monthly survey, December's data would include at least several weeks of time prior to the iPhone 4S launch. Data for January could thus show even stronger performance by Apple, although some of the early iPhone 4S adopters may fall out of the January sample due to the three-month window having closed, depending on when during the month the data is collected.

Related Forum: iPhone

Top Rated Comments

raejae Avatar
172 months ago
Siri is a gimmick. The 4S was a bump in specs - not something fully evolutionary in the product line.

Still - there was pent up demand and the fact that you now had Sprint selling the iPhone made a big difference as well.

I get your sarcasm - but it's really not far from the truth.

For somebody who spends 2+ hours a day driving to/from work and communicates mainly via text message, Siri is -not- a gimmick.

This is just one example, but your opinion is not fact. There are many people (myself included) for whom Siri is the killer feature that made them buy the product. I was prepared to hunker down and get another year out of my 3GS until I saw this feature.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
*LTD* Avatar
172 months ago
Just a couple of models achieving this against a veritbale flood of OEMs running a universally-licensed OS.

No surprise, though. Apple's nailed a strategy that lasts over the long term.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
*LTD* Avatar
172 months ago
US != the world.

US = a massive market, and arguably one of the most coveted. The US market can do wonders for your brand power.

It speaks to the strength of Apple products when with just a couple of models they can capture significant share (all under one roof, never mind tons of OEMs.)

Now, given that, imagine what it means for a product like that to capture majority or near-majority share, in the wake of a market flooded by OEMs running a universally-licensed OS.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
coder12 Avatar
172 months ago
You should not be using your phone while driving. If anything Siri made things worse not better as now you can feel you can txt while driving.

People will always text and drive, as long as there are cell phones at least. I'd rather have someone watching the road and texting while driving rather than someone staring at their crotch, texting, and driving.

On the other side of things, for those who nay-say against Siri, she certainly rocks when it comes to Speech to Text; seriously, I haven't typed a single message in a long time without using STT.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Xenc Avatar
172 months ago
Poor BlackBerry.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
eTron Avatar
172 months ago
US = a massive market, and arguably one of the most coveted. The US market can do wonders for your brand power.

It speaks to the strength of Apple products when with just a couple of models they can capture significant share (all under one roof, never mind tons of OEMs.)

Now, given that, imagine what it means for a product like that to capture majority or near-majority share, in the wake of a market flooded by OEMs running a universally-licensed OS.

I signed in just to say... Well said!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 19 Mock WWDC25 Feature

iOS 19 Expected to Run on These iPhones

Monday March 31, 2025 5:28 pm PDT by
iOS 19 will not be available on the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or the iPhone XS Max, according a private account on social media site X that has accurately provided information on device compatibility in the past. The iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max all have an A12 Bionic chip, so it looks like iOS 19 will discontinue support for that chip. All other iPhones that run iOS 18 are expected...
maxresdefault

Apple Releases iOS 18.4 With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music, New Emoji and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4

Monday March 31, 2025 11:27 am PDT by
Apple today released new firmware updates for all AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 2 models. The new firmware is version 7E93, up from the 7B21 firmware that was installed on the AirPods Pro 2 and the 7B20 firmware available on the AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC. It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in the new firmware, but we'll update this article should we find ...
watchOS 11 Thumb 2 1

Apple Releases watchOS 11.4 With Sleep Alarm Update

Tuesday April 1, 2025 10:34 am PDT by
Apple today released watchOS 11.4, the fourth major update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.4 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2. watchOS 11.4 can be downloaded on a connected iPhone by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software,...
macOS Sequoia Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.4 With Mail Categorization and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15. With...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...