Investment research firm UBS today issued a report highlighting retention rates for smartphone users, judging consumer loyalty based on whether they plan to make their next purchase from the same manufacturer as their current handset. According to the worldwide survey, 89% of iPhone users report that they will purchase another iPhone.
No other manufacturer topped a 40% retention rate in the survey, with HTC taking second place at 40%. Android as a whole has a planned retention rate of about 55% according to the survey, indicating that while many current users of Android handsets are planning to switch manufacturers, a fair number of them do intend to stay with Android. But 31% of surveyed Android users report intending to switch to the iPhone for their next device, with over 50% of the total "switchers" planning to move to Apple from another manufacturer as only about 10% of switchers are moving away from Apple.
Research in Motion has experienced a steep drop in retention rate, with only 33% of current BlackBerry users planning to purchase another BlackBerry, down from 62% a year and a half ago. In contrast, Apple's retention has fallen only 6 percentage points over that time in the face of strong competition from Android.
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
Tuesday April 22, 2025 10:22 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be.
The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
Tuesday April 22, 2025 5:01 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect.
As spotted by Windows Latest, NTDev shared an instance of the emulation on social media and posted a video on YouTube (embedded below) demonstrating it in action. The achievement relies on new EU regulatory...
Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup.
If you skipped the iPhone...
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 18.5 to developers today, and so far the software update includes only a few minor changes.
The changes are in the Mail and Settings apps.
In the Mail app, you can now easily turn off contact photos directly within the app, by tapping on the circle with three dots in the top-right corner.
In the Settings app, AppleCare+ coverage information is more...
Tuesday April 22, 2025 4:08 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple will unveil the iPhone 17 Pro in a new Sky Blue color, the same color that debuted on the latest M4 MacBook Air models Apple released in March. That's according to the leaker Majin Bu.
Concept mockup from Majin Bu
Writing on his website, Bu claims that "sources close to the supply chain confirm that several iPhone 17 Pro prototypes have been made in various colors, with Sky Blue...
Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
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 April 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 ...
That's one advantage to Android. You can change manufacturers for your phone and retain your investment in the eco-system without much issue. Moving from the hot Samsung, HTC, Motorola or Sony model to the new hot model of the week does not make you lose all your apps. Not so for iOS.
I'll be replacing my iPhone 3GS with another iPhone just for this reason. I'd probably have moved on to Android or to another vendor (SAMOLED+ screen is quite tempting, those things are awesome!) if it weren't for this issue.
So in a sense, this high loyalty is probably a result (for some, not everybody of course!) of vendor lock-in.
Surprised that others suck so much.... but I am not surprised by results.
Apple has apple store with some brilliant customer service to back their devices up.
If I ever have problem with Samsung or HTC phone, then what do I have to do?
Contact carriers and they say go to manufacturers. You have to ship the phone out and call.... blah blah blah.
It's a nightmare.
Samsung promised Froyo 2.2 release on my friend's captivate for September 2010 and it was never released until mid 2011. Once you buy their products, they don't even bother to help you.
I will stick with apple iPhone and iPad as long as apple provides excellent customer service with great apps.
Nothing can come close to apple's customer service at this point. Thanks to mighty Jobs.
That iPhone users are loyal comes as no surprise. That's what happens when you look after your customers.
What is surprising is the catastrophic results for Nokia (second chart). It was obvious they would lose out significantly to Apple et. al., but to this extent?
I'm about to be one of their lost customers. I've been a fan of Nokia since digital mobiles came to market around 16 years ago - almost all of my phones have been Nokias.
So why am I switching? 1) Nokia phones no longer sync with OSX Lion. True this is primarily Apple's fault and I really do resent Apple "manipulating" me in this underhand way. But Nokia have had years to develop a user-friendly interface to OSX and they haven't bothered (their Windows interface is pretty sh**** too). That is NOT looking after your customers. And 2) Nokia have got into bed with Microsoft. Sorry, Nokia, there is no way on this earth that I'm moving to Microsoft! That is certainly not looking after your customers!
