iPhone and iPad Dominate Mobile Web Share Throughout Holidays

[TWSS37]

One of my friends, the only one I know with an Android tablet, bought one and never seems to use it, but I don't know what happened. I know another friend who bought a Sony tablet and only used it once, but he doesn't really count since he did that with an Xbox 360 as well (neither game that came with it worked).

Oh I use my tablets far less than what I used to - in fact I sold my retina iPad - but it's not because of what the OP inferred as a usability issue (for either my Nexus OR iPad tablets).

Personally, I think that with a limited screen size the iPhone offers, using iPads seems more genuine because people want a larger screen. I stopped using my tablets because my Note 3 screen size is sufficient for most of what I do, so I don't need to use two devices.

But to just dismiss Android tablets as a collective whole as nothing but trash as the OP did is ignorant.

 

[dannyyankou]

Not surprising. My cousin bought an android tablet last year (kindle fire), but he won an iPad shortly after and his kindle is now collecting dust somewhere. Android tablets are selling well, but people don't seem to be using them often.

 

[TWSS37]

doesn't feel flawless to me. Chrome still feels laggy to me compared to Safari. I still prefer the browsing experience of Safari on my iPhone compared to Chrome on my Nexus 5.

this is just my experience. not negating yours in any way.

And that is personally fine - but a far cry from what the OP stated as: "Most web browsers are a pain to use, with terrible zoom and laggy scrolling."

Exaggerating how "terrible" something is just because it's on Android is just spreading FUD.

Using Safari on iPad/iPod Touch (for me) was a much more "crashy" experience.

 

[xyextra]

Our family just added 2 new ipads this Christmas, together with our existing ipad & ipod touches, each family member own/use our iDevice heavily daily.

We have tried to make some use of our android tablet, but it loses battery charge like crazy to a degree we can't stand any more, finally we gave up and put it in a drawer forever.

 

[Speedy2]

Numbers like this bode well for Apple's future marketshare growth... while Samsung/Google may be selling a lot of devices due to low price, ultimately they aren't being used, which doesn't reflect well on their customer satisfaction...

People here seem to forget entirely:
There are plenty of other things you can do with a mobile device besides surfing the web. Phone calls, skype, texting, photos, watching movies, listening to music, playing games or using apps in general are all not counted in this ridiculous excuse of a meaningful chart. If you look at people using a smart phone or a tablet, these "other things" actually seem to be their primary activity.

His Steveness said it himself: Apps are the future for mobile devices, not browsing the web. So these numbers could also simply mean that Samsung/Google users use other features more and surf less.

 

[gatearray]

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the real market share numbers. That is all.

 

[JoeBlazeX]

it is always amazing that although Android continues to lead in number of devices sold, the web traffic share is so skewed towards iOS. Good for Apple.

It is because people who have an iOS device want an iOS device and will use their iOS device. The cost of the device means the average person will not get one as a de facto gift. My Mom called me the week of Christmas to purchase a "Tablet" (almost certain is was android) for my 8 year old son. Albeit I am biased being an iOS developer for the past 5 years, I said no. If he would have gotten that device he most certainly would not have been allowed to use the web browser if it had parental controls to begin with, which it didn't.

 

[TallManNY]

You've forgotten that Macs can run Firefox and Chrome. The Mac Firefox sucks for some reason and also isn't so popular, but Chrome is very popular probably because people were used to using it in Windows. Not sure what's the point of using it when you have Safari, but anyway it takes a large bite out of Safari usage.

My GF uses Chrome on her Mac all the time. I'm not sure why, but it is nice because when she uses my Mac she boots up Chrome and so doesn't mess with my open tabs in Safari.

 

[Digital Skunk]

Apparently Google's strategy of giving stuff away for free isn't working to increase their stranglehold on the Web.

Google isn't giving anything away for free. In fact all of their devices cost money and are usually sold off contract.

Although if you do know where I can get a free Google device with no contract attached please let me know

 

[bobenhaus]

it is always amazing that although Android continues to lead in number of devices sold, the web traffic share is so skewed towards iOS. Good for Apple.

I'm sure Android is doing quite well. With the new Motorola G going to be 99.00 Dollars off contract things are sure going to change for the Smartphone market.

 

[DTphonehome]

People here seem to forget entirely:
There are plenty of other things you can do with a mobile device besides surfing the web. Phone calls, skype, texting, photos, watching movies, listening to music, playing games or using apps in general are all not counted in this ridiculous excuse of a meaningful chart. If you look at people using a smart phone or a tablet, these "other things" actually seem to be their primary activity.

His Steveness said it himself: Apps are the future for mobile devices, not browsing the web. So these numbers could also simply mean that Samsung/Google users use other features more and surf less.

Nowadays web browsing is a well-accepted approximation of device usage. Of course it's not completely accurate, but in the absence of better data, it's a decent proxy.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

it is always amazing that although Android continues to lead in number of devices sold, the web traffic share is so skewed towards iOS. Good for Apple.

Android leads worldwide marketshare but iOS still leads in the U.S. which also is a leader in online purchasing. This year in the U.S. Web sales over took B&M sales for the first time.

What amazes me is that even though buying via smartphones -- any smartphone -- has been a sharp upward trend the past couple of years many stores still have smartphone hotile websites. Many of these stores think there app is the solution, but I disagree. I don't want to have to use an app (or use storage space) for every merchant's boring app just to browse and buy.

 

[Brittany246]

People buy iPhones because they want a smartphone they'll use the hell out of.

SOME people buy Android as a top-end smartphone but many just get them because the phone on some cheap deal just happened to be Android.

With Tablets it's even worse: 'Wow, I got this Android tablet - it was no much cheaper than iPad!'. Five minutes later it's shoved in the junk drawer while people are using their iPads to death.

Has anyone said this in reality or do we just regurgitate what we read on fan sites? Anyone I have ever known who has used a Nexus tablet device has been nothing but completely satisfied with it.

That's pretty much what happened with my 1st gen Nexus 7. I bought it because it was cheaper than an iPad, and it had pretty good specs. I liked it for about 4 or 5 months, and I eventually stopped using it mostly because I couldn't stand the lag or the app selection. I haven't used it since the summer, and I wasted nearly 300 bucks on something I used regularly for maybe 6 months. It was barely worth anything when I wanted to sell it, so I kept it.

 

[Digital Skunk]

Our family just added 2 new ipads this Christmas, together with our existing ipad & ipod touches, each family member own/use our iDevice heavily daily.

We have tried to make some use of our android tablet, but it loses battery charge like crazy to a degree we can't stand any more, finally we gave up and put it in a drawer forever.

that's interesting for my family it was the exact opposite. We picked up an 8 inch Windows tablet, Chromecast, and a few new Android phones and couldn't be happier.

The iPad is going to the two yr old, who whines whenever he gets it because it can't stream Netflix properly.

 

[rteichman]

People buy iPhones because they want a smartphone they'll use the hell out of.

SOME people buy Android as a top-end smartphone but many just get them because the phone on some cheap deal just happened to be Android.

With Tablets it's even worse: 'Wow, I got this Android tablet - it was so much cheaper than iPad!'. Five minutes later it's shoved in the junk drawer while people are using their iPads to death.

I don't think Samsung, HTC, or other hardware manufacturers really care if you use the stuff they sell. Just as long as you buy it.

 

[TWSS37]

It is because people who have an iOS device want an iOS device and will use their iOS device. The cost of the device means the average person will not get one as a de facto gift. My Mom called me the week of Christmas to purchase a "Tablet" (almost certain is was android) for my 8 year old son. Albeit I am biased being an iOS developer for the past 5 years, I said no. If he would have gotten that device he most certainly would not have been allowed to use the web browser if it had parental controls to begin with, which it didn't.

I'm confused on the last part. So had the tablet been an iPad, web browsing would have been allowed? Unsure how this correlates with web browsing between multiple platforms.

 

[roadbloc]

These US only stats mean nothing.

 

[TWSS37]

Nowadays web browsing is a well-accepted approximation of device usage. Of course it's not completely accurate, but in the absence of better data, it's a decent proxy.

Which is why, IMO, when you read things like "OMG how can Android have more market share than iPhone? I never see one "in the wild"!"

Well, again this is my opinion, it's because people are USING their iPhones in social settings more to be seen, and this report more or less corroborates that. I am not sure what this means, though. (people like using their iPhones in public more? People with iPhones hate the company they keep?)

 

[goodcow]

doesn't feel flawless to me. Chrome still feels laggy to me compared to Safari. I still prefer the browsing experience of Safari on my iPhone compared to Chrome on my Nexus 5.

this is just my experience. not negating yours in any way.

My experience is that Safari on my iPad can't keep more than two tabs loaded without a refresh and it crashes a lot.

 

[Max(IT)]

It means the vast majority of people messing around the internet with their mobile phones are doing so on Apple hardware.

And the significance? I guess it means if you're on an Android phone, you're not using the internet all that much. I have no idea why.

You exactly know why, but don't want do admit ....
Market share is NOTHING, since android, smartphones and tablets , are just gaining share selling cheap and crappy units alongside the few valid models .
And target for that kind of devices are people don't using internet on mobile at all, but looking for a "smartphone" or a tablet to use whatsapp and to play with candy crush ....
There are android smartphones that cost less than 150$ and tablets for 90$ .... Very easy to sell. But are they really usable ? Not at all ....

 

[jmgregory1]

People here seem to forget entirely:
There are plenty of other things you can do with a mobile device besides surfing the web. Phone calls, skype, texting, photos, watching movies, listening to music, playing games or using apps in general are all not counted in this ridiculous excuse of a meaningful chart. If you look at people using a smart phone or a tablet, these "other things" actually seem to be their primary activity.

His Steveness said it himself: Apps are the future for mobile devices, not browsing the web. So these numbers could also simply mean that Samsung/Google users use other features more and surf less.

I think what you're not realizing is that many apps are simply accessing the web for a specific thing. You may not be on a mobile browser, but you're effectively getting data from a website. I'm assuming (although I could be wrong) that this is also showing in these numbers.

If it weren't so and you have tens of millions of Android devices NOT accessing the web at a rate greater than iOS devices, then something tells me that Android devices just are not used the same way as iOS devices.

 

[TWSS37]

That's pretty much what happened with my 1st gen Nexus 7. I bought it because it was cheaper than an iPad, and it had pretty good specs. I liked it for about 4 or 5 months, and I eventually stopped using it mostly because I couldn't stand the lag or the app selection. I haven't used it since the summer, and I wasted nearly 300 bucks on something I used regularly for maybe 6 months. It was barely worth anything when I wanted to sell it, so I kept it.

I too own a first gen Nexus and it works just fine. There seems to be no lack of apps available for it and while sure, it shows signs of being a first gen, now 18 month old device, it certainly isn't by any stretch of the imagination useless. Again, YMMV, but I'd try and update it to Kit Kat and see if that helps any.

 

[Klae17]

Have you? Chrome on Android is about as flawless a mobile browser as you could ask for.

As to your last comment... wow.

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Has anyone said this in reality or do we just regurgitate what we read on fan sites? Anyone I have ever known who has used a Nexus tablet device has been nothing but completely satisfied with it.

Nexus is not the only tablet using Android.

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Seeing the numbers are based on ad impressions, I wonder how much
of an impact the availability of ad blocking plugins (e.g Adblock Plus)
on Android devices running Chrome has on the numbers.

Would probably increase it by 1%-2%.

----------

Apparently Google's strategy of giving stuff away for free isn't working to increase their stranglehold on the Web.

Google makes more money on iOS than on Android.

 

[Max(IT)]

Oh yeah. You are 100% correct.

Oh wait - I find surfing on my Nexus 7 and GS4 (as well as my iOS devices) to all be the same "pleasurable" experience.

No idea what Android browsers you're using.. But chrome and firefox has always been great for me.

Nexus 7 and Galaxy 4 are not on par with iDevices in my opinion, but they are valid products nonetheless ... The problem is they aren't the core of android devices out there.
I'm quite sure that Nexus 7 users are using their device just like iPad users.
But Acer iconia users are not (just to speak about a crappy economic tablet).

And Nexus 7 sells a lot less than iPads ...

 

[Glideslope]

Nice.

"The Assimilation Continues as planned."