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Android is About to Explode: 17% of Smartphone Traffic, Droid Launching

Submitted by Ryan Spoon on November 5, 2009 – 8:48 pmComments

On the eve of Droid’s much anticipated launch on the Verizon network, Android is poised to take off and grab challenge the Apple’s recent dominance. Even with Droid’s launch, Android saw significant market growth in September – representing 17% of smartphone activity vs. 13% in August.

According to AdMob’s September 2009 Mobile Report:

Devices running on Android accounted for 17% of smartphone traffic in the US in September 2009, up from 13% in August 2009. The HTC Dream (G1) was the number three device and the HTC Magic was the number 10 device in September 2009 in the US. As with the iPhone OS, much of the Android traffic in AdMob’s network came from applications.


The iPhone still represents 48% of smartphone activity, but Android has moved ahead of RIM (14%). And the future for Android is bright considering:

- Droid’s rave reviews
- Droid’s multi-handset product line and low prices
- Android’s carrier agnostic approach (while Apple is currently tied exclusively to AT&T)

android vs iphone

Also noteworthy, the iPhone now represents a staggering 60+% of AT&T’s smartphone activity. If Droid, for instance, reached even a fraction of that dominance on Verizon (which is dominated by RIM AT ~35%), Android will realize serious growth.

att iphone

Popularity: 2% [?]

  • Yes, Android adoption is growing - but has anyone (besides Google) built a "great" app for it?

    I think experienced iPhone users all have a handful of "must-have" apps, whether they're games, twitter apps, or productivity tools...but I haven't heard about any must-have android apps yet...which I think illustrates a potential issue: developers aren't yet developing for "just one" Android (and until they are it will be difficult to create really killer apps)...the experience of using an app on a G1 could have significant differences with using an app on a Droid, even if they're both Android devices.

    In the near term (1-2 years) I think the more relevant question is - which device/OS combo is the most desired app platform?

    related: Android is already getting confusing: http://www.businessinsider.com/google-android-i...

    "The worry: That inconsistencies among phones will continue to grow. And that it won't just be confusing to consumers, but could be a roadblock to developers writing apps for Android. That is something Google can't afford."
  • Agree that Android will explode but you should also post the installed base numbers (US and global). I think Blackberry sill has about 40% of the market in the US. RIMM's 14% share of the ad market is interesting because it shows that unit volumes don't always provide the most opportunities for developers. If you were launching a mobile app today would you build for (i) iPhone, (ii) Android, (iii) Blackberry, (iv) Palm OS and (v) WinMo or would you order them differently?
  • I completely agree...I think the time for developers to ignore Android is really passing. The Android software is not as elegant or dead-simple as the iphone, but the price-point coupled with the superior Verizon network make the trade-off worth it for a lot of people.

    I also think that Android occupies a happy middle ground in terms of Exchange support, price, apps, etc between RIM and iPhone making it poised for corporate adoption. Android offers consumers apps they want and companies the business features they need.
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