Apple's iOS 8 now on 72% of customer devices, nearly double any Android version

Posted:
in iPhone edited February 2015
Adoption of Apple's latest mobile operating system continues to grow, according to the company's App Store statistics, with 72 percent of iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches now running on iOS 8 while no single version of Google's Android has surpassed 40 percent.




The new figure represents a 4 percentage point bump in usage for iOS 8, which was at 68 percent when Apple last updated the numbers in early January. In total, 97 percent of iOS devices are running versions of the operating system released in the last two years.

In contrast, recent data from Google's Play Store shows that same figure to be just 41.3 percent. Devices running Android 4.4 KitKat, which was unveiled in 2013, account for the lion's share with 39.7 percent, while 2014's Lollipop clocks in at a mere 1.6 percent.

While there is no definitive reason for the disparity in iOS and Android update adoption rates, Apple's direct control over the process is likely a major factor. The company's carrier partners are forbidden from interfering with iOS, a sharp contrast with Android.

Aside from the Nexus line, which Google sells directly, Android handsets are subject to a more traditional approach in which carriers and individual handset manufacturers are left to customize the software as they see fit, within certain guidelines. This leads to substantial delays, as customizations must be ported to the new version.

Samsung's one-year-old flagship Galaxy S5 is only now beginning to receive Android 5 Lollipop, three months after Google released the new software. Still other handsets simply never get updates at all, as evidenced by the nearly 14 percent of devices still running versions of Android released in 2011 or earlier.
«1

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 32
    Yay "open"! ¡

    I expect the iOS 7 rate to keep dropping as iPhone 4 owners reach their upgrade dates.
  • Reply 2 of 32
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member

    And I should care about Android’s fragmentation because...? Like can I use this piece of information to taunt fAndroids or something? They don’t seem to care so why should I?

  • Reply 3 of 32
    solipsismysolipsismy Posts: 5,099member
    Nearly 40 % on API 19 with KitKat. That sounds pretty impressive for Android.
  • Reply 4 of 32
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,090member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post



    Nearly 40 % on API 19 with KitKat. That sounds pretty impressive for Android.



    I'm not sure "impressive" is the word I'd use Solips.  It's still an OS that's a year and a half old.  If this were iOS, fandroids would be wetting themselves with the chance to wring Apple for such horrible adoption rates.  But hey, it's Android so I guess no one really cares.

  • Reply 5 of 32
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by sflocal View Post

     



    But hey, it's Android so I guess no one really cares.


     

    Exactly. It shouldn't bother nor surprise anyone here that Apple is held to a higher standard.

  • Reply 6 of 32
    ronmgronmg Posts: 163member
    What impresses me most is that 0.4% Froyo. How can such old android hardware still be functioning? There must be a handful of fandroid geeks with some ancient hardware hooked up to life support doing web searches. Probably no enclosures - just the phone guts with spare parts all around and hooked up to a battery backup!! Lol.
  • Reply 7 of 32
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by RonMG View Post



    What impresses me most is that 0.4% Froyo. How can such old android hardware still be functioning? There must be a handful of fandroid geeks with some ancient hardware hooked up to life support doing web searches. Probably no enclosures - just the phone guts with spare parts all around and hooked up to a battery backup!! Lol.

    There has to be some of those older smartphones in developing nations. Maybe users had turned in their older smartphones and some company started distributing them to the poorest people around who wanted some smartphone.  They'd still be good enough to make phone calls and do basic texting.  Consider them slightly better than feature-phones.

  • Reply 8 of 32
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,382member
    1.6% for lollipop, even though it was released months ago, after new policies and guidelines had allegedly gone into place to get OEMs to provide updates faster. Well done, Google. Well done.
  • Reply 9 of 32
    dasanman69dasanman69 Posts: 13,002member
    ronmg wrote: »
    What impresses me most is that 0.4% Froyo. How can such old android hardware still be functioning? There must be a handful of fandroid geeks with some ancient hardware hooked up to life support doing web searches. Probably no enclosures - just the phone guts with spare parts all around and hooked up to a battery backup!! Lol.

    Some of those earlier phones were very well made. I still see some of the older Motorola devices for sale on several websites.
  • Reply 10 of 32
    Now compare the numbers with Google Play Services install base, the number that is actually most relevant with regards to the ecosystem.

    Also, why should anyone here care? This is an Apple blog right? With Apple news? Or does the news only get worth mentioning when there's an Apple vs Android element involved?
  • Reply 11 of 32
    koopkoop Posts: 337member

    This is why I left android. I care about what Google does with their software, and I want to be current with their vision and their ideas. Unfortunately unless you own the phone that gets these updates (Nexus), you may never see them. The Galaxy S5's version of lollipop is so skinned over that you'd never know you were on 5.0 unless a few animations clued you in. Phone manufacturers are insistent on bastardizing great software, and carriers are insistent on delaying certification to updates to sell newer models. 

     

    I'm not going to blow $600 on a phone to be a second class citizen in software after the first year. This is why I went to Apple and where I feel I get my money's worth. 

  • Reply 12 of 32

    I always wonder why those comparisons are based on Google's Play store numbers as if those cover all Android devices. Information that will help infer actual device numbers are never presented.

     

    In short those 39.7% for KitKat might turn out to be closer to 10% if we consider all Android devices.

  • Reply 13 of 32
    koopkoop Posts: 337member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by sflocal View Post

     



    I'm not sure "impressive" is the word I'd use Solips.  It's still an OS that's a year and a half old.  If this were iOS, fandroids would be wetting themselves with the chance to wring Apple for such horrible adoption rates.  But hey, it's Android so I guess no one really cares.




    Android fragmentation is the dead horse that has been flogged into oblivion by the tech press. I'm surprised you believe it's never been talked about or covered.

  • Reply 14 of 32
    jfanningjfanning Posts: 3,398member
    capasicum wrote: »
    I always wonder why those comparisons are based on Google's Play store numbers as if those cover all Android devices. Information that will help infer actual device numbers are never presented.

    In short those 39.7% for KitKat might turn out to be closer to 10% if we consider all Android devices.

    Why do you think there is so many Android devices that don't connect to the Play Store?
  • Reply 15 of 32
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jfanning View Post





    Why do you think there is so many Android devices that don't connect to the Play Store?

    Three reasons:

    1. As mentioned, Google never gave any tangible numbers, only those ephemeral percentages.

    2. Google's total mobile domination is based on IDC/Gartner/etc estimates having the category "Others" at 40% and upwards.   http://www.idc.com/prodserv/smartphone-market-share.jsp

    3. Effectively all Chinese ASOP devices do not use Google services (including Play store). And that is a huge number of devices.

     

    Yes, it is possible that part of those "Others" actually use the store. But points 1 and 3 are the reason I believe that's not the case.

  • Reply 16 of 32
    jfanningjfanning Posts: 3,398member
    capasicum wrote: »
    Three reasons:
    1. As mentioned, Google never gave any tangible numbers, only those ephemeral percentages.
    2. Google's total mobile domination is based on IDC/Gartner/etc estimates having the category "Others" at 40% and upwards.   http://www.idc.com/prodserv/smartphone-market-share.jsp
    3. Effectively all Chinese ASOP devices do not use Google services (including Play store). And that is a huge number of devices.

    Yes, it is possible that part of those "Others" actually use the store. But points 1 and 3 are the reason I believe that's not the case.

    I thought this had been covered a number of times, those Chinese ASOP devices that don't use the Google Services aren't Google Android devices, so they aren't counted.

    The only way you can realistically count these devices is if they access some service, Google has a service they can access, and uses this service to count them, how else do you expect them to do it?

    I wonder how Apple counts their numbers??
    As measured by the App Store on February 2, 2015.

    Oh wow, they count them exactly the same way, fancy that.

    Also, AI didn't think it was important to add the follow to their image for the Google stats
    Note: Because this data is gathered from the new Google Play Store app, which supports Android 2.2 and above, devices running older versions are not included. However, in August, 2013, versions older than Android 2.2 accounted for about 1% of devices that checked in to Google servers (not those that actually visited Google Play Store).
  • Reply 17 of 32
    solipsismysolipsismy Posts: 5,099member
    jfanning wrote: »
    I thought this had been covered a number of times, those Chinese ASOP devices that don't use the Google Services aren't Google Android devices, so they aren't counted.

    Hence his stated point: Chinese ASOP devices do not use Google services (including Play store). And that is a huge number of devices.
  • Reply 18 of 32
    solipsismysolipsismy Posts: 5,099member
    sflocal wrote: »

    I'm not sure "impressive" is the word I'd use Solips.  It's still an OS that's a year and a half old.  If this were iOS, fandroids would be wetting themselves with the chance to wring Apple for such horrible adoption rates.  But hey, it's Android so I guess no one really cares.

    For Android, I think it's impressive. And I just noticed this from June 2014. I find that's a very impressive uptick for Android in 6 months.


    700
  • Reply 19 of 32
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jfanning View Post





    I thought this had been covered a number of times, those Chinese ASOP devices that don't use the Google Services aren't Google Android devices, so they aren't counted.



    The only way you can realistically count these devices is if they access some service, Google has a service they can access, and uses this service to count them, how else do you expect them to do it?



    I wonder how Apple counts their numbers??

    Oh wow, they count them exactly the same way, fancy that.

     

    SolipsismY already noted that you seem to not read what you comment on.

     

    Now, on Apple:

    1. Most iOS devices use the AppStore (including jailbroken devices). Not the case with Google Play Store (see my previous post).

    2. Apple ALWAYS provides SALES numbers, not estimates.

     

    So, the confidence interval for Apple's provided numbers is in the 90-th percentile, while for Google it goes down to ??

     

    Q: Why do Google and Apple provide that information?

    A: To help developers decide what devices to support. To even measure their target market.

     

    Q: Can you estimate your target market as an app developer?

    A.1: For iOS it is possible with some degree of inaccuracy since Apple provides the number of devices shipped each quarter. With some analysis you can get MEANINGFUL numbers, although not exact.

     

    A.2: For Android it is effectively impossible to do so. 

    Consider an application targeting Lollipop, at 1.6%. If that percentage is out of 1.5 billion devices, then that's 24 million potential buyers.

    Unfortunately, the number of devices is impossible to infer form what Google provides as data.

     

    Now, looking back at what a lot of people wrote, it seems that most of them implicitly apply Google's provided percentages to the the 84% marketshare. And that is bullshit. Actually, the 84% market share is bullshit, but that's another topic.

     

    Remove the ASOP. I would even say remove the whole "Others" category that takes close to 50% of ALL smartphone sales and you are left with 34% of all devices shipped ... at best. So, Lollipop would be 1.6% out of 34%, i.e. 0.55% ... maybe, maybe not. Who knows?

  • Reply 20 of 32
    jfanningjfanning Posts: 3,398member
    solipsismy wrote: »
    Hence his stated point: Chinese ASOP devices do not use Google services (including Play store). And that is a huge number of devices.

    The only point he is stated is he thinks the devices that don't use the Google Services are Google Android devices, which they aren't. So why would Google care about them
Sign In or Register to comment.