Here's a statistic: in the first quarter of 2012, of the 18m smartphones sold in the US through carriers, the majority went to existing smartphone owners. Less than half - about 8.6m - went to new smartphone owners: people upgrading from a featurephone or getting their first phone. (The former is more likely.)
Decided how? A combination of two sets of data. First is the analysis by Benedict Evans of Enders Analysis, who in his latest blogpost looks at the balance of smartphones sales in the US.
Evans's post is interesting in itself:
the iPhone is now roughy half of ALL smartphone sales in the USA, as reported by the operators themselves, who really ought to know. And yet globally, Android is outselling the iPhone 2:1. How to explain the discrepancy? In a word, price.
US smartphone share, 1Q 2012, by carrier. Source: Benedict Evans/Enders Analysis He explains that "Relative to most other developed markets, the US mobile market is structured around significantly higher usage, higher monthly bills and much less competition on handset subsidy".
He shows that the way US carriers set up their contracts means that an iPhone is barely more expensive than other smartphones there:
With a minimum entry price of $80/month and a handset price of $200, the minimum 24 month total cost of ownership [TCO] for an iPhone 4S in the USA is $2,120, whereas the minimum TCO for a 'free' smartphone is $1,920. For a US consumer, the potential saving from getting a cheaper smartphone instead of an iPhone is just 10% of the 24m TCO
Conversely the lowest TCO at which a consumer can get an iPhone in the UK is just $998. This is under half what they would have to pay in the USA: however, it is also possible to get a smartphone in the UK for a TCO of just $384 – 20% of the US equivalent.
Hence, an American can only save 10% over two years by getting a 'free' smartphone over an iPhone. In the UK, the iPhone is 160% more expensive than the cheapest smartphone offer.
Which would go a long way to explaining why the iPhone sells so much better in the US: it's not a very competitive market. "The iPhone 4S 16Gb is available in the UK at 10 different prices (including free), depending on what contract you take out," Evans notes. "In the USA, it costs $200 on any contract".
Now, to the other point, about the number of those smartphones going to existing owners. Evans's data says that in the first quarter of 2012, there were 18m smartphones sold through the five principal operators in the US - 9m iPhones, and 9m other smartphones.
In parallel, ComScore has a gigantic panel of mobile phone owners whom it polls every month, and it releases the data from those polls about a month behind.
Looking at the period from January to March, the installed base of smartphones (among a total of 234m users) grew from 97.9m users in the three months ending in December 2011 to its March figure, where it says 106m people owned a smartphone during the three months ending in March. That's a growth of 8.6m in the installed base - the number who have one.
That indicates that less than half (47%) went to new owners. Which suggests that the real challenge for the smartphone makers who are looking to grow - and those who are looking to get into the market - will be getting the 50% who are still using a featurephone to buy a smartphone - or even to use a smartphone in that way even if they get it. Perhaps what it really needs is for the US carriers to introduce a more competitive market. But there's no sign of that happening lately.
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These are the best renders yet of the iPhone 5 - Crave
Apple didn't let anything slip about the iPhone 5 at WWDC, so leave it to the Internet. These are the finest iPhone 5 renders so far, knocked up by Martin Hajek on Flickr.
Click through to see the full gallery.
Hajek punted out his renders of the black iPhone 5 last week, based on the backplate we spied recently. He's not the first to put together a render based on what we've been hearing rumour-wise, but these are the prettiest yet.
The iPhone as imagined by Hajek features the striped aluminium back, as well as the larger 16:9 screen that's expected to make an appearance on the next gen Jesus phone. The screen on the next iPhone is expected to be 4-inches tall but no wider than the existing 3.5-incher, and with an aspect ratio ideal for movies.
The next iPhone is expected to launch around October time, which is the same time as Windows 8. As well as the bigger screen, it'll come touting the next generation of its software, iOS 6. New additions include Apple's own mapping software (replacing Google Maps), as well as turn-by-turn navigation, meaning the phone doubles as a sat-nav.
A much-improved Siri will also be on board, thankfully capable of telling us about local businesses like pubs, restaurants and taxi services. Previously it could only do this in America.
The iPhone 5 may well have the same A5X chip as in the new iPad too, boosting performance and making it even more of a gaming heavyweight than the iPhone 4S. We could have 4G by the end of the year, so the iPhone 5 could well be 4G-equipped for super-fast surfing and downloads.
What do you think of these renders? And what are you hoping for from the next iPhone? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook page.
Three ways to protect iPhone - Akron Beacon Journal
There are people who need iPhone protection, and then there are people who really need iPhone protection.
I fall into the former category, as I like to think I’m pretty careful with my iPhone 4, but since I’ve been testing the X-Protect from G-Form, I feel as if I could toss it across the room and it would be just fine.
The G-Form folks say the $39.99 X-Protect offers 360 degrees of extreme-impact protection, and I believe them.
The case is made with something called Reactive Protection Technology. There are some more technical-sounding terms on their website, but suffice it to say the case is made of a high-tech dense foam surrounded by a rigid exterior skeleton.
The interior of the case is soft and squishy like a wetsuit. The X-Protect doesn’t have any type of covering for the phone’s screen.
There is a video on the G-Form website of iPhones being punished by shooting them like hockey pucks at a real NHL goalie. The phones survived.
Available in nine colors, the X-Protect is easy to install and slide in and out of a front pants pocket.
G-Form also makes cases for tablets and laptops. An iPad case is shown in a video being dropped more than 100,000 feet from a weather balloon and surviving with no injuries.
The company also makes knee and elbow pads and padded clothing for people to wear.
The X-Protect is perfect for the athlete, adventurist or klutz.
G-FORM X-PROTECT:
• Pros: Unrivaled protection. Nice looks.
• Cons: None
• Bottom line: Some of the best protection you can buy for your iPhone.
• Price: $39.99
• On the Web: http://www.g-form. com
I’m a fan of iPhone screen protectors. I’ve been using and abusing screen protectors since I was using a Palm Treo.
The biggest hassle is the installation. Getting the thing lined up just right so the buttons and openings are exactly aligned can be frustrating, and rarely are you able to remove and retry the installation.
ScreenPro has a new line of screen protectors for the iPhone that includes a nearly foolproof installation system.
The screen protector comes mounted in a plastic template that perfectly fits your iPhone 4 or 4S.
The protector is sandwiched between two sheets of plastic.
Simply peel off the first tab to expose the screen protector, snap your iPhone in the template and remove it. The screen protector will adhere to your phone in perfect alignment.
Then use a credit card to work any bubbles to the edges and peel away the second tab.
A video on the ScreenPro website shows the entire process completed in one minute. I can vouch for that time. I spent more time cleaning dust off the iPhone than I did installing the screen protector.
The ScreenPro is available in clear ($14.99), matte ($15.99) or privacy ($17.99).
SCREENPRO CLEAR SCREEN:
• Pros: Easy to install. Good protection.
• Cons: Not cheap.
• Bottom line: If you’re squeamish about installing screen protectors, the ScreenPro will put you at ease.
• Price: $14.99-$17.99
• On the Web: http://www.screenpro.co
I’ve used several iPhone cases that had a built-in battery to recharge the phone’s internal power source, but those were bulky and useless anchors once they were used up. The Third Rail Mobility Slim Case for iPhone 4/4S is a two-part system of hard case and battery. The idea is you keep the phone in the case and attach the battery when you need a charge. When the battery is used up, simply pop it off and slip it in your pocket or bag.
The Slim Case system, which costs $89.99, has both case and battery. Additional batteries are available for $59.99. The batteries can stack to provide days and days of power. Each battery holds 1250 mAh of power, a bit less than an iPhone 4 battery, which holds 1420 mAh.
The battery is easy to install and remove. It might be a bit too easy to remove. In my jeans pocket, I was able to make the battery disengage from the case. In a bag, that was not an issue.
The battery is charged through a micro USB cable, either while mounted to the case or by itself. The battery can also provide power to your other portable devices that charge via USB with an included cable. Battery life is displayed with a 5-LED status indicator.
The Slim Case is a slick solution to extend your iPhone’s battery with no bulky case.
THIRD RAIL SLIM CASE
• Pros: Nice design. Stackable batteries.
• Cons: A bit too easy to knock the battery off the case.
• Bottom line: A nice solution to keeping your iPhone running long after its battery is exhausted.
• Price: $89.99
• On the Web: http://www.thirdrailmobility.com
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