Apple had fostered a reputation for inspiring loyalty within its consumer base long before iPhone hit the market in 2007.
Stats published by Piper Jaffray regarding 4S take up, however, appears to illustrate iPhone owners are no more willing to switch brands than their Mac counterparts.
According to the firm's numbers based on a survey of 550 people queuing for handsets on launch day in the US 73 percent of those buying an iPhone 4S were upgrading from one of its predecessors.
Loyalty costs?
Allowing for a margin as error, that's roughly equal to the 77 percent the firm polled when iPhone 4 rolled out in 2010, and up on the 56 percent and 38 percent taken during 2009 and 2008 handset launches respectively.
"We believe Apple has built brand loyalty not enjoyed by the Android platform," said analyst Gene Munster, citing previous claims that iPhone owners are less likely to switch platforms.
However, while Apple might like to claim it boasts the most loyal customer base of all smartphone platforms, said figures also suggest iPhone 4S isn't growing iOS's userbase, but rather re-selling to existing customers.
That's something recent comScore numbers pointing to Android's higher growth rate would support.
Of the handsets on offer, Piper Jaffray also reported the 16GB model was proving the most popular, sapping up 49 percent of sales. 32 percent have opted for the 32GB release, with 19 percent picking up the most expensive 64GB SKU.
[source: Apple Insider]
Data & Research
With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.
Top Stories
News
5 hours, 13 minutes ago
Week in Views - Apple back themselves bigstyle, Clash bags Haaland and dreams come true at King
News
8 hours, 4 minutes ago
Mobile Movers: All the latest appointments and job moves from around the industry
News
8 hours, 49 minutes ago
Squad Busters has 20 million pre registrations with 30 million in its sights
News
9 hours, 11 minutes ago
Carry1st's African Cup to feature Call of Duty: Mobile tournament with $15,000 prize pool
News
5 hours, 13 minutes ago
Week in Views - Apple back themselves bigstyle, Clash bags Haaland and dreams come true at King
Feature
7 hours, 25 minutes ago
Apple and Nintendo's Delta blues: A legal timebomb or just the new normal?
News
8 hours, 4 minutes ago
Mobile Movers: All the latest appointments and job moves from around the industry
Events
GameDev Atlantic 2024 | May 4th | |
LA Games Conference 2024 | North America | May 6th |
Mobidictum Meetup Berlin May 2024 | Europe | May 7th |
Valencia Indie Summit 2024 | Europe | May 16th |
Mobidictum Meetup Tallinn May 2024 | Europe | May 21st |
Israel Mobile Summit 2024 | Middle East | Jun 6th |
WN Conference Istanbul 2024 | Jun 11th | |
DevGAMM Vilnius 2024 | Europe | Jun 14th |