Getting to know the shipments statistics of devices on different mobile operating systems is certainly important when it comes to outlining a mobile strategy, but they do not always reflect actual usage. Usage may be even more important when launching mobile websites and apps, or targeting mobile ads. Here are the latest statistics on the popularity of mobile operating systems based on mobile web traffic across a range of different countries.
Mobile operating systems landscape – an overview
Looking at the mobile traffic statistics you can see at a glance that the market is now completely dominated by two operating systems, iOS and Android. In fact, Android ranks either first, or second in all of the 76 countries covered by DeviceAtlas, while iOS falls outside the ‘top two’ in only 5 countries, including Nigeria, South Africa, Vietnam, Iran and Kenya.
Future competition may come from Microsoft. The upgrades introduced by the Windows Phone 8.5 and upcoming Windows 10 both received some positive feedback, and perhaps the future will be bright for the Microsoft platform. But for now its mobile traffic market share is marginal compared to the market leaders.
We’re also unsure what the future has in store for BlackBerry OS. Sales are on life support (0.5% market share in Q3 2014, according to IDC) and so is BlackBerry OS mobile traffic share in most countries, with only a few exceptions listed in the charts below.
Other mobile operating systems popping up in our statistics include Symbian, Bada OS, and Firefox OS. You can check out where these operating systems are now popular via the charts below.
1. iOS vs Android
The battle between these two operating systems goes on in nearly every corner of the globe, with some markets leaning strongly towards Android where this operating system covers over 70% of the mobile traffic. Have a look at the following charts comparing iOS and Android use in 10 selected local markets.
2. Where is Windows Phone popular
With a selection of well-received Lumia offerings (especially in the low to mid-range), Microsoft may soon start gaining ground in the mobile landscape. Check out its impact on current mobile traffic below.
3. Where is BlackBerry OS popular
BlackBerry OS used to be significant in the past, but now there’s only a handful of markets where the Canadian-based manufacturer enjoys some visibility in the mobile statistics. We don’t expect its latest releases, the BlackBerry Passport and the BlackBerry Classic, to challenge the leaders.
4. Other mobile operating systems
There are a few markets in which ‘pre-smartphone’ Symbian-based Nokias are still used, even though the last Symbian device, Nokia 808 PureView, was released roughly three years ago. You can also notice some traffic generated by Firefox OS and Bada OS. The new arrival in the smartphone OS world, the Tizen OS, hasn’t gained any traction in our statistics so far.
