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iPhone adoption among teens hits 40% in U.S., iPad at 31%

Source: Piper Jaffray

Last updated

Results from Piper Jaffray's semi-annual survey of 7,700 U.S. teens illustrated Apple's hold on the market, with 40 percent of respondents saying they own an iPhone while another 62 percent are looking to buy one as their next phone.

Analyst Gene Munster noted that Apple continues to enjoy healthy growth with the younger demographic, as the 40 percent number is up from 34 percent in Spring 2012, and 23 percent in Fall 2011.

The analyst pointed out that Apple was able to expand its market share among teens without introducing new products between the Spring and Fall 2012 surveys. Continued growth is expected as 62 percent of respondents from the most recent survey plan to purchase an iPhone when they upgrade. In comparison, 22 percent of teens surveyed said they planned to buy an Android device.

"Overall, we expect Apple devices to continue to expand in teen ownership and believe that the

company is set up well to benefit from loyalty among its younger user base," Munster said.


Going further, Munster noted an increase in tablet use among teens, with 44 percent currently owning such a device compared to 34 percent in Spring 2012 and 29 percent in Fall 2011. Of the teens who owned a tablet, 72 percent had an iteration of the iPad, up two percent from Spring. As for those students who did not own a tablet, but plan to purchase one in the next six months, 74 percent said they plan to buy an iPad.

With tablet adoption increasing in all sectors, Apple's much-rumored iPad mini could be a boon for the teen market as the 7.85-inch tablet is expected to carry a lower price tag than its bigger brother.

"The smaller iPad appears to be an attractive option for teens as 43% of teens planning on buying a tablet said they would be more likely to do so if Apple released a smaller iPad at $299," Munster said.

Last week, a report claimed Apple has started production of the small form factor iPad, with Asian suppliers said to have received orders for over 10 million units to be built in the fourth quarter. It is rumored that Apple will send out invitations on Oct. 10 to a media event at which the iPad mini will be unveiled.



29 Comments

tallest skil 14 Years · 43086 comments

Abject nonsense. 

 

Not doubting the numbers, just shaking my head at them. 

hill60 16 Years · 6976 comments

As an anecdote I have noticed a fairly high demand for exchange micro SIM's when people upgrade to the iPhone 5, as older iPhones (mainly 4's) are passed on to other family members, many of them teens.

 

That would have some effect on this survey.

 

It's something you don't see so much with two year old handsets from other manufacturers.

mac_128 12 Years · 3452 comments

I'd like to know what is the percentage of teens that use a smartphone, as well as how many teens have a cellphone at all. Otherwise this number is sort of meaningless. I'm also not exactly sure how the tablet data is supposed to fit with the cellphone data ... do the teens with tablets also have cellphones? And if so what is the percentage? I totally believe the rumored Apple mini-tablet is aimed at this market which is also the primary market for the iPod Touch. If as I suspect teen smartphone ownership is increasing (whether by new purchases, or by inheriting their parents old phones), that seriously undercuts the Touch market, making a smaller more portable, affordable tablet a perfect replacement for it.

sflocal 16 Years · 6138 comments

So they're not all buying Android phones like the iHaters have said?  Only "old" folks buy them?

Jeez, are the iHaters wrong yet AGAIN??

mstone 18 Years · 11503 comments

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mac_128 

I'd like to know what is the percentage of teens that use a smartphone, as well as how many teens have a cellphone at all. Otherwise this number is sort of meaningless.
 

I'm sure that info is in the report however the new trend in Internet journalism is to NOT link to the article source because that might take a visitor away from your pages. Heaven forbid actually providing useful details like the full text, especially when it might contribute to your bounce rate on the page. That certainly would not be a good thing for ad impression rates.