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| iPhone more popular among younger people than Android |
| By Thom Holwerda on 2012-10-10 20:41:47 |
| "Does Android skew towards a younger demographic? The numbers might surprise you. According to comScore, 52.4% of all Android users are aged 35 years or older. That is five percentage points higher than the iPhone. Near 55% Android tablets users are also older than 35." How is this surprising? Younger people tend to be more brand-conscious, and there's no denying that the iPhone is still perceived as cooler than Android phones. Also note that the cited figures are for the US, Apple's strong home market. I think the figures will look very different for Europe. |
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| RE[8]: Umm... Duh? |
| By jared_wilkes on 2012-10-10 22:35:44 |
| Moreso for Apple's platform than for Android in the US. But you haven't explained why that demographic makeup would be different outside of the U.S. at all. (Maybe it is, but you haven't put forth a rational or supported argument for it yet.) |
 - Score: 2 |
| RE[9]: Umm... Duh? |
| By Thom_Holwerda on 2012-10-10 22:42:01 |
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If younger people buy most of the smartphones, and there are more Android smartphones in a country than iPhones, than it is not at all illogical to assume that Android is more popular there among younger people than it is in the US. Pretty basic logic. Like I said - it doesn't have to be so, but it makes sense. |
| - Score: 1 |
| RE[10]: Umm... Duh? |
| By jared_wilkes on 2012-10-10 22:44:57 |
|
> If younger people buy most of the smartphones, and there are more Android smartphones in a country than iPhones, than it is not at all illogical to assume that Android is more popular there among younger people than it is in the US. This is contradicted by the US data. More people in the US purchase Android devices than iPhones, yet Apple still has younger demographic data. When your assumption is directly contradicted by the only data actually presented, yes, I would say that is illogical. |
| - Score: 3 |
| So what? |
| By Luke McCarthy on 2012-10-10 22:47:18 |
| Justin Bieber is also popular among younger people. |
| - Score: 3 |
| Nothing wrong with being brand concious |
| By RichterKuato on 2012-10-10 22:49:53 |
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I know there is some hate for Apple here but don't hate it's customers. It just so happens that without young people alot of overpriced cr** wouldn't be on the market. That includes high end graphics cards, PC-like game consoles, and anything with HD in the product description. In other words most high end geek stuff wouldn't be viable. I myself just wish more diverse brands were available to the general public like they are with things like cars and clothing. |
| - Score: 2 |
| RE: So what? |
| By Alexandre on 2012-10-10 23:10:15 |
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"Justin Bieber is also popular among younger people." One simple sentence explains it. I like Tom Waits, most teens hate him. Edited 2012-10-10 23:11 UTC |
| - Score: 2 |
| RE: Nothing wrong with being brand concious |
| By gan17 on 2012-10-10 23:11:37 |
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> I know there is some hate for Apple here but don't hate it's customers. It's kind of the opposite for me. I don't hate Apple more than I do any other multinational tech corporation. Heck, I probably hate Samsung more than Apple in some cases, despite currently owning a Galaxy Nexus. It's the customers I dislike, or rather the "fanboys" to be more accurate. Even when I owned an iPhone (3GS) and complained on a forum or comments section about certain features, I'd get lynched. The same can be said about Android customers. Seems the new trend this millennium is for people to waver their rights as a paying customer and instead suck on the dicks of multinational corporations they're giving money to. You pay money to the people you're whoring yourself to? Where's the sense in that?! /tangent |
| - Score: 4 |
| RE[8]: Umm... Duh? |
| By Tony Swash on 2012-10-10 23:41:06 |
|
> > You are arguing that in countries where people prefer Android to iPhone, those who still choose to prefer the iPhone will be necessarily older on average than in America. I see no logic or support to that claim whatsoever. Younger people buy more smartphones than older people. Pretty straightforward. That may be true but it could also be true that at the same time the proportion of young people buying Apple is higher than the proportion of older people. The Comscore data gels with this research http://appleinsider.com/articles... which indicates a high iPhone adoption rate amongst US teens and a high intention to buy Apple kit in the future amongst said teens. The data in the Comscore report only applies to the US and I have not seen any evidence about the age demographics of smart phone brands in other countries so it is reasonable to assume that the other markets have similar demographics until proved otherwise. As the Comscore data is the only data on the table the onus is on those who argue that the age demographics outside the US are different to come up with some evidence to support that proposition. Personally I am not that surprised that iPhone may be somewhat more popular than Android with young people, it probably has the highest brand recognition of any phone and brands mean a lot to young people, and Android phones as whole come across as being a bit old fashioned, again something that is important to young people. But in the end this is all probably pretty trivial. |
| - Score: 2 |
| RE[2]: So what? |
| By _txf_ on 2012-10-11 00:24:01 |
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> "Justin Bieber is also popular among younger people." One simple sentence explains it. I like Tom Waits, most teens hate him. Can you really say that conclusively? When I was a teen I liked Tom Waits. I'd venture most have no such strong feelings... |
| - Score: 3 |
| Demographics are juju |
| By jared_wilkes on 2012-10-11 00:25:46 |
|
My general point is: demographic gathering, analysis, forecasting, and targeting are very difficult and mysterious. Some products, brands, or companies get pegged into a certain demographic without even trying; they can't alter their demographics with millions of dollars and hours spent on branding, marketing, packaging, targeting, etc. Other products, brands, and/or companies can re-jigger their demos, hone in on the most desirable segments like gifted surgeons and flourish. Some products, brands, or companies simply flame out with a demographic they once owned. Some demographics won't change with increased/decreased sales (or still stay favorable/unfavorable relative to competition); some will... for better or worse. Likewise for price or other factors. It is very easy to make assumptions about demographics. It is easy to claim these assumptions are logical. And it's just as easy that you'll be wrong. One could argue that the more mainstream/majority/average a product is, the more its demographics regress towards the mean. The demographics come to reflect the most average consumer rather than the most desirable consumer. (In some cases, its actually the older segment that is still more desirable to target.) But this could also be wrong. (Although probably the most "logical" assumption put forth thus far.) One could argue that wealthier people buy more smartphones (just as younger people may buy more smartphones), and wealthier people have a preference for the iPhone (also reported in the data being discussed). So even in poorer markets where Apple has significantly less market share, their demos could skew even younger and wealthier. (And this assumption could also be wrong.) I simply think it's completely illogical to say that a company that has historically done very well at targeting the most desirable demographic segment (age/wealth/education/etc leading to greatest profits) in the market place would have significantly different demographics by region because of differences in market share -- or more importantly, because of the market share of a different platform entirely -- particularly when Apple has generally performed similarly, demographically-speaking and relative to its competition, across various products, across countries, across decades without regard for market share (whether that be 2%, 5%, 8%, 15%, 20%, 35%, 70%, or 95% of the market). I'm sure there are some regional demographic differences affected by any number of factors, but most of the assumptions that have been made (particularly those in relation to market share) are completely unfounded in data or logic. |
| - Score: 2 |
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