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Research firm Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) has released a new study revealing the retention rate between the usage of iPhones and Android devices. According to the data, iPhone users tend to keep their units longer compared to Android customers.
CIRP notes that the data is a response to misconceptions about the smaller share of quarterly and annual smartphone sales of iPhone. It can be recalled that the firm released earlier data about Apple having a “minority share” in the US smartphone market, making it second to Android. However, the research company says that it is because iPhone owners keep their devices longer than their Android counterparts.
“Usage data suggests the active US installed bases of iPhones and Android phones is relatively even,” the firm explains. “Thus, if iPhone owners keep their phones longer, they buy them less frequently, leading to a smaller share of quarterly and annual smartphone sales.”
According to CIRP, Android wins when it comes to customers keeping their devices for less than 1 year (23% vs. 10%) and 1 year to less than two years (34% vs. 29%). However, when it comes to customers keeping their units for longer years (2 years to less than 3 years and more than 3 years), it stresses that Apple is the obvious winner.
In particular, the data shows that 32% of iOS users keep their iPhones for 2 years to less than 3 years compared to 22% of Android users who keep theirs within the same period. Meanwhile, there’s also a huge difference for those users who retain their devices for more than 3 years, with iOS and Android getting 29% and 21% shares, respectively.
CIRP explains that one of the key reasons for this could be the availability of the upgrades. As it notes, while Android is being offered widely by different companies that simultaneously release various new models frequently, Apple only does it for iPhones once a year. Additionally, the firm believes that it has something to do with the cost of the upgrade, with Android being more affordable. It also mentions other possibilities, which might also have a huge role in the collected data, including the possible durability of iPhones alongside the high satisfaction of Apple users with their aging devices.
