Nearly 9 in 10 US teenagers use an iPhone, spelling disaster for Google’s mobile future

  • Hubi@feddit.de
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    20
    ·
    11 months ago

    Why are iPhones so popular in the US compared to Europe? Is it a peer pressure kind of thing? Or simply status? The difference seems to be pretty substantial and I don’t think it can be explained by user experience alone.

    iPhones have a 58% (US) vs 26% (EU) market share.

    • sergih@feddit.de
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      19
      ·
      edit-2
      11 months ago

      I think it has to do with the messagin app. For some reason in the us it’s still common to use plain sms messages, which on an iPhone get translated to the blue bubble, but when sent to an android become the infamous green bubble.

      This is however not the case in the EU bc sms messages were still expensive enoughfuring that time that when whatsapp released, everyone did the switch so as to not to pay the sms fees, and now, even if sms are basically free, everyone uses whatsapp as the default messaging app.

      And as we know on whatsapp there’s no differentiation of anything regarding the device you are sending messages to, so no constant reminder of “this guy had an android”.

      Just my 2 cents on why this could be.

      • hushable@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        4
        ·
        11 months ago

        off topic, by any chance are you using Jerboa? ses like your comments is missing some spaces and I suspect it might be a bug with the app

        • sergih@feddit.de
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          11 months ago

          Yes! Wow it has to do with the app? I was going crazy, yes when I delete a word it shifts back and joind with the last word, it drives me nuts, are they planning on fixing it? Or do you recommend me another app?

      • Mongostein@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        6
        arrow-down
        9
        ·
        11 months ago

        The blue bubbles mean you’re using iMessage, which is encrypted. You don’t have to download a separate app owned by Facebook which makes texting iPhone to iPhone so much better.

    • IDontHavePantsOn@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      14
      ·
      11 months ago

      While other commenters are correct about the marketing in some aspects. As a parent of teenagers I will say if they don’t have an iPhone they will be mocked relentlessly. The whole bubble color thing is real. They think androids are for poor people even though androids have a much larger range of price. This isn’t a “my kids” thing. This is a “everyone in school thinks” thing.

      God help me when they get their next upgrade and suddenly my chargers start going missing because “someone stole” theirs…

      • 768@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        19
        ·
        11 months ago

        They think androids are for poor people

        So it boils down to classism among youths and in schools?

      • sederx@programming.dev
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        11 months ago

        this is the same excuse i hear for people circumcising their kids.

        are us people so weak to peer pressure?

    • Jackcooper@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      7
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      11 months ago

      Apple is headquartered in America and used a lot of marketing with celebrities, musicians, trendsetters etc.

      Samsung is really popular in Asia. There’s something to be said for homefield advantage.

    • ALostInquirer@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      5
      ·
      11 months ago

      What’s the carrier situation like in the EU? Do they market the iPhone aggressively in Europe? I’d suspect both of those may have some influence on the difference, but I’m as interested as you in what’s affecting the differences in adoption between both regions.

    • V ‎ ‎ @beehaw.org
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      11 months ago

      RCS has failed to take over the market, creating a strong preference for iMessage. Additionally, iPhones just work. The curated App Store means far less malware and buggy crap apps. Pile on the social aspects and few people under 25 are going for iPhones.

      • Hubi@feddit.de
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        11 months ago

        That doesn’t explain the difference in market share. Seems like there are cultural differences.

        • V ‎ ‎ @beehaw.org
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          3
          ·
          11 months ago

          It might be, and given the States’ rather unique culture I have a feeling it’s a big contributor other factors notwithstanding.