27% of smartphone buyers in Europe swapped Android for iPhone last quarter

Consumers aren't bored of the iPhone 6 yet. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Consumers aren’t bored of the iPhone 6 yet. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Apple’s iPhones might be on the verge of a big refresh this month, but that doesn’t make them any less appealing to those looking to take a break from Android.

In Europe, 27 percent of smartphone shoppers swapped their Android for an iPhone last quarter, while 9 percent of consumers made the same switch in the U.S.

“Android market share in Europe was negatively impacted by challenging market dynamics in Germany, France, and Great Britain,” explains Carolina Milanesi, chief of research at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech.

In the U.K., Android’s market share fell from 58.1 percent over the three months ending July 2014 to 54.4% over the same period this year. In France, it fell from 75 percent to 69.6 percent, and in Germany it fell from 82.4 percent to 73.7 percent.

In comparison, iOS jumped from 29 percent to 32.7 percent in the U.K., 14.3 percent to 17 percent in France, and 9.5 percent to 15.2 percent in Germany.

Market share changes in Great Britain. Photo: Kantar Worldpanel

Market share changes in Great Britain. Photo: Kantar Worldpanel

In the U.S., the changes weren’t quite so significant, but they did favor Android. Google’s platform saw its share increase from 63.9 percent in 2014 to 65.6 percent in 2015, while Apple’s platform dropped from 31.4 percent to 30.1 percent.

What’s most interesting about the U.S. smartphone market is that it continues to be dominated by Apple and Samsung, with nine of the top ten smartphones last quarter coming from these two companies. The odd one out was a handset from LG.

The smartphone market “lacked some excitement” last quarter, Milanesi said, but “things are about to change as Samsung’s recently-announced products begin to roll out across markets and Apple makes its big reveal on September 9.”

Those things will certainly be welcome in Europe, where, despite the big changes in share for both Android and iOS, the smartphone market is beginning to mature, with only 25 percent of consumers purchasing a smartphone for the first time, down from 29 percent year-on-year.