With almost twice as many smartphones shipping in Q4 of 2012 than the previous year, it’s no surprise that Google’s Android OS has maintained its lead in the smartphone race. A new report from Strategy Analytics estimates that a total of 152.1 million smartphones operating on Android shipped in Q4 of 2012, making Android’s global market share 70%, up from 51%, in Q4 of 2011.

With its open source ethos, Google’s Android OS has helped proliferate the manufacture and development of a variety of devices. Android devices of all colors and stripes have been popping up since it’s inception, ranging from high-end smartphones and tablets to entry-level devices. Unlike Apple, whose iOS only operates on a few devices produced strictly by Apple, Google lets manufacturers use the Android source code and customize it to their liking. It also allows Android devices to be sold at various price points, unlike the (new) iPhone that remains at a premium price.

It’s true that Android is dominating the smartphone market right now, but can it keep up with competing and emerging smartphone OS’s such as RIM’s new BlackBerry 10 OS and Firefox OS? Let us know what you think.

(Via: TechCrunch,Phandroid)

Facebook is the most popular mobile app in the U.S. in terms of unique users — at least for now.

The signature Facebook app passed Google Maps in October of last year to become the most used mobile app in the U.S. and held onto the top spot through the end of the year, according to data released Wednesday by comScore Mobile Metrix.

Facebook's app enjoyed strong growth in 2012 with 85.5 million monthly unique users in the U.S. in December across iOS, Android and RIM's mobile platforms, up from just under 65 million in March, when comScore first started tracking mobile app data. (In October, Facebook reported 604 million monthly mobile users worldwide.) Google Maps, on the other hand, saw its active user numbers dip from about 80 million in August and September to a little more than 70 million in October after it was removed as a default app on iOS 6.

"Both Google Maps and Facebook were growing nicely throughout the year until that happened," Andrew Lipsman, VP of industry analysis at comScore, told Mashable. "Facebook continued that trend and Google Maps took a dip that one month and now it's climbing back." Google launched a new Maps app for iOS 6 in mid-December, and Lipsman says it's likely Maps will grow its user numbers at a faster rate going forward, though it's unclear whether and when the app will return to the top spot.


ComScore's mobile app data is based on browsing behavior tracks from a panel of users as well as supplemental data from publishers showing app usage. The numbers represent active visitors to apps — rather than app downloads — similar to the way that comScore tracks visitors to websites.

While Facebook currently held the top spot at the end of the year, Google had the next five most used apps, including Google Maps, Gmail and YouTube. Lipsman credited this to the growth of Android and the popularity of Google services in general.



Aside from having the largest audience, Facebook's app also has by far the highest level of engagement. According to comScore, Facebook's app accounted for 23% of time spent on mobile apps while all of Google's apps collectively account for 10% of time spent.

Facebook has admitted that it has 'no effective mechanism in place' to prevent children under the age of 13 from setting up profiles.

The social network decrees that users have to be at least 13 to join the site, but the lack of an effective age verification system makes it easy for pre-teens to sign up for an account.

Despite Facebook's efforts, research from a professor at the London School of Economics estimates that a massive 34 per cent of UK 9-12 year olds now have a Facebook page.

Facebook's director of policy for Facebook UK and Ireland, Simon Milner called the problem "tricky" but admitted there is no system in place to prevent young children lying about their age.
Facebook isn't unsafe?

Speaking at an Oxford Media Convention, he said: "We haven't got a mechanism for eradicating the problem."

Surprisingly, Milner also hinted that if not for a US privacy law, the age restrictions may not be in place, because the company does not feel that Facebook is unsafe for young children.

He added: "Facebook does have a rule that users have to be over 13, as does YouTube, which not a lot of people know.

"It is not because we think that Facebook is unsafe but because of a US law about children's online privacy. So we have it as a global rule."
Young kids listen, teens don't

Sonia Livingstone, the LSoE professor who conducted the research, reckons the number of underage users is only going to get higher as social media continues to flourish.

She said: "I would assume that figure is going up and would assume younger children are also having profiles.

"If parents would only say to young children, 'don't go on Facebook', we have found that they listen. Teenagers don't, but younger children do."

Despite claiming that Facebook isn't unsafe for pre-teen users (and those above 13 for that matter), Milner insisted that it has tough policies to eliminate bullying, grooming, pornography and nudity.

Via Guardian (Thanks)