The Mobi Blog.Net

[New survey results from Compete show smartphone owners favorite types of apps include entertainment,games, music, social networking and weather.]

TNS Media company, today released the results from its quarterly Smartphone Intelligence survey, which provides behavioral and survey-based insights into how consumers are using their iPhones and other "smart" devices. The report shows that smartphone owners agree on their favorite types of applications; entertainment, games, music, social networking and weather are the most popular across platforms. In addition, while iPhone owners are most likely to spend money on desired applications, 83 percent of all smartphone users prefer applications that are priced under $5. Compete's Smartphone Intelligence Survey also digs deeper into the differences between iPhone, Blackberry and Palm users.

Key findings include:

* 73 percent of Blackberry owners have downloaded 5 or fewer applications; in contrast, 72 percent of iPhone owners have downloaded 10 or more applications.

* Facebook is hot among iPhone owners: 71 percent of iPhone users report accessing Facebook from their mobile device, 37 percent listed Facebook as one of their top three most utilized apps and 18 percent claim it's their favorite app.

* 30 percent of all smartphone owners are either comfortable or very comfortable receiving targeted marketing on their device.

"With the massive number of applications downloaded to date, the iPhone has taken an early lead in getting owners to adopt app functionality and make popular applications a part of their daily lives," said Danielle Nohe, director of telecommunications and media for Compete. "Smartphones are changing the way we live and communicate, and once users are hooked, they're very unlikely to give up their device - that makes mobile the next 'can't miss' opportunity for marketers."

Smartphone owners using Facebook

Smartphone users differ in their use of social networking sites. Facebook is the most heavily trafficked social networking site among smartphone owners, and iPhone users are twice as likely to use the mobile Facebook app as their Palm counterparts. In fact, iPhone owners are the most active mobile social networkers, with the highest percentage of respondents reporting mobile use of Facebook, MySpace and Twitter and from their mobile devices.

However, despite Twitter's ever-increasing mobile popularity, 85 percent of smartphone owners still prefer to access the site the old fashioned way, from the computer. While 26 percent of iPhone users tweet from their device, only 15 percent of Palm owners and 10 percent of Blackberry devotees report accessing Twitter on the go. Of the smartphone owners who do access Twitter via their phones, 41 percent use the application to keep track of what their friends are doing, 32 percent use the service to keep up with current events and 19 percent tweet from their handset to build a fan base or promote their company.

Open to Targeted Ads

In addition to networking activities, smartphone owners are open to receiving targeted marketing via their device. What types of offers make the best candidates for marketers trying to reach networked consumers? Impulse and leisure purchases tend to be easier to digest than big, highly considered ones. Therefore, nearly half of smartphone owners are receptive to location-based offers at restaurants and offers to save and pursue at their leisure, and 45 percent would use mobile grocery coupons.