The NPD Group reports, feature phones still rule the U.S. market, even as
smartphone sales increased their share of overall handset
sales. NPD's Mobile Phone Track information revealed that unit-sales of
new feature phones fell 5 percentage points to 72 percent of new
handset sales in the second quarter (Q2), while sales of new
smartphones (i.e., handsets that are sold with their own operating
systems) reached 28 percent of overall consumer purchases - a 47
percent increase in the category's share since last year.
Overall handset sales volume in the U.S. grew 14 percent year over
year in Q2 2009, as sales revenue increased 18 percent. The average
selling price of all mobile phones increased 4 percent year over year -
reaching $87 in Q2. NPD's Q2 2009 ranking of handsets showed the LG
enV2 and Samsung Rant led feature phone sales, while Apple iPhone 3G
and RIM Blackberry Curve were the top-selling smartphones.
- Wi-Fi capability increased three-fold since last year, with 20
percent of all new handsets equipped with this capability. - Touchscreens on both feature phones and smartphones have also seen
tremendous growth since last year, with 26 percent of all new handsets
purchased in Q2 including this feature. - Physical QWERTY keyboards, by
comparison, were available in 35 percent of handsets sold.
"Despite their ties to pricey data plans, the rich Internet access
capabilities of smartphones are attracting consumers wooed by lower
device prices," said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis at The
NPD Group.
"Feature phones are taking on more of the physical characteristics
of smartphones, and often offer greater exposure to carrier services,"
Rubin said. "Although their user interfaces continue to improve, the
depth of their applications generally lags behind those of smartphones.
With the price gap between smartphones and feature phones narrowing, to
remain competitive feature phones need to develop a better Web
experience, drive utility via widgets, and sidestep the applications
arms race."
Methodology: The NPD Group compiles and analyzes mobile device sales
data based on more than 150,000 completed online consumer research
surveys each month. Surveys are based on a nationally balanced and
demographically representative sample, and results are projected to
represent the entire population of U.S. consumers. Note: Sales figures
do not include corporate/enterprise mobile phone sales.