Android ownership hottest in North America

Over the past year, the iPhone has also grown faster outside of North America. AdMob found that iPhone OS devices grew by 269 percent in Western Europe, 474 percent in Asia, and 367 percent in Oceana (which includes Australia, New Zealand, and nearby Pacific islands).But Android is doing well in markets such as China. In April, Android owners outnumbered iPhone owners in China, noted AdMob, with the top three Android devices being the HTC Hero, HTC Magic, and HTC Dream.Android and the iPhone both continue to enjoy rapid growth around the world--a recent Gartner study pegged them as the only two mobile smartphone platforms to rise in unit sales in the first quarter of 2010 compared with the same quarter last year. Google said last week that it's now activating 100,000 Android devices each day, according to AdMob, while Apple has sold 85 million iPhones and iPod Touches over the past three years.Through its mobile-advertising network, AdMob tracks the number of unique devices running the Android and iPhone operating systems. So its stats only cover the devices it actually sees and aren't necessarily representative of the entire universe of Android and iPhone devices.AdMob itself is being acquired by Android owner Google, a deal that just received the thumbs up from the Federal Trade Commission despite initial concerns that the purchase would give Google a significant chunk of the mobile ad market.

Android overtakes Apple's iOS during holiday season

Apple has of course remained a dominant force in the smartphone arena. But it's been getting stung by a nest of Android rivals, including HTC, Motorola, and especially Samsung. Combine the vast number of devices with the surge in demand, and Android continues to scoop up market share.The open nature of Android itself is also driving growth as device makers have the freedom to offer the mobile OS on a variety of devices and customize the user experience."The highly flexible nature of Android in regard to both hardware and software create the conditions necessary for what market leaders in all industries fear most: change," noted Chitika.Google also continues to build up its Android Market with around 400,000 apps now available. Though Apple has well over 500,000, Google has lately been able to increase the pace at which new apps become available.Of course, the open nature of Android Market has taken its share of lumps, with many security experts pointing to Google's mobile ecosystem as a favorite target for malware writers. But such openness is also key to attracting developers and consumers alike, says Chitika.Overall, though, Apple still leads in the number of active iOS devices with 250 million (including the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch), compared with Android with 230 million.