A major contributor to the fast-changing nature of smartphones in India is the explosion of Google’s Android onto the scene. The tremendous growth of Android since entering India last year has it taking the leadership position in terms of shipments last quarter. A Nielsen Informate panel found smartphone users in India spending more than 40 percent of total active time on their smartphones on data-centric activities. A full 25 percent of users’ time with apps is spent on those developed by Google, with the Android Market, YouTube and Gmail leading …

According to the latest research from Nielsen, the high-profile launch of Apple’s iPhone 4S in the Fall had an enormous impact on the proportion of smartphone owners who chose an Apple iPhone.

Advertisers and those aiming to reach smartphone and tablet users on their devices should look no further than free apps. According to Nielsen’s Consumer Usage Report, 51 percent of consumers say that they are okay with advertising on their devices if it means they can access content for free.

Nielsen looks at the top online destinations and mobile platforms of 2011

Facebook and apps from Google like Gmail and the Android Market are the most popular smartphone apps among Android owners according to Nielsen’s latest research on smartphone usage.

Nielsen’s third quarter survey of mobile users reveals that while only 43 percent of all US mobile phone subscribers own a smartphone, 62 percent of mobile adults aged 25-34 report owning smartphones. And among those 18-24 and 35-44 years old the smartphone penetration rate is hovering near 54 percent.

Africa is in the midst of a technological revolution, and nothing illustrates that fact than the proliferation of mobile phones.

According to an August survey, 43 percent of all smartphone owners have an Android device. But if you ask only those who got a new smartphone in the past three months what kind of phone they chose, more than half (56%) will tell you they picked an Android device.

Forty percent of mobile consumers in the U.S. now have smartphones. Android is the most popular operating system, with 40 percent of mobile consumers reporting they have a smartphone with an Android OS. Apple’s iOS is in second place, with 28 percent.

Back in Q3 2010, for example, 62 percent of tablet owners were under the age of 34 and only 10 percent were over the age of 55. By Q2 2011, only 46 percent of tablet owners were under the age of 34 and the percentage of those over 55 had increased to 19 percent.