Pew Internet study: more Americans own smartphones than feature phones

Of all adults in the US who own some kind of mobile phone, 53% have a smartphone. This marks the first time that the number has reached above 50%, meaning those cheap, free phones at the store just aren't cutting it anymore. This is the latest data from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, which has become an expert in tracking the way Americans use technology.

That number is also nearly matched by Nielsen, which recently released a report that suggested 48% of mobile phone users in the US were smartphone owners. So however you slice it, the United States is now a smartphone nation. According to Pew, Android is the leading platform, which 20% of mobile phone owners saying they owned an Android device. That was followed closely by the iPhone at 19%. Blackberry chimed in at 6% and Windows Mobile/Windows Phone took 2%.

These numbers, of course, all only relate to people who own a cell phone. Pew's study found that 12% of US adults don't actually own a cell phone, making the absolute percentage of adults who own a smartphone 46%. And while smartphone ownership is rising across all major demographics, it is still most common among college graduates, people aged 18-35, and/or those with an annual household income of $75,000 or more.

[via GigaOM]