Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve got some new and interesting numbers to share about iOS 6 adoption three weeks after launch, from a couple of different sources, both of which show users continue to update to the new mobile OS from Apple. There are also some interesting differences depending on region, with some countries lagging far behind the U.S. in terms of adoption and some surging far ahead.

First, from Chitika, the news that iOS 6 adoption has climbed to just a hair shy of 68 percent on iPhone devices, based on a snapshot taken October 10 of the traffic coming through millions of ad impressions on Chitika’s network. The iPad is at 51 percent running iOS 6, passing the tipping point of more than half of all users, and the iPod rose to just over 42 percent. Chitika thinks that part of the reason behind the differences might be the overabundance of older devices still in use in the iPod segment that can’t upgrade to iOS 6, whereas all but first-generation iPads are currently compatible, and iPhones enjoy a quicker turnover cycle with consumers thanks to carrier upgrade incentives. Overall, iOS 6 adoption sits at 58.88 percent, according to Chitika’s data.

The numbers from Chartboost paint a slightly different picture. Overall, they see iOS 6 adoption sitting at just under 50 percent. That’s still an improvement from when it showed growth nearly stalling last week, but considerably under Chitika’s picture. But both continue to show an upwards trend.

In addition to looking at overall OS version adoption, Chartboost also broke down country-by-country uptake, and that showed some interesting variances depending on where users are in the world. Top iOS 6-adopting nations include Italy (65 percent), Germany (62.3 percent), the Netherlands (60.6 percent) and the UK (57.6 percent). On the other end of the spectrum, China is among the lowest adopting countries, with just 24.5 percent on iOS 6. You can see a number of other nations in the chart below.

One more chart from Chitika below shows how various countries stack up relative to the U.S. The geographical iOS 6 adoption breakdown provides an interesting look at where users are more eager to be on the latest version, but other factors like device distribution and access to reliable Wi-Fi connections could be at play.

Teething problems with Apple Maps failed to blunt mass market enthusiasm for the iPhone 5, new research suggests, with demand significantly higher than ahead of the iPhone 4S. 451 Research and ChangeWave Research surveyed 4,270 consumers in September, and found that those saying they were “very likely” to buy an iPhone 5 were almost double the number of those saying the same thing ahead of its predecessor’s release last year. Meanwhile, Windows Phone 8 could “make serious inroads in the smartphone industry” the researchers claim, surprisingly highlighting Samsung as likely to be the manufacturer that benefits the most.

While some suggested that the poor performance of Apple Maps might sour the iPhone 5′s appeal, consumers don’t appear to have reached the same conclusion. Only 3-percent of those iOS 6 users questioned said Maps presented a “very big problem” to them, while 90-percent said it was “no problem at all”; in fact, the change to the new Lightning port was more of an issue, with 6-percent saying the different connector was a “very big problem.” Only 26-percent said it was “no problem at all.”

“Despite the media attention surrounding both the Apple Maps issue and the Apple Lightning port issue, neither has had an impact on the massive numbers of buyers queuing up to buy the iPhone 5,” said Dr. Paul Carton, ChangeWave’s VP of Research. “Rather, the survey results show both issues hardly rank as bumps in the road.”

In fact, those who decided not to buy the iPhone 5 mainly did so because they were content with their existing device, according to the ChangeWave research. 61-percent said “their current cellphone is sufficient” while no respondents said it they were dissuaded because of “reported problems with Apple Maps.”

“Has Apple Maps been a problem for you?”:

As for Windows Phone 8, 2-percent of respondents said they were “very likely” to buy a phone running the OS in the future, while 7-percent said they were “somewhat likely”; integration with existing Windows apps and devices was the most cited reason for that decision, at 36-percent of the responses.

Most interestingly, though, despite Nokia and HTC being the two brands who have put the most effort into Windows Phone 8 device launches, it’s Samsung which gets most cited as the go-to manufacturer. Of the 55-percent who knew which Windows Phone 8 OEM they were likely to buy from, just over half said Samsung would be their brand of choice, with Nokia following in second place.

iPhone 5 appeal unblunted by Apple Maps says research is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Last month, the Swiss Federal Railway service (SBB) accused Apple of copying their iconic clock design by using it in the iOS 6 Clock application. However, a few days later, we were told that the two companies would be meeting with each other to discuss ways to remedy the issue. Today, Apple has agreed to pay the SBB for use of the clock design.

The two companies have agreed upon a fair price and signed a licensing agreement. However, neither company has disclosed how much the agreement was for, but we’ll probably hear about it soon, either through an official announcement, or from an insider analyst. But we think it probably wasn’t as much as what Samsung forked over.

The iconic Swiss clock was designed in 1944 by Hans Hilfiker, who was a SBB employee himself. The clock looks practically identical to Apple‘s version in iOS 6; it has the same black dashes with the thick hour and minute hands, and the big red dot at the end of the second hand. The design also happens to be licensed to Mondaine, a Swiss watch maker. So essentially, Apple was definitely infringing and they could’ve easily went to court and lost.

However, the two companies decided to sit down with each other and fight it out like gentlemen while coming to an agreement without whining to a judge. We can’t really blame them, though. I’m sure Apple is sick of being in court (probably not, though), and the SBB most likely didn’t want to deal with a court in the first place.

[via The Verge]

Apple and the SBB agree on licensing terms for iconic clock design is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple shamlessly swiped the design of iOS 6’s iPad clock from the Swiss National Railway, and a couple of weeks ago, it was called out. Now that its copycatism has been exposed, Apple has agreed to licensing terms. More »

There has been quite a bit of fuss lately over the quality of Apple’s Maps app. While it certainly was touted to be a powerful program at its unveiling, reports across the web has suggested that it leaves much to be desired. That being said, a recent survey conducted by a SEO ranking company has found that a pretty surprising 74% of those they surveyed said that they were fine with the Maps app. It should be noted that out of the 1,100 respondents, only 200 were chosen because they had iOS 6 and the Maps app. Granted this is a pretty small sampling, their response was considered significant due to their diversity.

Out of the 200 people they surveyed, 50.7% said that the issues surrounding Maps had not affected them personally, while 23.3% considered the app to be good enough for their needs, while 17.2% said that the issues were annoying but was not a deal breaker. The remaining percent of the users surveyed weren’t too happy about the Maps app, with some saying that it could affect their buying decision, while the rest said it put them off from buying another iPhone in the future. Apple is currently working on improving its Maps app although given the amount of data and years that Google has on them, we expect it might be a while before Apple finally plays catch up.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Apple reportedly knew about Maps problems prior to launch, Apple to get retail store employees to help improve their Maps app [Rumor],