Android Users Gorge On Mobile Data

The data, which was compiled by telecom network technology firm Arieso, shows that it's the better cameras found on Android handsets behind the difference in data usage. The iPhone 3G has a 2 megapixel camera, the iPhone 3GS has a 3.2 megapixel camera, and the iPhone 4 has a 5 megapixel camera. Many of the high-end Android devices have cameras that range between 5 and 8 megapixels.

More megapixels leads to more bits being uploaded via wireless data networks to social sharing sites such as Facebook, Picasa, Flickr, etc.

Let's not forget that many Android handsets are also capable of recording video at 720p HD resolution. Unless users make sure to step down the resolution of their video, uploads to YouTube and other video sharing sites are also bulkier than those from other platforms.

Arieso likens it to the "build it and they will come" phenomenon. "When more could be done, more tends to be done," said Arieso's Chief Technology Officer Michael Flanagan. "Smartphone subscriptions are rising and so too is subscriber appetite for mobile data. It's a trend that's set to continue."

Android use has surged in the last 12 months, catching up with Apple's iPhone quickly. Across the globe, Android came in second place to Nokia's Symbian, with Apple's iOS and RIM's BlackBerry OS trailing in the workdwide rankings. Many believe Android will overtake Symbian as the number one mobile operating system in 2011, as it recently did in Australia.

Source: Reuters