Although the expected unveiling of the iPhone 5 next week has not yet been officially confirmed by Apple, a new study shows that consumers are more than ready to buy the latest model when it finally hits shelves.
In fact, a whopping 41 percent of current mobile users in the U.S., Mexico and Canada plan to buy the latest iPhone model, according to a report from ad network InMobi.
Apple – which recently announced that it is holding a press event on Oct. 4 to "Let's talk iPhone" – could potentially see its most successful launch to date. If the people that plan to buy it actually go out and make the purchase, the company could see more sales around the product than ever before, the report said.
"Based on the study, the launch of a new iPhone 5 will create… an increase in market share during the critical fourth-quarter holiday period," James Lamberti, vice president of global research and marketing at InMobi, told TechNewsDaily.
The survey was conducted among 1,000 mobile phone users varying in age in North America and 1,000 in the U.K., with a margin of error of 3 percent.
The study also found that 50 percent of those that will buy the iPhone 5 plan to do so within the first six months of the iPhone 5 launch. InMobi noted that this could take Apple significantly ahead of its June 2011 market position, and increase its mobile platform market share from 27 percent in June – according to comScore – to 41 percent.
However, if Apple only unveils a product update — similar to the 3GS version of the iPhone that Apple released in 2009 — interest in the new smartphone is expected to be significantly lower.
Consumers said they are most hopeful for improved battery life, increased processing speed, higher-quality screen resolution (that makes no sense to us; maybe they meant screen size?) and stronger phone service in the rumored Apple smartphone.
The report also revealed that more than half of BlackBerry users (52 percent) are planning to switch to the new Apple iPhone 5, followed by 51 percent of current iPhone users and more than one in four (27 percent) Android owners.
Reach TechNewsDaily senior writer Samantha Murphy at smurphy@techmedianetwork.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Follow her on Twitter @SamMurphy_TMN
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