South Africans still love BlackBerry
South Africans like to stay connected and informed about all things technology in a market ruled by BlackBerry and Samsung.
This is according to an Ipsos Mori Global Trends Survey, questioning over 16,000 adults in 20 countries, gauging responses from 500 – 1,000 people in each country.
The survey noted that as many as 43% of South African respondents continue to use BlackBerry devices.
24/7 Wall St, a financial news and opinion provider, recently put BlackBerry down as one of ’10 Brands That Will Disappear in 2015′.
“BlackBerry is about to run out of its nine lives. As recently as 2008, BlackBerry, then operating as Research In Motion, had 19.5% of the global smartphone market.
“However, following Apple’s introduction of the iPhone in 2007 and Google’s release of the Android mobile operating system in 2008, that figure fell to less than 1% by late 2013,” it said.
In June, however, the handset maker posted a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss, raising hope that its chief executive can deliver on a pledge to return the company to steady profits.
Ipsos pointed out that the sampled populations, particularly in emerging economies like South Africa, were reflective of a specific demographic.
“This Global Trends Survey is online only in methodology and so in emerging economies the results are representative of more affluent, connected populations,” it said.
Devices and operating systems
Across the countries measured, Android and iOS were by far the most-used operating systems, with Android topping the list in every country except Sweden and South Africa.
Overall, Sweden has the highest number of Apple users, while South Africa is the biggest user of BlackBerry OS.
Looking at tablet use, Apple dominates overall topping 12 of the 20 countries listed.
Sweden is once again listed as the biggest proponent of Apple iPad, while South Africa is the second biggest Samsung tablet nation after South Korea.
SA and Operating Systems
- BlackBerry – 43%
- Android – 34%
- iOS – 10%
- Windows Phone – 6%
- Symbian – 4%
SA and tablets
- Samsung tablet – 40%
- Apple iPad – 36%
- Others – 13%
- Google tablet – 2%
- ASUS tablet – 1%
In May, the 2014 Sunday Times Generation Next Brand Survey ranked BlackBerry third ‘coolest’ mobile phone, behind Apple’s iPhone, and Samsung.
Popular operating systems (click to enlarge)
SA and Technology
Ipsos’ findings showed that 77% of South Africans indicated that they were constantly looking at screens during the day (be it TV, PC or cellphone) – the second largest group in the survey below China (78%).
Always looking at screens
South Africans have also embraced an online lifestyle, with 93% indicating that they use the internet several times a day.
Nine out of 10 respondents said they used a PC or laptop daily; 81% used their smartphones daily; and 62% noted daily social media use on top of conventional TV watching.
When it comes to online shopping, however, South Africa is behind the curve, with only 57% of respondents having recently purchased anything online – 15th out of all 20 countries.
South Africa is the second largest group to indicate that it is difficult to “switch off” from tech, while it is the top sample group against online porn – believing that the Internet is giving young people unrealistic expectations for sex.
Overall, though, 82% of South Africans believe that technology generally makes life much better – again the second largest demographic to have this view behind China (87%).
Difficulty switching off
More on BlackBerry and the Internet
Slow internet hampering SA economic growth
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