A new survey shows that consumers are starting to rally around Samsung when it comes to thinking about their next smartphone.
Changewave Research asked 4,000 consumers in North America who were planning on buying a smartphone in the next 90 days which manufacturer they would most likely choose.
Of course, Apple (aka, the iPhone) was at the top of the list. In the December study, more than half, 54%, of those surveyed said the iPhone was the next smartphone on their mind.
However, that is actually a decrease from Changewave’s previous survey back in September. Of course, that survey was right around the launch of the iPhone 4S so excitement was at a fever pitch.
More interestingly is the change in the number of people who chose Samsung. In September, only 5% of future smartphone buyers said they were interested in Samsung. In December, that amount shot up to 13%, a huge increase.
The only other manufacturer that saw an increased level of interest was Motorola, which went from 5% to 7%. HTC, meanwhile, decreased from 6% to 3% and Research in Motion hit a new low, going from 3% to 2%.
For Samsung, it is a testament to the company’s increasingly aggressive brand recognition campaigns. Consumers are starting to realize that Samsung is the true Apple competitor – which is not to say it has the best non-Apple products, but rather that it is taking the most aggressive campaign against Apple.
In addition, “The just released Galaxy Nexus – the first U.S. 4G phone running Android’s new 4.0 operating system (Ice Cream Sandwich) – appears to be a major driving force behind the leap in Samsung planned buying. Samsung’s 4.0 OS update to some of its most popular models during the 1st Quarter is also heightening consumer interest,” Changewave said.
