60 percent of iPhones now running iOS 6: report

iOS 6, Apple's latest mobile operating system release, is installed on 60 percent of iPhones in the U.S. and Canada, claims Chitika Insights, the research arm of online ad network Chitika.

The research firm examined millions of mobile ad impressions from its Chitika Ad network between September 18 to October 1 2012. The data showed "unprecedented adoption rates by Apple users".

The adoption rate looks staggering if the figures are correct. 60 percent of iPhones are now running the new operating system less than two weeks after release. Compare this to the market share for Google's latest mobile operating system offering, Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean", which continues to struggle to hit the 2 percent mark after two and a half months.

And iPhone users are fast to grab a new update, with 15 percent running the new operating system within 24 hours of the platform being released.

"Apple’s performance in this area is a great selling point for mobile advertisers, as well as website and application developers, who can all confidently optimize their mobile properties to take advantage of the latest iOS capabilities without fear of shutting out a large portion of the user base," says the research firm.

The slow adoption of new versions of Android on the other hand affects everyone in the ecosystem. It forces developers to support an ever-increasing array of aging versions, while at the same time preventing them from making full use of new features. For consumers, it means that they are denied new features and not getting security updates that help keep their handsets and tablets safe from hackers and malware. 

Owners are not just updating their iPhones, but also their iPads and iPod touch devices. 45 percent of iPad owners have made the leap to iOS 6, which 39 percent have upgraded their iPod touch. First-generation iPads cannot run iOS 6, while first- and second-generation iPod touch devices are stuck on iOS 4.

Image source: Chitika Insights.