Dear Startup Investor,
I thought I’d share with you an inside look at current mobile user trends, as reported by Flurry yesterday.
Flurry – now part of Yahoo – has been tracking the mobile industry for seven years now. It monitors more than 2.1 billion smart devices worldwide.
Flurry makes a number of useful observations in its report. Here are three I found rather interesting…
- Annual mobile growth has been cut almost in half in the last two years, but is still at an impressive 58%.
- A big chunk of this growth comes from existing users, as opposed to new ones (this wasn’t the case in 2013).
- The phablet (a 5.5-inch to 6-inch mobile phone like the iPhone 6 Plus) is coming on strong. Here’s a chart from Flurry showing this…
Flurry says that by October of next year, the Phablet will become the dominant smart device, accounting for 52% of mobile usage (defined as opening an app).
I recommend reading Flurry’s entire report right here. It’s a short read and full of useful charts.
And if you want a deeper understanding of how these devices will be changing our lives and in what direction mobile technology is heading, then you must read Ben Thompson. He has worked for Apple and Microsoft and now writes his often-brilliant posts from Taiwan, where he’s based.
In a particularly illuminating post Ben wrote in December, he said, “while using a PC required intent, the use of mobile devices occupies all of the available time around intent. It is only when we’re doing something specific that we aren’t using our phones, and the empty spaces of our lives are far greater than anyone imagined.”
Ben throws out gems like this all the time. Here’s another favorite from the same post: “The fact you always have your phone with you means you are, effectively, always available to work.” (Don’t we know it!)
You can read Ben’s entire post by clicking right here.
If you’re so inclined, Flurry and Ben can keep you on top of the latest trends in mobile, mobile devices and the cloud.
Because we invest early, being well-informed about these sectors has obvious benefits, as mobile continues to transform the many ways we consume.
Invest early and well,
Andy Gordon
Startup Investor Portfolio
