Soars from 30 per cent to 45 per cent per capita between February and October 2011.
New stats from Google and Ipsos reveal a global surge from feature phones to smartphones, but show that it's the Brits that have embraced the switch with the most ardour.
In the period between Jan/Feb 2011 and Sept/Oct 2011 smartphone penetration reached 45 per cent in the UK, 38 per cent in the US and France, 23 per cent in Germany and 17 per cent in Japan.
The study also said more consumers in the US, UK, Germany, France and Japan use a mobile phone (feature phone or smartphone) than a computer (desktop or laptop).
Other key findings include:
* Germany saw the biggest increase with the percentage of smartphone owners using their device for daily Internet access jumping from 39 per cent to 49 per cent
* Japan had the highest percentage accessing the Internet daily on their smartphone at 88 per cent
* A little over two-thirds of smartphone users in the US and over half of smartphone users in the UK access the mobile Internet daily.
* Across all five countries approximately 75% of smartphone owners said they continued to use their computer to access the Internet daily.
* Tablet usage increased across all five countries with the highest penetration amongst the total population in the US at 11 per cent
* Smartphone usage among females increased in all five countries
* Smartphone ownership also rose among those aged 45+ in the US, UK and France

http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/...tphones/016835