New research from Nielsen indicates that consumer tastes in smartphone OS may be as fickle as fashion trends. In 2010, a third of US consumers reported a preference for the Apple iPhone,which was more than for any other smartphone brand. But today those same surveys show that Android is now the preferred smartphone OS, just barely edging out Apple's iOS by one percentage point.
Also, a record number of consumers reported being unsure of which smartphone to purchase. This makes it difficult to predict with any certainty which mobile devices will be popular in the future. Therefore, companies that develop mobile services and content will likely deliver their offerings via mobile web browser rather than "native" mobile apps designed to run on a specific platform. Developing several versions of a native app is a costly development and maintenance effort.