Android vs the iPhone – who wins?

Google’s Android is proving more popular than Apple’s iPhone. Here’s why.

Android is winning in the popularity stakes over its rival iPhone, according to a new report from mobile entertainment site Myxer.

According to the report, Android has pulled far ahead of the iPhone in terms of traffic. Visits from users on the Android operating system grew almost 350% from December 2008 to December 2009, compared to iPhone visits which grew 170%.

But which phone will win customers over in the end?

Both the iPhone and the Android platform are designed for easy internet browsing but the Android wins out here. According to new data from Nielsen and compiled by eMarketer, owners of Android phones are the most likely to use their device’s internet functionality. Ninety-two percent of Android users say they take utilize their phone’s web connection, compared to 88% of iPhone owners.

If Android owners are slightly more web-enabled, iPhone fans are slightly more social. As recent comScore data demonstrates, iPhone users come out on top when it comes to most advanced social-oriented phone activities – everything from sharing photos to spending time on social networks and blogs.

And to the most important point for marketers, apps. You’d expect to see iPhone owners using and downloading apps more often than Android users given the 100,000 options at their fingertips. But Android owners come out just ahead in the relative realm of application usage: 76% of them say they utilize apps, according to Nielsen, while 74% of iPhone owners say they make use of their mobile programs.

The two smartphone platforms are neck-in-neck when it comes to using most of the so-called “advanced functions” – and practically every other mobile phone system is struggling to keep up.