Signs are starting to come in that Apple's iPhone is old news, at least among ordinary people. Apple fanboys will probably survive as long as the company, but it seems that Android is picking up large numbers who would have been sucked into Steve Jobs' walled garden of delights.

A Nielsen study has shown that 27 per cent of all purchasers of smartphones in the past six months bought an Android phone. This is an increase from 17 per cent in a poll from the year’s first quarter.

Android OS jumped to 14 per cent of overall smartphone share, just behind Windows Mobile at 15
per cent. While Apple stayed in second place it dropped four percentage points from 27 to 23 per cent of new smartphone sales.

What might be keeping the iPhone alive is a big slide away from Blackberry. Only 42% of Blackberry owners say that they want to purchase a Blackberry next, with have leaning towards either an iPhone or Android.

Apple fanboys are rushing to blame Jobs' Mob's locked in partnership with AT&T which suffers from signal problems. John Gruber, of Daring Fireball thinks that much of Android’s US success is attributable to Verizon’s strength as the number one U.S. Carrier.

He also pointed out that Nielsen’s statistics exclude the iPad and iPod touch, which run Apple’s iOS. Of course if that same logic was followed Microsoft would be allowed to count every version of Windows with a Wi-Fi connection.

Still, there are better reasons as to why people are shifting to Android:

1. 1. Android is a good operating system for mobiles. It is able to do everything the iPhone can do.
2. 2. Android is Open. You don't have someone telling you which App you can use and charging you for the privilege.
3. 3. Android is Free. This lowers the price of the phone. If prices are comparable with the iPhone it is because it has more or better quality parts.
4. 4. The iPhone 4 is broken. Apple showed its true colours in “AntennaeGate”. In knew it was shipping a broken phone and it cavalierly told users to “eat cake”. Other problems are there as well, such as cracked screens and screen problems. The iPhone 4 is Apple's Vista - sooner or later users will wise up to the fact that while the 3GS version worked well and that the 4G offers little in the way of new things. Did we mention that it's broken?
5. 5. You can pick your carrier. This is a big thing and something Apple does not understand. While I do not believe it is the only reason for Apple tanking in the US, it is certainly a factor. While Apple fanboys give the impression that they are happy being told what to do, most people were educated on the politics of choice being more important. Apple takes away that choice.