Apple's iPhone 5 could well be flying off the shelves when it is made available, according to a new survey that claims 35 percent of U.S. consumers plan to buy it. Of that number, just over 50 percent plan to buy the next-generation smartphone within a year of its release, rumored to be this fall.
The results of a July 1-11 poll of 2,852 online consumers were released Monday by shopping site PriceGrabber, a part of Dublin, Ireland-based global information services company Experian.
"Our survey data confirms the strong following Apple has built around its iPhone, with more than one-third of consumers planning to upgrade to the latest model only a little over a year following the release of the iPhone 4," PriceGrabber general manager Graham Jones said in a statement.
"Anticipation and brand loyalty are certainly high, but in today's 24-7 work culture and uncertain economic environment, consumers are cautious to look for a reasonably priced phone that will perform optimally over an extended time period."
Some 7 percent of respondents who plan to buy the device within the first year of its availability said they would buy the new iPhone within a week of its release, 14 percent plant to buy it within a month, and 30 percent said they'd purchase the iPhone 5 before the end of 2011.
Respondents offered several reasons for their plans to buy Apple's highly anticipated update to its iPhone product line. Asked to select iPhone 5 features that are "most important" towards determining whether to purchase the device, 59 percent cited better battery life than the previous generation iPhone's, 55 percent wanted a lower price, 46 percent named 4G network compatibility, 45 percent were looking for a larger touch screen, and 42 percent anticipated an improved camera.
Apple's iOS was also respondents' clear favorite among competing mobile operating systems, according to the survey. Some 48 percent of those polled said they preferred iOS to Google's Android (preferred by 19 percent of respondents), Microsoft Windows (7 percent), and Research in Motion's BlackBerry OS (6 percent).
The survey also found that those polled would strongly prefer getting the iPhone 5 as a gift over any rival smartphone, with 69 percent indicating just that as compared with 7 percent hoping for Motorola's upcoming Droid Bionic, 4 percent setting their sights on Samsung's Galaxy S II, and 3 percent holding out for the BlackBerry Curve.