Mobile ad exchange Mobclix is releasing a survey this morning which examines the usage of the Verizon iPhone vs. the AT&T iPhone in the U.S. The Verizon iPhone was released to the public over a month ago, and according to Mobclix’s data, larger metropolitan cities have higher Verizon iPhone usage.
The top cities with the highest Verizon iPhone usage across the Mobclix exchange include San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, New York City and Boston. Of course, it’s well known that AT&T has more reception problems in more densely populated cities (i.e. San Francisco).
Mobclix also reports that AT&T iPhone owners use WiFi an average of 53% of the time compared to 38% of the time for Verizon iPhone owners. Why? Because AT&T has poor reception, AT&T owners have to tap into the phone’s WiFi technology more frequently due to poor carrier reception, although carrier to carrier, AT&;T data speeds are faster than Verizon.
It’s important to note that AT&T’s WiFi network includes over 24,000 AT&T WiFi Hot Spots through the U.S., and the iPhone supports auto-authentication, making it automatic for customers to connect to Hot Spots or AT&T’s hotzones without it counting toward their monthly smartphone data usage.
Another fun fact from the survey—2 in 3 AT&T iPhone owners who switched to the Verizon iPhone paid the $325 early-termination fee. The top 3 reasons for iPhone owners making the switch to Verizon are reception issues, the Personal Hot Spot feature and reputation, says Mobclix.
On Mobclix’s exchange, 14% of iPhone 4 users are on the Verizon Network and account for 4% of total iPhone users. As we heard from mobile ad network Millennial Media, the Verizon iPhone only accounted for 4.5 percent of all U.S. iPhone impressions on the network in the first two weeks following the launch.