English: An image of the HTC Trophy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Based on new research conducted by Nielsen, it was revealed that of teenagers aged 13 to 17 years old who live in the United States, 58 percent own a smartphone. This is a very significant increase from the 36 percent saturation rate that was measured just a year ago.

The research has also shown that the largest incidence of smartphone ownership is at the 25 to 34 age group, where 74 percent own a smartphone, an increase from the 59 percent measured a year ago.

Based on data collected, as of July of this year, more than half of all mobile phone subscribers in the US (55.5 percent) are smartphone owners. This is a 14.5 percent increase from a year ago.

Nielsen has noted that teenagers are the demographic group that has shown the largest increase in smartphone adoption, and it looks like it’s not going to plateau or slow down just yet. In fact, the potential for further growth is so high that it is almost sure that mobile phone manufacturers will begin forming marketing campaigns aimed squarely at this segment of the smartphone market.

Nielsen also revealed that among mobile operating systems, Android is still the leader with a 51.9 percent share of the US smartphone market. Apple’s iOS is the second most popular mobile operating system with 34.3 percent of the market.