iPhone 3G woos users to dump carriers

Apple's iPhone 3G apparently created a summertime switch itch: 30 per cent of all the smart phone's buyers in the US bailed on their existing carriers in order to purchase the device, according to an NPD Group report released Monday.

AT&T has been the iPhone 3G's exclusive carrier in the US since the smart phone was released in June.

According to the report, which covers June through August, 47 per cent of those switching to AT&T to get the iPhone 3G came from Verizon Wireless, 24 per cent from T-Mobile, and 19 per cent from Sprint.

Ross Rubin, NPD director of industry analysis, said in a statement: "While the original iPhone also helped win customers for AT&T, the faster network speeds of the iPhone 3G [have] proven more appealing to customers that already had access to a 3G network."

By contrast, about 23 per cent of consumers overall switched carriers from June through August.

During that same time frame, the smart phones with the highest unit sales were Apple's iPhone 3G, followed by RIM's BlackBerry Curve, BlackBerry Pearl, and the Palm Centro, according to NPD.

Prior to launching its 3G version, Apple's iPhone accounted for 11 per cent of the smart phone market in 2008. But since the 3G's launch, that figure has risen to 17 per cent of the market since the start of the year.

Rubin said: "The launch of the lower-priced iPhone 3G was a boon to overall consumer smart phone sales."

Original article: 30 percent of iPhone 3G buyers dump existing carriers from CNET News.com