86 per cent of Apple iOS device owners in the US research products and services on their mobile phone and 69 per cent make purchases, compared with 76 per cent and 53 per cent respectively for Android users, 57 per cent and 35 per cent for Blackberry users, and 47 per cent and 32 per cent for Windows Phone users.

The stats come from a new Forrester report, The State Of Mobile Technology Adoption, which is based on a survey of more than 53,400 respondents in N. America. For eBusiness professionals, says Forrester, this represents the continued challenges associated with mobile technology fragmentation, translating directly into higher development and maintenance costs.

“The combined strength of Android and Apple in the US smartphone (and tablet) marketplace gives the impression of a simple development environment, but this perception is far from the truth,” writes Forrester Analyst Julie Ask in the report.
The report also finds that the majority of firms have less than $500,000 to spend annually on mobile services, which Forester says is barely enough for a simple app and mobile-optimized website. But soon, says Ask, this simply wont cut it.

The report also offers an analysis of how firms prioritize building apps for different operating systems, and current and future plans for building mobile apps and mobile-optimized websites.

Theres more information on the report here.