50% of Apple iPhone users on iOS 4

The latest version of the Apple iPhone operating system is already being used by the majority of users, as Chitika research said 50% of its iPhone ad network traffic is coming from iOS 4.

Granted, the data doesn’t speak for the whole Apple iPhone market because it only measures devices which reach Chitika’s ad network, but it does provide useful information. Check out a few of the charts below:

Looking more deeply, iOS 4.0 – the version released on June 21st – is the dominant single version at 44.5%. Version 4.0.1 – the latest official release for the iPhone 3G, 3GS and iPhone 4 – clocks in at only 5% of the market, not surprising given that it was released less than a week ago.

It’s not that hard to figure out why so many users are rocking iOS 4 because this software plugs all the major holes in the platform while adding new features and functionality. The biggest new feature is the ability to runs apps in the background and, while this isn’t true multitasking like in Android, this does satisfy the needs of many users because now you can run Pandora or Skype in the background.

Two of the major new additions of iOS 4 haven’t really been rolled out on a massive scale: iAd and the Game Center. The iAd platform is Apple’s foray into the mobile advertising market and it offers advertisers the ability to bring rich-media ads to apps. We’ve seen a few implementations of this from companies like Nissan but it has yet to hit a ton of apps.

The Game Center is a potentially powerful mobile gaming social network which could bring Xbox Live-like functionality to the Apple iPhone. This will include matchmaking, achievements and leader boards but this will also take some time to roll out.

What version of iOS are you on? If you’re rocking an Apple iPhone 3G and feel left out, follow these instructions to get the latest version of the software.

[Via Chitika]