iOS and Android Adoption Rate Skyrockets; China Yearly Expansion at 400 Percent

Flurry, a mobile analytics firm, reports that "there has never been a better time, in the history of technology, to be a software developer."

The firm's research indicates that the adoption rate of iOS and Android devices "has surpassed that of any consumer technology in history." Specifically, the study notes that it is accelerating "10X faster than the 80s PC revolution, 2X faster than that of the 90s Internet Boom and 3X faster than that of the recent social network adoption."

Their research involved using data from the 200,000 applications that it tracks, which are running on over 640 million devices internationally. Flurry asserts that it can "reliably detect over 90% of all iOS and Android devices active in the world during a given month."

According to the report, by the end of July 2012, 640 million Android and iOS devices were in the hands of consumers. Out of this 640 million, China showed the most aggressive expansion, with a 401% year-over-year growth. Flurry associates this significant rise to the country's growing middle class.

However, the U.S. still maintains the lead in total number of active smart devices, totaling 165 million. China is a close second with 128 million, and is projected to "overtake the United States as early as the 2012 Holiday season.

The report indicates that U.S. "smart" market grew by 30 million since July 2011, while China saw an increase by over 100 million devices.

In terms of market penetration among adults, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Sweden take the lead. The study notes, however, that is attributed to the small population of these countries. The United States has a 78% penetration rate, with its population of 310 million people.