Good Technology reports blowout quarter for iPhone 4, iPad 2

Good Technology's latest report on enterprise deployment of mobile devices shows that iOS device activations continue to dominate the enterprise sector. Last quarter, iOS devices accounted for just under 70 percent of device activations, with the iPhone retaking the lead from Android activations and iPads representing 20 percent of total activations.

Good's report for this quarter (PDF) shows iOS's dominance of enterprise activations continuing to trend upward. The iPhone represented 2/3 of all smartphone activations, with Android taking the remaining third. iOS devices accounted for 75 percent of device activations for the quarter, and total iPad activations outnumbered all Android device activations combined due to heavy workforce deployment of the iPad 2.

"While Android may be gaining smartphone market share with consumers, our business users are clearly gravitating to the iPad and doing so in large numbers," said John Herrema, senior vice president of corporate strategy at Good Technology. iPads accounted for 95 percent of total tablet activations, which represents a moderate decline from the 99 percent lead the iPad enjoyed last quarter. The Motorola Xoom was once again the most popular Android tablet for the quarter. Good expects Android to narrow the activation cap eventually, but the company says "we don't see that happening in 2011. The iPad 2 simply has too much momentum, especially when it comes to the large company-driven activations we are seeing."

Good's report indicates that the Financial Services sector is accounting for the majority of iPad activations, with 47 percent of net monthly activations for the device. Good notes that the iPad is deployed as a "complimentary" device not meant to replace a laptop or PC, but the iPad is proving to be a viable choice for "executives, sales and client services staff, insurance agents and adjusters, and doctors."

Despite being nearly a year old during the quarter measured, iPhone 4 activation rates actually grew during the quarter, accounting for 22 percent of device activations. All five of the top five devices were Apple products: the iPhone 4, iPad 2, Verizon iPhone 4, iPad, and iPhone 3GS. The remaining top ten devices (four Android phones and the iPhone 3G (!) accounted for a total 2 percent of device activations.

Good's analysis doesn't account for RIM devices or Windows Phone 7, but other reports have shown that RIM is sinking fast and Windows Phone 7 accounts for a tiny sliver of the overall market -- some reports have shown Windows Phone 7 activations outpaced by earlier versions of Windows Mobile. The window that Good Technology provides into enterprise deployment of mobile devices, while limited by those factors, still shows that Apple's mobile platform is seeing a level of growth that defies the traditional view of enterprise IT being hostile to deploying Apple's products.