Why iPhone users and Android fans are more equal than different

The frosty nature of relations between Apple [AAPL] iPhone owners and their younger yet competitive Android siblings continues to dominate the tech air waves, so it's refreshing to see both camps seem to agree on something: users on both platforms probably prefer President Barack Obama to Governor Mitt Romney.

[ABOVE: There's even an infographic to illustrate the point.]

People use phones

This item doesn't aim to be about US politics. It's just a reflection of some of the similarities between Android and iPhone users based on data from Harris Interactive. Apparently when it comes to all smartphone users, 49 per cent prefer Obama while 31 per cent go Romney.

That split remains around the same when you examine the individual preferences of iPhone users and Android users: 47 per cent of iPhone users like Obama as do 50 per cent of Android users. Romney gets 34 per cent and 29 per cent, respectively.

The survey aims to show the growing importance of smartphone users as a political demographic, and was inspired by Romney's recent decision to field advertising on Apple's iAds network.

Survey sponsor, Krishna Subramanian, Velti's chief marketing officer said in a press release: “Clearly, mobile advertising is emerging as an influential medium and a distinct audience. We are just beginning to see a more strategic use of this platform, such as Mitt Romney’s iAd campaign, and believe that others will follow suit."

Equal, but different

There are some other potentially interesting insights revealed in this data, in that when it comes to the 18-34-year old vote, Obama scores over half the vote, and this behavior seems consistent across both smartphone platforms.

What does this prove? Nothing, but to me it suggests that perhaps iPhone users and Android fans are a little more similar in reality than the way they discuss each other's platforms (just look at the comments) suggests they might be, once they move past their partisan preferences.

Perhaps one day they'll all just get along.

Perhaps…

What do you think?

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Jonny Evans is an independent journalist/blogger who first got online in 1993 and began writing about Apple in 1999. He's author of Computerworld's AppleHolic blog and also writes for others in the US, UK and Europe. Winner of an Azbee Award in 2010, Jonny has no shares in any technology company, enjoys new and disruptive technology and likes music almost as much as he likes his large and shiny dog.