Apple Inc's iPhones may be behind Google's Android in terms of mobile phone market share, but an Actix report has shown that the iPhone 4, iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 are the most used phones in Europe and North America in 2013.

A study appearing in a CNET report has found that mobile phone users spent most of their time on the iPhone 4S, iPhone 5 and iPhone 4. Based on the study, the most used phone was the older-generation iPhone 4S, while Samsung's Galaxy SIII, SII and S4 trail Apple devices.

According to the data, 20,608 customers are using the iPhone 4S per hour, while 20,529 people use the iPhone 5 per hour. Apple's iPhone 4 had 17,880 users per hour. The newer versions of the iPhone iike the iPhone 5C and iPhone 5S have yet to appear since they are relatively new to the market to make an impact on usage based on time.

Mobile carriers in North America and Europe revealed customers on the iPad 2 use over 15MB of data on an hourly average, while iPhone 5 users consume 10MB per hour. Actix also noted that iPhones turned out to be the most used devices for data since they were the most frequently used.

App Store revenue boosts Apple

iPhone owners use data to browse the Internet, check emails, get social media updates and download apps from Apple's App Store which generated $10 billion in sales in 2013.

Aside from selling more iPhones and iPads during the holiday season, the company is also selling more apps in the App Store. In 2013, the App Store sold apps worth over $10 billion. Apple takes 30 per cent of all app sales and has acquired more than $3 billion in revenue.

The latest milestone is reflective of the iPhone and iPad cycle. When an Apple device owner begins to buy apps or make in-app purchases, he or she is more inclined to buy a new Apple device in the future. Spending money in the App Store can help strengthen a user's ties to Apple's iOS.

The $10 billion from app sales is only a small fraction of the $91 billion iPhone sales generated in the fiscal year ended in September 2013. Apple Inc has previously said December was going to be the strongest month for the App Store.