Sweden was deemed to be the world's most advanced 3G market, the study found. Over 90 percent of the devices offered by leading Swedish operators TeliaSonera and Telenor Sweden are 3G-enabled and both operators have more than half of their total customers migrated to 3G. This is significantly higher than the 3G share of total connections in Western Europe, which stands at 36 percent. Western Europe is also leading the way in HSPA, the faster version of WCDMA typically used for mobile broadband. The faster technology now represents 46 percent of the total WCDMA (Family) connections in the region, compared to 30 percent a year ago. Our study found that, on average in mature markets, the vast majority of 3G devices offered by mobile operators are HSPA-enabled, with only 5 percent of devices supporting only standard WCDMA. Meanwhile, in many emerging markets where fixed-broadband penetration is very low, HSPA networks typically provide the first means for consumers to access the Internet.

Despite the rise in 3G devices, most operators are still supporting widely-deployed GSM/EDGE (2G) networks via more affordable EDGE devices. According to the study, EDGE-enabled GSM devices account for 25 percent of operator handset portfolios in mature markets and 36 percent in emerging markets. In many cases, EDGE is still seen as a substitute for WCDMA networks as it benefits from better network coverage.

"In order to see 3G device portfolios grow to a level close to the most-advanced Swedish benchmark, network coverage will have to improve considerably in many markets," added Gillet. "Even though only one third of devices catalogued by operators are GSM, the 2G networks still account for around two thirds of connections in mature markets, and as much as 90 percent in many emerging markets."