Android users love Facebook, Google+ not so much

This week, Nielsen listed the most popular Android apps by age group -- 18-24; 25-34; 35-44. Well, well, talk about age discrimination. Perhaps people 45 or older are considered to be iPhone users? For shame! The data is interesting not for what is there but what's not. Facebook tops all three age groups, when looking at actual apps. Android Market ranks higher. Google+ -- and Twitter, for the matter -- is nowhere in sight.

For all the buzz about Google+, and I am a big fan, it's not among the top-15 apps for each age group. That's no small thing. Mobile phones are by and far the most personal devices everyone uses. They're where people connect to other people and things that are important to them. Facebook clearly matters, Google+ and Twitter do not -- as measured by most-popular apps. I suppose some people could use browsers to access the services, but why would they?

The data, for September 2011, is another proof point that perhaps a dedicated Facebook phone makes sense. I'm skeptical there will be one soon, if ever, but it's good time to speculate again, since January's Consumer Electronics Show would be excellent launch venue.

Nielsen's study shows social's importance elsewhere -- just not G+ or Twitter. "A preference for media apps with a social dimension (e.g. Words with Friends) among the 18-24 set is also reinforced by their sizable usage of music and video apps (e.g. Pandora) compared to older demographics", according to Nielsen.

There is some good news for Google: YouTube's popularity. "Google’s YouTube app gets heavy usage from Android smartphone owners 18-24: 64 percent have used it in the past 30 days, compared to 56 percent and 51 percent of 25-34 and 35-44 year olds", according to Nielsen. YouTube ranks fourth behind Facebook in all three demographic groups.

Additionally, Google Search, which is baked into Android, ranks highly -- 77 percent among 18-24 year-olds, right behind Facebook.

So let me ask: Do you use Google+ on your Android? How often? What do you or don't you like about it? Please answer in comments.