Despite the recent boost in Android buying, Apple maintained its No. 1 spot as the market share leader among U.S. consumers, Nielsen said.

Apple's iPhone accounted for 28.6% of all owned smartphones in November, while Android devices collectively had a 25.8% share. BlackBerry OS held a 26.1% share.

The numbers for all three were within the survey's margin of error. "Apple's clear lead over Android notwithstanding, this race might still be too close to call," Nielsen said in a post to a Monday.

Apple's lead over Android has shrunk dramatically since June, according to Nielsen's data. Last summer, the iPhone had a U.S. consumer market share of 27.9%, while Android's was just 15%.

Since then, Apple's share increased by less than a percentage point, while Android's climbed more than 10 points.