For the first time, online traffic from mobile devices outpaced traditional PCs on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. According to data released by IBM base on its Digital Analytics Benchmark, Thanksgiving Day reached a new mobile tipping point with browsing on smartphones and tablets accounting for 52.1 percent of all online traffic. Overall Thanksgiving online sales were up 14.3 percent compared to 2013.

The mobile momentum carried into Black Friday, which saw a surge in both online and mobile shopping as consumers brought their devices into the store to comparison shop. Overall Black Friday online sales were up 9.5 percent year-over-year with mobile devices accounting for one-in-four of all online purchases. New York City also retained its title as the top U.S. city for Black Friday online shopping, according to IBM.

As the new digital shopping companion for many consumers, smartphones drove 34.7 percent of all Black Friday online traffic, more than double that of tablets, which accounted for 14.6 percent of all traffic. Yet, when it comes to mobile sales, tablets continue to win the shopping war – driving 16 percent of online sales compared to 11.8 percent for smartphones, a difference of 35.5 percent. Tablet users also averaged $126.50 per order compared to $107.55 for smartphone users, a difference of 17.6 percent.

iOS once again led the way in mobile shopping this holiday season, outpacing Android across three key metrics on Black Friday: iOS users averaged $121.86 per order compared to $98.07 for Android users, a difference 24.3 percent;iOS traffic accounted for 34.2 percent of total online traffic, more than double that of Android, which drove 15 percent of all online traffic. iOS sales accounted for 21.9 percent of total online sales, nearly quadruple that of Android, which drove 5.8 percent of all online sales.

When consumers did choose to use their PC or desktop, they spent more with an average order value of $135.33 compared to $116.02 for mobile shoppers, a difference of 16.6 percent.

IBM also analyzed trends across two leading sites on Black Friday – Facebook and Pinterest. Facebook referrals drove an average of $109.94 per order compared to $100.24 for Pinterest, a difference of nearly 10 percent. Facebook referrals converted online sales at more than twice the rate of Pinterest.

Sepaarte data releaed by Branding Brand showed a similar trend.According to Branding Brand's sample of 35 North American retailers running on its commerce platform, mobile devices (smartphone and tablets combined) produced a total of 2,196,611 visits, 47,762 orders, and $5,537,044 in revenue on Black Friday. In addition, mobile devices generated:

• 57% of all online visits (79% iOS; 19% Android; 2% Other)
  • 40% smartphones
  • 17% tablets
• 35% of all online orders (84% iOS; 15% Android; 1% Other)
  • 18% smartphones
  • 17% tablets
• 34% of all online revenue (90% iOS; 9% Android; 1% Other)
  • 16% smartphones
  • 18% tablets