Does Google Analytics parse visits from search apps?

[nsauser]

Does anyone know if Google Analytics reports visits to your website differently from individual search apps like Google and Bing? Or do they just treat them the same as any other keyword visit from Google or Bing search engine?

I suppose the end result is probably the same as in the Google app you're using Google so it would just be a different access point versus a new tool. I'm just curious if there is a way to see how many Mobile visits are coming from the apps vs the browser. For me personally I have the Google and Bing iOS apps installed but rarely use them, opting for the Safari search bar 99% of the time.

[mikecp]

I strongly suspect that Google (and probably Bing) has some tracking parameters in place on visits that originate from a mobile app. If this is indeed the case, with some creative filtering in GA, it'd be pretty simple to pull out the numbers.

Edit: Just tested. Did a search from the Google App for iOS. I don't know what the URL behind that search was, but when clicking "open in safari", the URL was:

http://www.google.com/search?q=test&client=mobilesearchapp&safe=images&rlz=1MDAPLA_en-USUS474&hl=en&v=1.0.2.8802&channel=iss&source=from-mobilesearchapp&qscrl=1

Plenty unique identifiers in there.