More Adults Own Cell Phones Than Computers

According to recent numbers from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, more American adults own cell phones than desktop computers and laptop computers.

Cell phones are the “gadget of choice” among adults in the U.S., as 85 percent say they own a mobile phone, noticeably more than the 59 percent who say they own a desktop computer and the 52 percent who say they own a laptop computer.

Meanwhile, 47 percent of adults say they own an MP3 player, followed by 42 percent who own a game console, 5 percent who own an e-book reader and 4 percent who own a tablet computer.

Seventy-eight percent of adults own two more of these devices, and the median adult owns three of the seven devices listed above. Adults under the age of 45 typically own four devices, while adults between 55-64 own two, and seniors who are 65 and older own just one.

According to Pew’s figures, 88 percent of men and 82 percent of women own cell phones. Of adults between 18-29 years of age, 96 percent own a cell phone, compared with 90 percent of adults between the ages of 30-49, 85 percent of adults ages 50-64, and 58 percent of adults ages 65+.

As expected, the level of household income is directly correlated to the likelihood of an adult owning a cell phone, as 75 percent of adults living in households earning less than $30,000 own a cell phone, while 95 percent of adults living in households earning $75,000+ own a cell phone.

The same age and household-income trends were observed for the other gadgets, which should come as no surprise.

Back in 2006, 68 percent of American adults said they owned a desktop computer, and just 30 percent said they owned a laptop.

According to comScore, smartphones have penetrated the market at significant levels, especially in the 25-34 age range.

Overall, 22.8 percent of mobile owners had a smartphone for the three months ending July, while 77.2 percent owned non-smartphones.

The smartphone penetration rate was highest in the 25-34 age range, with 36.2 percent of mobile owners in this group owning smartphones, followed by 31 percent of owners 35-44, and 27.9 percent of owners 18-24.

Sources:

http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2010/Gadgets/Overview/Findings.aspx

http://www.comscoredatamine.com/2010/09/u-s-smartphone-users-by-age/