Using our voice offers the chance to get things done without typing when using a smart speaker or another connected device – smartphone, PC, or tablet. However, current usage has not reached even half of the population. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults in the US, Germany, UK, and Japan that regularly use a voice assistant or smart speaker, detailed by age group.
Game console use among socioeconomic groups
Just over one-third of online American adults regularly use a game console. Penetration rates vary widely between socioeconomic groups, with American IT employees having some of the highest rates and seniors aged 75 and higher having some of the lowest. This MetaFAQs reports on the penetration of game consoles by major socioeconomically advantaged and disadvantaged groups.
American game players and their technology
Playing games with connected devices is widespread among American adults, while only a subset use game-focused equipment such as gaming PCs, gaming consoles, or VR headsets. This TUPdate reports on the share of adults regularly playing immersive/video or other games using their smartphones, PCs, or tablets, comparing them to the adoption rates of game-focused equipment.
Highlights: Devices
There has been a sea change in which connected devices people use as well as how they use them. This TUP Highlights report details the trends in device ownership, the shifts between technology ecosystems, and market penetration levels. It spells out the major activities for each type of device, and how usage has changed. Furthermore, it details how many employees use personal devices for remote work.
Technology wealth of American generations
Which American generation has the largest collection of connected devices? How much does each generation have of the active installed base? This TUP analysis reports on the total number of connected devices – mobile phones, PCs, tablets, and game consoles – by generational cohort – GenZ, Younger/Older Millennials, Younger/Older GenX, Younger/Older Boomers, and before.
Technology profile of multi-ethnic Americans aged 18-49
Online Americans that identify as multi-ethnic and are aged 18-49 are unique in many ways. This TUP reports on this group and which active connected devices they use, how many they regularly use, how intensively they use them, and their work from home status.
Breadth of voice assistant usage
Dan Ness, Principal Analyst, MetaFacts, December 13, 2021
Actively using a voice assistant or smart speaker
- This analysis focuses on those people who are actively using a voice assistant or smart speaker
- Have used a connected device to use a voice assistant within the previous month
- Smartphone, PC, or tablet
- Have a smart speaker
- Have used a connected device to use a voice assistant within the previous month
- Base: all online adults
Active voice assistant usage by platform – US
- The overall use of a voice assistant or smart speaker has only slightly increased between 2019 and 2021
- Smart speaker usage has grown the most among American online adults, rising from 11% in 2019 to 19% in 2021
- Voice assistant usage with other connected devices has not changed markedly
- Voice assistant usage with a smartphone continues to outpace smart speaker use

Technology profile of Black Americans aged 18-49
The COVID pandemic made clear many socioeconomic inequities between Americans, as the impact of the virus was felt differently in great part depending on their educational attainment, occupation, employment status, and other factors.
This TUPdate focuses on one segment – Americans aged 18 to 49 who identify as Black or African-American – reporting their market size and profiling their usage of connected devices, which devices they do or don’t use, how much they use them, and the intensity of changes since before the pandemic.
Connected devices by life stage and country
Young parents use more tech devices than nearly any other group. Online adults use many connected devices, especially using more than one PC. Their active collection often includes a smartphone and sometimes also a tablet. This MetaFAQs reports on the average number of connected devices in active use by online adults in the US, Germany, UK, and Japan by life stage – employment status, age group, and presence of children.
Average number of PCs being used among socioeconomic groups
How different are advantaged from disadvantaged Americans in how many PCs they use? How much has this changed since before the pandemic? How do historically socioeconomically advantaged groups such as high-income or college graduates compare to disadvantaged groups such as single parents, low-income, less-educated, elderly, or ethnic groups? This TUP analysis reports on the number of PCs actively used within each socioeconomic group.