Modern communication shifts to coalesce around three modes

Communication methods have evolved over the past few decades. While landlines were once predominant, they’ve now taken a back seat. Asynchronous communication, like email, offers the advantage of connecting without simultaneous availability, often more convenient and effective. Text messaging, in particular, has experienced a significant rise, now standing as a leading communication method alongside emails.

Interestingly, while smartphones are labeled “”phones,”” their initial use leaned more toward texting than calling. However, synchronous communication methods are making a comeback on these devices. Email, text messaging, and phone calls share nearly equal user numbers, showcasing varied preferences among users.

Our communication choices often depend on reciprocation, given its two-way nature. As a result, user groups may flock together toward specific communication modes, either adopting new methods or moving away from older ones.

Later generations, specifically Gen Z, have been experimenting with alternative communication modes beyond email, texting, and phone calls, only recently returning to levels nearly as high as those before the onset of the pandemic. Earlier generations have increased their use of these three communication modes even while navigating a shift from computers to smartphones.

This TUPdate reports on the share of online adults using their connected devices for any of the three major communication activities – personal phone calls, emails, or text messages. It reports on the trends from 2017 through 2023, highlighting the shifts that took place following the onset of the pandemic. Furthermore, it details the differences in communication behaviors between generational age groups. Report [TUP_doc_2023_1212_comt] in TUP Lenses: Activities; Communication

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Printer activity trends in US, Germany, UK, Japan, and China

Printer activity has declined around the world – in the US, Germany, UK, Japan, and China – even as printers are an active part of the majority of online adults. Printing activities include printing documents, web pages, reports, presentations, personal records, and even recipes. However, it’s important to note that not all online adults are actively engaged in this practice. The extent of printer usage varies considerably from one country to another, and this variation carries substantial implications for both printer manufacturers and the suppliers of consumables like ink, toner, and paper.

To provide valuable insights into this trend, we present the TUP tables 410 PRxCOUNTRY from 2017 through 2023, which offer a comprehensive overview of printer usage among online adults in five key markets: the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan, and China. This data encompasses the percentage of individuals in each country who have utilized a printer in the preceding 90 days, along with detailed information on the number of printers they have employed. Report [TUP_doc_2023_1210_prpt] in TUP Lenses: Printers

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UK tech buyers boost buying while China’s elites hang on

The global landscape has witnessed significant shifts in consumer purchasing behavior due to the impact of the pandemic and broader economic changes. This transformation extends to acquiring tech products such as smartphones, computers, tablets, and game consoles. With the rapid transition to remote work, many individuals proactively invested in personal computing devices to enhance their productivity rather than relying on their employers for equipment provision.

Conversely, individuals facing reduced working hours or economic uncertainty opted to postpone their tech purchases. On a global scale, the mean age of a technology user’s primary device has exhibited relative stability, averaging between 1.9 and 2.1 years old over the past five years. However, a closer examination reveals notable variations across different countries.

The affluent and highly educated among China’s population has consistently maintained access to the latest tech devices. Nevertheless, a recent delay in 2023 has cast uncertainty on their leading position, potentially aligning them with the global average in the near future. In contrast, consumers in the UK, who amidst Brexit and the pandemic deferred tech device purchases, have demonstrated a two-year consecutive uptick in acquisitions. Consequently, their average device age now ranks second among surveyed countries.

Meanwhile, online adults in Germany and Japan have displayed a penchant for holding onto their primary devices longer compared to their international counterparts. These nuanced trends offer valuable insights for technology marketers, researchers, analysts, and industry professionals seeking to navigate evolving consumer preferences and market dynamics.

This MetaFAQs reports on the mean age of the respondent’s primary device – a smartphone, computer, tablet, or game console – by country from 2018 through 2023. Report [TUP_doc_2023_1207_yeat] in TUP Lenses: Devices; PCs; Mobile Phones; Tablets

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Replacement versus growth markets

The dynamics of replacement markets are very different from those dominated by 1st-time buyers or others that primarily include users holding onto their technology. Each technology product is in its unique phase of adoption, with very different positions for smartphones, computers, tablets, and smartwatches.

This TUPdate details consumers’ purchase intentions in the US, Germany, the UK, and Japan. The products analyzed include computers, tablets, smartwatches, printers, and others. For each product category, the analysis splits users into four categories: replacing or adding to what they have, 1st-time buyers, those actively using the technology without plans to update it, and the uninvolved.

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Simplicity coalesces with smartphones

The long-term trend towards actively juggling many connected devices has reversed. It has even slid as users consolidate their activities on a smartphone. Furthermore, people use their devices for a narrower range of activities, simplifying their device collection and what they do with them.

Many users shifted to using a notebook and smartphone only to continue their shift using their notebooks less than before. Tablets offered to combine the best of computers and smartphones but instead have fallen into a gap between them. Meanwhile, the majority of people have migrated their activities onto their smartphones. Some of the motivation has been a quest for simplicity, although, in fact, convenience has driven more people. Economics have also played a part, spurred by the many shifts in work in response to the pandemic.

Only ten years ago, the average online adult regularly used as many as four types of devices, most frequently using a home computer, work computer, smartphone, and tablet. Although computers are still in active use, when they are being used, many have been relegated to specific tasks, such as shopping, watching videos, or intensive games.

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UK tech buyers freshen up while China’s elites delay

The global landscape has witnessed significant shifts in consumer purchasing behavior due to the impact of the pandemic and broader economic changes. This transformation extends to the acquisition of tech products such as smartphones, computers, tablets, and game consoles. With the rapid transition to remote work, many individuals proactively invested in personal computing devices to enhance their productivity, rather than relying on their employers for equipment provision.

Conversely, individuals facing reduced working hours or economic uncertainty opted to postpone their tech purchases. On a global scale, the mean age of a technology user’s primary device has exhibited relative stability, averaging at 2.1 years old over the past five years. However, a closer examination reveals notable variations across different countries.

The affluent and highly educated among China’s population has consistently maintained access to the latest tech devices. Nevertheless, a recent delay in 2023 has cast uncertainty on their leading position, potentially aligning them with the global average in the near future. In contrast, consumers in the UK, who initially deferred tech device purchases, have demonstrated a two-year consecutive uptick in acquisitions. Consequently, their average device age now ranks second among surveyed countries.

Meanwhile, online adults in Germany and Japan have displayed a penchant for holding onto their primary devices longer compared to their international counterparts. These nuanced trends offer valuable insights for technology marketers, researchers, analysts, and industry professionals seeking to navigate evolving consumer preferences and market dynamics. Report [TUP_doc_2023_0824_year] in TUP Lenses: Devices; PCs; Mobile Phones; Tablets

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Usage guidelines: This document may be freely shared within and outside your organization in its entirety and unaltered. It may not be used with a generative AI system without separate licensing and express written permission. To share or quote excerpts, please contact MetaFacts.