This page lists the most recent TUP analysis. MetaFAQs, TUPdates, and Highlights are listed below beginning with the most recent releases first.
For a brief summary of recent findings, please visit our What’s New page.
MetaFAQs address a specific current or often-asked question. TUPdates drill more deeply into TUP to cover a topic in more detail. Highlights are broader analyses for a specific TUP lens.
Recent MetaFAQs, TUPdates, and Highlights
- Profile of Americans who sell things onlineNearly a fourth of online Americans regularly sell things online, making it widespread enough to be of interest, yet rare enough not to be mainstream. The type of people selling things online tend to be younger, from later generations, and gainfully employed. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online Americans who regularly sell things online split by sociodemographic characteristics: employment status, presence of children, age group, generation, gender, and generational life phase. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0306_sell] in TUP Lenses: Activities; User Profile
- Americans continue trend with more smartphone than computer hoursThere is a certain stability among Americans, at least when it comes to the many hours they use connected devices. Since 2019, Americans used a collection of connected devices – computers, smartphones, and tablets – for more than 10 billion weekly hours. This number has remained largely steady in total, although it has shifted between the types of devices Americans use. Computers have continued to decline in use as Americans increasingly turn to smartphones. This MetaFAQs reports on the millions of weekly hours Americans use smartphones, computers, and tablets, as well as the mean hours they use these devices. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0304_hout] in TUP Lenses: Devices, Mobile Phones, PCs, Tablets
- Computer penetration rates drop, but less so among older adults in many countriesComputer usage has declined among adults across many countries as an increasing number rely on their smartphones for activities from shopping to checking email. To the extent active computer penetration rates have been sustained, they have been supported mostly by older adults in Germany, Japan, and the US. In the UK and China, the age gap is less pronounced. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults who actively use a home computer, employer-provided computer, or any other computer such as one owned by a cybercafé, school, or library. The results are split by country and age category. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0228_agpt] in TUP Lenses: Devices; PCs; User Profile
- Gen Z and millennials are the strongest consumers of printing servicesGen Z and millennials live life on the move, and how they print is no exception. These generations are twice as likely to use retail or online printing services as Gen X adults and four times as likely as the earlier Boomer/Silent generations. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults in the US, Germany, UK, Japan, and China who use self-service store kiosks, retail printing outlets, or online printing services, split by generational age groups. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0227_serv] in TUP Lenses: Printers; User Profile
- HP printers lead active base in most countriesHP leads the active installed base of printers, ahead of other brands in nearly every country surveyed. In Japan, however, other local brands dominate. This MetaFAQs reports on the primary printer brand of online Americans by age generation. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0226_prbr] in TUP Lenses: Printers
- Boomers lead, Gen Z trails in printer usePrinters are an actively used device by the majority of online adults around the world, although they are being used more by earlier than later generations. Gen Z adults in every country surveyed except Japan have the lowest levels of regular printer usage. The Boomer/Silent generations have the highest use in every country except Japan. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults actively using a printer whether in their workplace, at home, school, or other location by country and age generation. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0225_prtr] in TUP Lenses: Printers; User Profile
- Smartphone hours highest for Gen Z and millennialsYounger smartphone users worldwide use smartphones for more hours on average than earlier generations. This is more strongly the case in Japan and among China’s elites. In the US, millennials lead or are on par with Gen Z adults. In the UK and Germany, millennials lead. This MetaFAQs reports on the weekly average hours adults use smartphones split by age generations and countries. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0223_hour] in TUP Lenses: Devices; Mobile Phones; User Profile
- The size of the active creative classRenewed attention on AI (Artificial Intelligence) includes substantial promises to enhance the creative output of everyday users, something millions of people are already doing. Decades before widespread AI capabilities were incorporated into apps or hardware or even touted as feature enhancements, creative activities have been a regular part of many computer users’ lives and careers. The earliest adopters of any AI technology – and those that will continue to use and value the services – will be the already active creators. Non-creatives will show some initial curiosity, followed by disengagement. The extent of AI use by non-creatives will be is as a free or bundled enhancement service. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults who regularly create graphics or presentations or use professional creative software. Each activity is further split by personal versus work-related use and age generation. The research results are based on 12,003 US, German, UK, and Japanese respondents. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0222_crea] in TUP Lenses: Activities; User Profile; Devices
- US trails in employed online usersGlobally, four in ten to six in ten online adults are working full-time or part-time. The use of online devices has broadened well beyond employed persons to include adults with a wide variety of employment statuses: retired, students, self-employed, unemployed, or otherwise not employed outside of the home. Among the countries surveyed, the US has the lowest share of online adults employed full-time or part-time. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults employed full-time or part-time. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0219_empl] in TUP Lenses: User Profile; Households
- In most countries, age is a factor explaining declining active printer useEven the most generous measure of printer use – whether any adult has used any printer in the prior 90 days – shows a substantial decline. In most countries surveyed, the deepest drop in active printer use has been among younger adults. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults actively using a printer split by country (US, Germany, UK, Japan, China) and age group (18-24, 25-34, 35-49, 50+). Report [TUP_doc_2024_0218_agpt] in TUP Lenses: Printers; User Profile
- Tech use grows with household sizeAdults in larger households worldwide use more devices than those in smaller households, a trend that has been established for years. Even as people are using fewer devices, those with more people in their households continue to use more devices than the adults in smaller households. One key factor influencing a higher usage profile is the presence of children, especially school-aged kids. Also, many smaller households are composed of older adults or those not employed outside of the household. All of these are contributing factors towards the greater use of technology devices and services. This MetaFAQs reports on the average (mean) number of devices actively used (phones, computers, tablets) by adults by household size and country. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0217_many] in TUP Lenses: User Profile; Households
- Most device hours are among younger workersWorldwide, the most active users of connected devices are younger workers. The hours people use devices like smartphones, computers, and tablets ranks second among either younger adults not employed outside of the home or older adults who are employed, varying by country. This MetaFAQs reports on the mean weekly hours that adults use connected devices by employment status and age group by country. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0215_ybus] in TUP Lenses: Devices; PCs; Mobile Phones; Tablets; User Profile; Work/Life Balance
- Work PCs still trail home PCs even as home PC usage dropsMany more workers use a home PC than a work PC, although the trend in some countries is that some medium-sized and larger employers are providing computers. Even as home PC usage continues its decline, employed home computer users still far outnumber work PC employees. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of US, German, UK, Japanese, and Chinese workers who use a home PC and an employer PC, split by employer size. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0214_hwpt] in TUP Lenses: PCs; Work/Life Balance; User Profile
- Young adults strongly prefer Apple computers globallyGlobally, computer users aged 18 to 24 are twice as likely as 50+ users to be using an Apple computer. Among German adults, the ratio is the most extreme – more than four times wider. Germany has been a stronghold for Windows computers as well as Android smartphone and tablets, a factor that has been changing primarily with younger Germans. In Japan, the difference by age group is not as extreme, and Apple’s overall penetration is lower across the board. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of adult computer users who are using an Apple computer by age group and country. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0213_ymac] in TUP Lenses: PCs; User Profile; Technology Ecosystems
- Apple deepens its loyalty in Germany and the UKOne hallmark of Apple’s success with its technology ecosystems is the breadth of Apple products that customers use. Using the most straightforward measure of market penetration—those adults who use at least one Apple product—Apple shows stable market penetration globally and in the US, the UK, Germany, and Japan. Looking one level deeper, the share of customers using two or more Apple OS devices shows a similar pattern, a positive sign for Apple. User penetration trends in China are less optimistic. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults using one or more Apple OS devices—an iPhone, iPad, or MAC—and those using two or more Apple OS devices. The data is split by country. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0213_aplt] in TUP Lenses: Technology Ecosystems; PCs; Mobile Phones; Tablets
- Younger–though not youngest–adults lead in device hoursWorldwide, younger adults use their connected devices for more hours than older adults. The global average is driven in large part by the youthful enthusiasm of younger upper-SES Chinese adults along with extra-active younger Germans balancing out their less-intensive, although numerous, older counterparts. While it may seem convenient to imagine that youthfulness equates to higher device activity, it is not universally true, as 25 to 34-year-olds dominate usage averages in the US, Germany, and the UK. This MetaFAQs reports on the mean weekly hours that online adults use their smartphones, computers, and tablets split by age group and country. These results are based on the results of research on 13,498 online adults. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0211_yhrs] in TUP Lenses: Devices; User Profile
- Slow declines in remote working among medium and large employersSince 2021, the share of remote workers among medium-sized and large employers in the US, Germany, the UK, and Japan has declined. The trends among smaller employers have been less clear since remote working rates among smaller employers increased in the UK and hardly budged in the US. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online workers who work from home always or occasionally, split by employer size and country. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0211_nwft] in TUP Lenses: User Profile; Work/Life Balance
- Feeling technology is moving too fast to keep upHaving the feeling that technology is like a rising escalator moving farther and farther away is more prominent among older than younger adults in the US, Germany, the UK, Japan, and China. Among each successively older group of online adults, a higher share feel that technology is moving too fast for them to keep up. The Covid pandemic gave many online users a temporary respite from feeling overwhelmed by technology, but the feeling has returned to 2021 levels. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults who agree with the statement, “I feel like technology is moving too fast for me to keep up,” split by country and age group. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0210_life] in TUP Lenses: User Profile
- In most countries, younger adults boost any Apple iPhone market expansionApple’s iPhone slightly leads among American smartphone users and is approaching the halfway mark among smartphone users in the UK. However, the iPhone is losing its share in Japan, and its status in China has been mixed from 2019 through 2023. In nearly every country surveyed, the iPhone’s market penetration has been driven by younger smartphone users, while penetration rates among older smartphone users have remained relatively flat. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of smartphone users using an Apple iPhone split by country and age category. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0209_ipht] in TUP Lenses: Mobile Phones; User Profile; Technology Ecosystems
- Older workers anticipate workplace returnWorldwide, older workers express less likelihood of working remotely within a year’s time. Half or more of workers aged 40 and up in the UK and Germany do not expect to be working remotely in one year. Among younger adults in the UK and Germany, the share is closer to 40%. In all countries surveyed except Japan, younger adults have a lower share that do not expect to be working remotely in one year. This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of working online adults– full-time, part-time, or self-employed– who do not expect to be working remotely in one year. These results are based on responses from 7,842 online adult workers in the US, Germany, UK, Japan, and China. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0209_owfh] in TUP Lenses: User Profile; Work/Life Balance
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