Tag: Presence of children

Americans and Germans in larger households tend to have newer devices than those in smaller households, a trend that has been forming since 2019. For example, the average age of an American adult’s primary device in households with four or more people is 1.7 years, a full year newer than the age in 2018. Similarly, among adults in larger households in Germany, the current device age is 1.9 years versus three years in 2018. There’s less difference in the UK, Japan, and China.

This MetaFAQ reports on the average (mean) age of the primary device in active use – smartphone, feature phone, computer, tablet, or game console. The averages are split by country and household size. Report [TUP_doc_2023_1222_famt] in TUP Lenses: Devices; User Profile; Households

Americans and Germans who live alone or with just one other person tend to have older devices compared to those in bigger households. For instance, 41% of Americans in households with four or more people got their main device in the last year. This is more than the 28% of Americans in smaller households of one or two people. This trend also holds true in Germany. But in the UK, Japan, and China, there’s less of a difference.

One factor behind this is that larger households often have kids. Having children in the household is linked to using technology more actively and being more open to new tech products and services. This MetaFAQs is based on TUP 2023 results.