How American generations use smartphones

People continue to engrain smartphones further into their lives, relying on them for communication and many other activities. No single communication mode has reached singularity, and instead the top activities include text messaging, personal email, and even personal phone calls. Later generations have the highest regular use of social networking activity, while earlier generations are increasingly using smartphones for online shopping and banking. Video calls have only emerged as a top activity among one generational group.

This MetaFAQ reports on how Americans use smartphones. It shows the percentage of Americans doing any of the top ten smartphone activities. Further, it compares these percentages to how smartphone users use them worldwide. For Americans, it also splits these activities by generational group, identifying each group’s top ten activities and the three activities that have expanded the most since 2019. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0212_spac] in TUP Lenses: Devices; PCs; Mobile Phones; Activities; Communication

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Half of Americans use a smartphone for work

During the pandemic, the rapid flight to health, safety, and remote work caught many employers’ IT departments unprepared. Many workers did not have employer-provided computers or even home-owned ones, although the majority had smartphones. At the same time, much of the online population was already migrating many of their everyday activities away from computers to smartphones. Consequently, roughly half of online adults in the US and UK, and over 40% of those in Germany and Japan, regularly use their smartphones for work-related activities.
This MetaFAQ reports on the percentage of online adults that use a smartphone for a range of work-related activities, from checking email and participating in online meetings to phone and video calls. Report [TUP_doc_2024_0123_spwt] in TUP Lenses: Mobile Phones; Activities; Communication; Work/Life Balance

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Half of Americans use a smartphone for work

Half of Americans use a smartphone for work – Over half of online American adults utilize smartphones for various work tasks, from emails to videoconferencing. One in six American workers relies solely on a smartphone. Another quarter have all three: a smartphone, computer and tablet, and 80% of these rely on smartphones for work activities. Interestingly, half lack employer-provided computers.

This MetaFAQs reports on the percentage of online adults regularly using a smartphone for work-related activities. Report [TUP_doc_2023_1125_spwr] in TUP Lenses: Mobile Phones; Activities; Communication; Work/Life Balance

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Market potential for Apple Vision Pro and VR/AR/MR headsets

Apple has recently unveiled Vision Pro, a product with broader potential for applications well beyond the immersive-game orientation of many initial headsets. The presentation at the launch showcased Vision Pro’s versatility, demonstrating its potential ability to revolutionize a host of activities of many types: entertainment, communication, collaboration, productivity, creativity, and videography. Furthermore, the demo subtly highlighted the potential benefits of Apple’s ecosystem and tighter integration.

Interestingly, gaming and industrial applications, frequently highlighted in the launches of competing VR/AR/MR (Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Mixed Reality) headsets, were not included in the Vision Pro demo. This divergence indicates a strategic focus away from a unique niche segment of the market.

Analyzing consumer technology trends requires tracking behaviors, a practice underscored by years of TUP/Technology User Profile research. The mantra that ‘actions speak loudest’ remains as pertinent today as ever. The activities people engage in are the most reliable indicators of consumer technology adoption patterns. It is less about which devices or electronics consumers use; their behaviors are the most important.

An intriguing insight from TUP’s ongoing research is that people switch devices quickly and alter their behavior slowly. Consequently, it becomes crucial to explore the number of people who regularly engage in any given activity, which the research does in detail.

The research also sets out to identify the market size for each of these activities. It quantifies how many people participate in a broad range of these activities.

Furthermore, the report also highlights demographic details, Apple’s brand loyalty, and current VR headset penetration rates. By doing so, the study is expected to offer valuable insights into the potential future for VR/AR/MR headsets such as Apple’s Vision Pro.

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How employees working from home are balancing their activities

Employees working from home have unique challenges in getting work done while often using personal and employer-provided devices. While seeking to balance their work and personal lives, they are also finding new ways to use their devices. A substantial share regularly does TikTok-type work – creating videos for work and personal purposes. This MetaFAQs reports on the top 10 activities employees that work from home do with their connected devices: smartphones, computers, and tablets. It also identifies which activities are done more often than the average online adult.

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Work follows employees home, although less so than last year

Home computers – those acquired with personal funds – are used by most employees for work-related activities. Americans and employees in Germany, the UK, Japan, and China peaked in 2021 and subsided in 2022. This MetaFAQs reports on employees using a home computer for work-related activities. It details the work activities with home computers, from communication to collaboration and productivity. As a historical contrast, it includes comparable results from the 1987 TUP/Technology User Profile wave.

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Trends in webcam and video calls/meetings usage

Are video calls and meetings as widespread as tech media implies? How much have webcams and video calls and meetings reached into the everyday experience of the average online adult? This MetaFAQs reports on the usage trend since before the pandemic for online adults in the US, the UK, Germany, and Japan. It further splits video calling/conferencing by smartphone, home PC, or work PC. Furthermore, because change has not affected everyone the same, it details the trend among life stage segments – employment status, age group, and presence of children.

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Profile of Americans who regularly participate in video calls

As video plays an increasing role in our daily lives across social media and other communication platforms, it’s no surprise that video calls are also becoming more and more mainstream. 55% of all online American adults report regularly participating in video calls. This MetaFAQs profiles regular video call participants by several critical demographic and behavioral factors distinctive from the average American online adult: age and gender; employment status; life stage (age, employment status, presence of children); and technology ecosystem entrenchment. Report [TUP_doc_2022_0715_mode] in TUP Lenses: Activities, Communication.

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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.