As we explore in our new Multi-Device Owners trend report, digital consumers now own an average of 3.35 connected devices – with just 3% of internet users saying that they only have a PC or laptop.
The demographics of multi-device ownership are pretty revealing. By gender, men (3.43 devices each) have a small lead over women (3.27 devices). By income, there’s a fairly obvious and predictable pattern, with the top quartile (4.08) one whole device ahead of the lower quartile (3.09). That wealthier segments have been more willing to splash their cash on non-essential devices such as tablets and wearables is an obvious contributor to this.
But it’s age-based trends which are arguably the most interesting. While the youngest consumers continue to express the most enthusiasm about new devices such as wearables – and are also spending the longest time per day on the mobile internet – they are somewhat behind 25-44s in terms of device ownership. With 16-24s owning an average of 3.15 devices, they in fact post the same figures as 45-54s – a clear indication that the cost of ownership remains a barrier for this group.
