Brief profile of Americans regularly playing games using connected devices

Dan Ness, Principal Analyst, MetaFacts, March 30, 2023

Summary

Fun is a major pastime for most, but not all, American adults using connected devices. Whether they use a game console, gaming PC, regular computer, tablet, or mobile phone, most Americans regularly play immersive or other games.

This TUPdate briefly profiles Americans who regularly play immersive/video or other games, detailing their age, gender, employment status, presence of children, life stage, and use of game-specific devices such as a VR headset.

Americans that play games skew young

  • Playing games using a connected device is a regular activity by two-thirds or more of Americans under the age of 45
    • Connected devices include computers, mobile phones, tablets, and game consoles
  • Beyond age 55, playing games is done by less than half of these older adults
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Communication platforms – fast, now, or visible? [TUPdate]

Dan Ness, Principal Analyst, MetaFacts, March 12, 2021

The frustrated plea “can you hear me now?” has evolved to include “can you see me now?” During pandemic and suddenly-working-at-home times, video calls have driven home the importance of having a robust, fast, and synchronous connection. Asynchronous activities such as text messaging and email don’t have the same need for speed and an instantaneous persistent connection.

It got me wondering – are people choosing one device over another for communication that demands higher-bandwidth or low-latency connections? Is there an age difference preference for right-now synchronous versus later-on asynchronous communication activities? Furthermore, are there other aspects beyond bandwidth and immediacy that encourage people to choose one device over another for certain types of communications? Are video work meetings, for example, more PC-based than smartphone-based?

So, I investigated our results from TUP/Technology User Profile 2020 to compare how widely communication activities are in regular use. I netted together asynchronous activities separately from synchronous ones. Then, I looked at differences by device type – smartphone, home PC, and tablet. I also looked at differences by age group, knowing that younger adults often have different sensibilities and experiences around communication than older or the oldest adults.

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Synchronous or asynchronous communication – checking age preference [MetaFAQs]

Dan Ness, Principal Analyst, MetaFacts, December 11, 2020

Communication is a vital and regular activity for connected devices. There are many choices – email, phone calls, video calls, video meetings, group chats – and the experience is different for each type. This MetaFAQs looks at asynchronous communication activities – those where the communicators don’t need to be engaged at the same time – to see how widespread their use is by age. It also looks at synchronous activities – where communications are in touch at the same time – to see how their usage levels vary.

Continue reading “Synchronous or asynchronous communication – checking age preference [MetaFAQs]”
Usage guidelines: This document may be freely shared within and outside your organization in its entirety and unaltered. It may not be used in a generative AI system without express written permission and licensing. To share or quote excerpts, please contact MetaFacts.