Notebooks Midmost In Mobility [TUPdate]

Notebook Penetration – Now in the Middle of Mobility

Notebooks have continued their long march into widespread use, fueled by the desire to be able to get things done regardless of location. The years-long drive towards mobility continues. However, users have shown that notebooks are not their only choice to support their mobility fix. Even while notebooks have continued to be made thinner, lighter, faster, and less expensive, users have adopted other mobile devices. Smartphones have reached around 85% of online adults in the US, Germany, and the UK, surpassing notebook penetration.

Users have not embraced smartphones as a full substitute for notebooks, continuing to prefer certain activities using their notebooks or desktops. However, over the last five years, users have migrated many of their regular activities from PCs to smartphones, one by one and unceasingly.

Nor have users adopted tablets as notebook substitutes. Several years ago, tablets posed a growing challenge, although have since seen reduced active market penetration. Part of this decline has been due to users choosing to use fewer devices as they simplify their lives. Another dampening factor has been by carriers giving less attention to tablets. Since most users choose tablets connected through Wi-Fi over built-in cellular connections (with additional subscriptions), carriers have less interest in promoting them.

MacBooks With Time On Their Side

Apple has the future in its favor – to the extent it can build, broaden, and maintain loyalty among its existing base. The penetration of Apple MacBooks is skewed towards younger adults, which bodes well for the brand’s future. However, continued loyalty as users age is not guaranteed. Historically, as the youngest users enter the workforce, they adopt their employer’s technology brand standards and, in many cases, bring those home.

Users of Microsoft Windows notebooks still outnumber MacBook users across the surveyed geographies and age groups. The age skew in the US and UK is tilted towards the middle range of ages, as older adults have higher penetration of desktop PCs.

Among the youngest adults – age 18 to 24 – penetration of Windows notebooks and MacBooks is almost equal.

Chromebooks, meanwhile, are only barely registering across all age groups.

Notebooks for Industry

Among employees, Apple’ MacBooks have a long way to go to match the broad penetration of Windows notebooks. Across four broad industry groups in four countries, Windows notebooks out-penetrate MacBooks substantially – from three to one to as high as ten to one.

Chromebooks barely register in the active installed base of employer-provided notebooks.

Across most organizations, especially larger ones, standardization is a key method to simplify support, smooth the workflow, decrease costs, and increase security. Also, most larger organizations are served by enterprise sales forces and systems integrators that typically focus on volume purchase agreements, high quantity installations, and vertical integration. These initiatives typically have less input about brand choices from end-users.

With the COVID pandemic, many users suddenly working from home are getting their work done using their personal PCs. Many employers have not provided computers to homebound employees, as companies weigh their future options. The choices they face are not only about their technology products and services, but also about real estate, employment levels, risk management, finances, and even their own corporate viability. Although conditions are extremely fluid, this means that for now, more employees than ever have a greater say in their choice of computing device.

Pent-up Demand – Purchase Plans

Notebook users are showing strong plans to purchase another notebook. One in three American Windows notebook users plan to acquire a notebook in the next 12 months. MacBook users have the strongest purchase plans to buy a new personal notebook in the coming year, stronger than among users of Windows notebooks in all countries surveyed. Apple’s historical repurchase loyalty is a positive indicator supporting Apple among its customers. Additionally, Apple’s recent release of its newest MacBooks may entice more repeat buyers. Although much of the launch’s emphasis was on the speed of Apple’s own internal silicon, the broader base of less-technical buyers will likely resonate with Apple’s assurances of app compatibility.

Ecosystem loyalty

Apple has something else going for it – ecosystem loyalty. This shows up in many ways, one being the positive association between iPhone and MacBook use, and negative association between Android and non-MacBook use. Current iPhone users use MacBooks at a higher rate – and Windows notebooks at a lower rate – than users of Android smartphones. The level of integration between MacBooks and iPhones is tighter than between Windows notebooks and either iPhones or Android smartphones. However, the integration is not so tight as to be restrictive, which is important since a substantial share of iPhone users use non-Apple notebooks.

Similarly, Chromebooks are more likely to be used by Android smartphone users than by iPhone users. Market penetration is small overall, but still there is a positive association.

While many PC makers may not focus on the other non-PC technology devices users use, this sort of divide highlights the importance of a complete understanding.

About TUPdates

The information in this TUPdate is based on the most recent wave of the MetaFacts TUP/Technology User Profile study, its 2020 wave, the 38^th annual wave. Where noted, results are drawn from previous versions. This TUPdate is focused on the US, and comparable information results are available from the UK, Germany, and Japan.

On request, interested research professionals can receive complimentary updates through our periodic newsletter. These include MetaFAQs – brief answers to frequently asked questions – or TUPdates – analysis of current topics in the technology industry. To learn about subscribing to the TUP/Technology User Profile service, contact MetaFacts.

May 15, 2020November 13, 2020

Work-life balance – back to the future or the past? [TUPdate & MetaFacts Pulse Survey]

Progress toward work-life separation, until sudden integration

I will admit to having recently used more than one cliché about these being “unprecedented times” or even that we’re headed towards a “new normal”.

When it comes to work-life balance, what was “normal” is all-too “precedented”. For years, PCs have enabled American employees to bring work home. Enabling is not always a positive characteristic, depending on one’s perspective. No sooner had employees scaled down their work at home, minimizing their commingled work and personal activities, then along came COVID-19.

Employees using Home PCs for work – a recent history

For decades, employees have slowly separating their personal and work lives. Step by step, application by application, employees had been using their home PCs for fewer and fewer work-related tasks. In the MetaFacts 2015 wave of TUP/Technology User Profile, we found that one in three US employees regularly used their home PCs for work email, one in five to search for work-related financial or other information, and one in six to manage work appointments or share files. By our 2019 wave, we found that home PC usage levels for these work activities had dropped to around two-thirds of these levels.

Now that six in ten US employees are working from home, and with almost half (49%) using a home-owned PC, their home PC is getting a lot of work-related use.

In addition to the work activities employees had been avoiding on their home PC, the home or work PC employees are using at home to work is being utilized for an even wider range of activities than before. Well beyond checking work emails, employee communications have broadened well beyond emails to include video calls, group video meetings, and group chats.

Also, more than ever before, there is currently deeper collaboration through shared cloud storage systems and platforms.

The work-life balance challenge made more visible

With so many working from home, the work-life balance challenge is more visible. Six out of ten US employees are working from home and not going to a workplace, a rate we found remained effectively stable in each of our May 7th (61%), April 15th (59%) and earlier April 8th (61%) and MetaFacts Pulse survey waves that included this question.

Interestingly, how employees use their work-from-home PC is different from how they recently used their employer-provided work PC. Employees are spending less time in face-to-time meetings and using their PCs as a focal communicating point to get things done.

Less than a year ago, in our MetaFacts TUP/Technology User Profile 2019 wave, we found employees used their work PCs to do similar activities as we found in our May 7^th MetaFacts Pulse survey, although to a greater extent. Employees are using their work-at-home PCs more intensively than they had been using their work PCs. For every type of work-related or personal activities, a higher share of employees is doing the activity than before.

The active life of the work-at-home PC

Among employees working from home in May, 84% are using a PC, whether owned by their employer (35%) or themselves (49%). Their work-related activities are strongly intermixed with their personal activities, except for personal activities with a work PC. Many employers that provide PCs, especially larger employers, lock down the capabilities of the work PC to restrict its use to certain work apps or activities. Also, employees have learned to separate their personal communication activities onto other platforms, especially to use their smartphones.

American workers choose different video platforms for video calls than meetings, and for personal versus work-related matters

US employees have continued to have work meetings – essentially moving from face-to-face meetings to video platforms. With widespread stay-at-home orders in place, video platforms for calls as well as for group meetings have grown in use among employees as well as the general online public, and for personal as well as work-related matters.

However, there is no one single dominant platform for all subjects and numbers of participants. The closest thing to a dominant platform is Zoom, with Skype in the wings. Zoom and Skype are in the top-ranked platforms for both personal and work matters, as well as for calls and multi-person meetings.

Consumer-focused WhatsApp is top-ranked for personal use and among the main platforms being used for work video conferences, likely a surprise to many company’s IT/IS managers.

Corporate-oriented Microsoft Teams and WebEx are ranked within work-related calls and conferences.

Fewer video conferencing platforms for work than for personal

There appear to be more standards in place for work-related videoconferences. While the mean number of platforms in use is close to 3 for personal calls and conferences, as well as for work-related video calls, the mean is closer to 2 platforms for work video conferencing platforms.

Today’s long tail for work video conferencing platforms

The largest number of American workers (37%) use only one video conferencing platform for work-related issues. The rest (63%) are juggling many. This reflects the current state of confusion following the rapid move to working at home. Employers are likely to reduce the number of platforms used, at least within their companies. Standardization helps employees to be more efficient, and can also help employers to strike more favorable pricing with platform providers. However, many outward-facing employees have the same challenge as consumers – finding a common platform when communicating with others who have their own different standards.

About this TUPdate

The information referred to in this special TUPdate is based on independent research conducted by MetaFacts: three waves of MetaFacts Pulse surveys and two waves of TUP/Technology User Profile.

The projections of total US employees are based on TUP/Technology User Profile 2019 conducted among 8,060 respondents and the TUP/Technology User Profile 2015 wave conducted among 2,896 employed respondents. Also, this TUPdate included results from the May 7^th, April 15^th, and April 8^th, 2020 waves of the MetaFacts Pulse Employee survey.

Resources

Current TUP/Technology User Profile subscribers may request the supporting TUP information used for this analysis or for even deeper analysis. Subscribers to the MetaFacts Employees Pulse surveys may request the supporting information and can make additional inquiries. For more information about MetaFacts and subscribing to TUP or the MetaFacts Pulse surveys, please contact MetaFacts.

May 5, 2020November 16, 2020

Don’t let seniors fool you as they Zoom from behind [TUPdate/MetaFacts Pulse Survey]

Ageism is widespread in the tech industry. Many younger computer experts had a good laugh when a recent call went out for COBOL programmers. That was, until these relative newbies realized how many citizens would be left waiting for financial support after the recent surge in demand for unemployment checks. Computer experts were even more chagrined then they heard about the hiring bonuses being offered and realized they did not have relevant skills.

As seniors “invaded” Facebook over the last decade, raising the average age bar to its present heights, (age 45 in the US and Germany), younger adults expanded their social networking to additional sites and apps that let them still keep some distance.

Meanwhile, parents and grandparents alike still crave connection, and increasingly find it online. Consequently, we’re seeing rapid adoption Zoom and FaceTime, as well as broader adoption of home delivery services.

Tech-savvy seniors

Seniors are more tech-savvy than they may want to reveal. 95% have used a personal computer (PC or Mac). Their average (mean) experience is 27 years, with 75% or seniors having first started using one 22 or more years ago, half 30 or more years ago, and 25% starting 37 or more years ago. Over half of seniors 60+ have been using one type of personal computer or another for 30 years.

Seniors grew up with computers. A senior today would likely have been a working adult as PCs grew into widespread use. A 60-year old today would have been 24 when Apple released its first Macintosh and 21 when IBM released its first PC.

Personal computing device

Nearly three-fourths (73%) of seniors 60 or older are using a Windows PC as their primary computing device. An Apple iPad accounts for 10%, and 6% an Apple Mac or MacBook. Only 8% use an Android tablet or Chromebook.

Seniors embracing video calls

Many seniors adopt technology quickly when they choose to. And, they are even more likely to when it involves connecting with family members like grandchildren or distant children. Group video calls, such as with Zoom, have grown quickly among seniors. Less than a year ago, we found only 3% of American seniors 65+ doing any regular multi-person video calls or meetings. In our research today (May 1, 2020), we found that 36% have made group video calls since February 1^st, 2020.

We have also found that one-to-one video calls have increased, although not as rapidly. Currently, more than a third of seniors are regularly or have recently made video calls. Based on our TUP/Technology User Profile 2019 wave, 23% were making personal video calls. That is now up to 39%.

Video calling less often for alone seniors

Only one in four seniors living alone are staying connected with others through video calls and meetings. The highest use of video calls or meetings is among senior households with 2 or more people. Among households with 2 persons, the rate is effectively half – 50% for one-to-one video calls and 47% for multi-person video calls. For homes with 3 or more persons, the rate is nearly as high. With new things such as technology services, it can help to have someone nearby to show how to use it.

Video calling favorites

Zoom is the most-widely used platform for video calls with multiple people. One in four (24%) of seniors age 60 and higher use Zoom, which is far above the penetration of other platforms. Microsoft’s tools, when combined, make up 8%. Skype makes up most of this set, with 5% of seniors using it. A small percentage of seniors are using Microsoft’s Teams service, primarily those employed full-time or part-time.

For one-to-one video calls, there are a host of choices seniors use. These include FaceTime, Facebook Messenger, and Skype. It is not surprising to see FaceTime, as it is already integrated with nearly all Apple iPhones, iPads, and Macs. Facebook is cross-platform, allowing users to more easily connect with friends who may be using a Windows PC or an Android smartphone. Skype is part of Microsoft Office, and since seniors have a high share of Windows PC, it is likely a choice that is near to hand. Zoom only ranks 4^th for one-to-one calls, so it has not fully taken over as a communication platform among seniors.

Working from home

Of the 26% of seniors age 60 or older who are employed full-time or part-time, over half (55%) are working from home. Three weeks ago, we found in our April 8^th survey that 61% of age 55+ adults were working from home, an effectively similar rate.

Delivery services

Many seniors are using delivery services for groceries, takeout, or medicine. Use of these convenience services are not among the majority, however. Although current stay-at-home orders vary by region, grocery and medicinal shopping is considered an essential task and these delivery substitutes aren’t available everywhere.

Looking ahead

As long-experienced techies continue aging, they will join the corps of elders bringing along many of their present expectations and demand. Their years of tech exposure along with their predominantly higher generational wealth make them an increasingly important market segment to understand.

However, intergenerational squabbles, distrust, and misunderstanding have persisted for eons. In the US, many advertisers and marketers direct their messages and attention towards youth, or at least towards youthfully aspiring images. While younger adults of means are often the earliest adopters of technology products or services, technology adoption does not suddenly stop at some fixed age.

As the saying goes, old dogs can learn new tricks.

About this TUPdate

MetaFacts conducted independent research to gather the results used in this TUPdate. The projections of total US adults with children are based on TUP/Technology User Profile 2019 conducted among 8,060 respondents. Also, this TUPdate included results from the April 29th, 2020 wave of the MetaFacts Senior Study, the first wave of a special study focused on the quickly changing situation. This wave included responses from 309 online adults with online adults age 60 or older.

Resources

Current TUP/Technology User Profile subscribers may request the supporting TUP information used for this analysis or for even deeper analysis. Subscribers to the MetaFacts Seniors Study may request the supporting information and can make additional inquiries. For more information about MetaFacts and subscribing to TUP or the MetaFacts Student Study, please contact MetaFacts.

April 9, 2020November 13, 2020

MetaFacts work from home study – Highlights [Pulse Survey]

This TUPdate investigates and profiles working Americans who are working from home. With the COVID-19 pandemic and economic shifts taking place now, many are not technologically ready for a work-at-home or stay-at-home experience.

MetaFacts conducted a series of surveys during the periods March 26-30, 2020, and April 8, 2020.

The demographics of working from home

Working from home is in full swing for now. Although not all workers can or are working from home, those who are mostly use (not employer-provided) personal computing devices. They also favor consumer-oriented video communications platforms. Their purchase intentions are weak, and mostly focused on backfilling the basics needed for working from home.

Two-thirds (64%) of online Americans who are employed or self-employed were working at home on April 8, 2020.

There are many Americans who aren’t. One in eight (12%) who were employed in February 2020 are not currently working.

Of those working from home, most are in upper socioeconomic groups.

More than three-fourths (78%) of adults in households with income of $85,000 or more in the prior year are working from home. This is in stark contrast to the near-half levels among those with incomes of less than $50,000 per year.

Full-time employees and those who were already self-employed in a home-based business in February 2020 also had the highest work-at-home rates.

Computing Devices for Work

Most workers working from home are using their own personally-purchased products as their primary computing device. 58.2% of workers working from home as of April 8th, 2020 were using a personal device versus 41.8% who were using an employer-provided device.

Among Information Workers – defined for this study as those workers who were already using an employer-provided PC in February 2020 – 39.7% are using a personal device as their primary computing device for work.

Working from home means a mobile device, even though due to stay-at-home restrictions mobile tech workers can’t bring them to coffee cafés. Working from home is a new experience for many, and most homes don’t have a dedicated workspace, much less a dedicated desk for the new work-at-home worker. So, portability even with a home is helpful. Mobile devices – notebook PCs – are the primary computing device for Americans working as of April 8, 2020.

Video calling and conferencing by those working at home

Zoom has earned a lot of attention and users during the pandemic as a popular option for anyone online working at home seeking to connect by video with friends and family, as well as with coworkers and customers. Among workers working at home, Zoom is used most widely for work video calls and video conferences. Apple’s FaceTime is most widely used for personal video calls. For personal video conferences, Skype is slightly ahead of Zoom. For personal video calls, Apple’s FaceTime leads.

More broadly, Microsoft’s, Google’s, and Facebook’s combined video communications platforms reach the greatest share of at-home workers. Microsoft’s offerings – Skype, Meet Now, or Teams – taken together are used by the most at-home workers, slightly ahead of Google’s set of offerings – Hangouts, Duo or Meet. Facebook’s set are mostly used for personal video conferences or calls.

Planned Purchases

When we asked workers about their purchase plans for the next three months, no single technology was mentioned among one-tenth of workers.

Nearly as many workers have plans for tech products or services they will purchase with their own funds as expect to have bought by their employers.

Workers expect their employers to acquire collaboration software, such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, or even cloud-based collaboration tools. Workers also anticipate their employers to set up VPNs-Virtual Private Networks to help maintain the security of their communication with their workplace networks or computers. Third on most worker’s list are an extra monitor/display and a desk, both items widely found in many workplaces.

From their own personal funds, workers plan to purchase a notebook PC, webcam, and extra monitor/display. (Presumably if their employer doesn’t come through). Other basics for replicating a work-at-home office include a headset or headphones, tablet (perhaps for working from the couch?), speakers, a chair, and a desk.

Employment and non-employment by demographics

Between February 2020 and April 8, 2020 (the date of this survey), the number of employed Americans dropped precipitously. Nationally, 88% of online adult Americans that were employed in February were still working by April 8, 2020, meaning that 12% were not. This share is generally in line with unemployment claims reported by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Both time periods include those working full-time, part-time, or self-employed.

The demographics about who was and was not still working shows a wide variation. Generally, fewer lower-income, part-time, and lesser-skilled workers are still working than were working in February.

The pandemic has currently affected some regions more than others. There are also regional differences in stay-at-home orders, those deemed essential, and those affected by business closures or layoffs. Among the major states, New York has the highest national percentage of non-workers, followed by New Jersey and California.

Occupation and working from home

Change in Employment from February to March 2020, by Occupation

Educational attainment and working from home

Primary Work Computing Device – February and March 2020

We asked two questions:

In February 2020, which computing device did you use as your primary work device?

While working at home, what is your primary computing device?

Benefits of working from home

Age of workers working from home

Household size for Americans working from home

Home Delivery Services for workers working at home

Definitions of terms used in this analysis

April 8 Workers – working full-time, part-time, or self-employed on April 8, 2020

March Workers – working full-time, part-time, or self-employed during March 2020

February Workers – working full-time, part-time, or self-employed during February 2020

Work from home – working from home as of the fielding date of the survey wave

Information workers – having had an employer-provided desktop PC in February 2020

About this TUPdate

The analysis in this TUPdate is based on results drawn from MetaFacts Pulse surveys conducted March 26-30, 2020 with 772 online adults, and conducted April 8, 2020 with 530 online adults, drawn to be representative of American online adults who were working full-time, part-time, or self-employed in February 2020.

Resources

Current TUP/Technology User Profile subscribers may request the supporting TUP information used for this analysis or for even deeper analysis. For more information about MetaFacts and subscribing to TUP, please contact MetaFacts.

January 2, 2020November 16, 2020

Home PC Penetration Update [TUPdate]

Home PC Penetration is Stable

Home PCs continue to be a feature of online Americans. Four out of five online American adults regularly use a home PC, and this share has remained unchanged from 2015 through 2019. This is based on results from the 2015 through 2019 waves of TUP/Technology User Profile.

Use of more than one home PC has also remained stable. Half of online adults use only one home PC, a rate that has only varied by three percent over five years. Similarly, the usage rate has remained the same for the use of two home PCs and for three or more home PCs. Neither are online Americans accumulating or letting go of home PCs.

Home PC Use by Age Group

Across all age groups, most online Americans use only one home PC. Single home PC use is lowest among younger adults and highest among older adults. Use of two or more home PCs is hardly different by age group, ranging from 26% to 31%.

In 2015, the patterns were similar. Home PC usage among younger adults is slightly lower, at 28% of those age 18-24 in 2019, down from 25% in 2015, although this drop is not material.

Doubling and Tripling Up Among the Young

Home PC penetration has stayed strong while smartphone and tablet penetration has grown, especially among younger adults. In 2019, smartphone penetration is higher than home PC penetration among online adults age 54 and younger. Tablet use is highest among adults age 25-44, strong users of all three devices.

Looking ahead

Habits die hard, and consumers hold onto some technology as a safeguard. Home PCs are likely to maintain their penetration levels for the next decade. However, TUP has already shown that home PCs have been losing their preeminence to smartphones as the primary device of choice for most activities. So, consumers will retain and replace home PCs as an insurance policy for those times when they are more convenient than either smartphones or tablets.

About this TUPdate

The analysis in this TUPdate is based on results drawn from multiple waves of TUP (Technology User Profile), including the 2019 edition which is TUP’s 37th continuous wave. This survey-based study details the use of technology products by a carefully-selected and weighted set of respondents drawn to represent online adults.

Resources

Current TUP subscribers may request the supporting TUP information used for this analysis or for even deeper analysis. For more information about MetaFacts and subscribing to TUP, please contact MetaFacts.

November 15, 2019November 16, 2020

Game-Playing Trends – Convenience Gamers, Dedicated Gamers, and Device-Gamers [TUPdate]

Overview

Playing games is a regular activity for most adults whether using game consoles or gaming PCs, or any of their connected devices – mobile phones, tablets, or PCs.

Convenience Gamers – those using only a connected device to play games – has near-equal market penetration to Dedicated Gamers – users of game consoles or gaming PCs.

Device-Gamers – who use any of their connected devices – is a larger segment than either Dedicated Gamers or Convenience Gamers.

This TUPdate looks at the major trends of game-playing in the US and other countries, focusing on Convenience Gamers – the next tier of game-players beyond Dedicated Gamers. Also, it examines which types of devices are used the most or least for playing games. Further, it investigates whether younger adults play more or less than older ones, and differences in digital media use and subscriptions.

About TUPdates

The analysis in this TUPdate is based on results drawn from the 2019 wave of TUP (Technology User Profile), which is TUP’s 37th continuous wave. Results from previous waves are also included where indicated. This survey-based study details the use of technology products by a carefully-selected and weighted set of respondents drawn to represent online adults.

May 30, 2019November 16, 2020

Multi OS Jugglers – Finger Foibles [TUPdate]

Finger foibles? Muscle memory? Most of us have done it – found our fingers fumbling for a key that isn’t on this keyboard, tapping a screen that’s not touch-sensitive, or expecting some function that’s not available on the device we’re using. Juggling devices across multiple operating system ecosystems can reveal our learned shortcuts and ingrained habits. And, a multi-OS experience affects most of us. More than two-thirds (69%) of online adults use two or more of the major operating systems – Windows, Android, iOS, or MacOS. Put another way, less than a third of online Americans use only one OS.

Who are these focused users who have chosen to stay within a single OS ecosystem, and how numerous are they? And, who are the flexible cross-platform savants who find a way to manage moving betwixt and between their collection of devices and ecosystems?

Who has the fanboys?

Microsoft Windows can rightly claim that they have the largest active base of dedicated fans. Over half (53%) of American adults who use a single OS are using Windows. As dedicated as they are, this group is relatively small, made up of only one in six (17%) online American adults.

This is based on TUP/Technology User Profile 2018, conducted among 7,521 online adults.

Those only using Apple iOS are fewer in number. Among single-OS users, they number just over one-fourth (28%). This is less than one in ten American adults, at 9%.

Even smaller is the hardy band of Android-only users, at one-sixth (17%) of single-US users and 5% of American adults.

What do the the flexible use?

Among the 69% of online American adults that use multiple OS ecosystems, Microsoft Windows is the most prevalent, with over half (57%) of online adults, and 83% of those who use more than one OS. So, anyone hoping to reach a broader market needs to seriously include Windows in their target platforms.

Those using Apple iOS or Google Android and nearly anything else are nearly equal in number. Just over half (53%) of those using multiple platforms are using Google Android, and slightly under half (48%) are using Apple iOS devices.

Which OS has the highest fan concentration?

If it’s not enough to have the greatest number of dedicated fans, their concentration matters. Microsoft Windows has the highest share of its users that are solely focused on devices with the OS ecosystem. Almost one fourth (23%) of Windows users only use Windows devices. Apple’s iOS has nearly the same level of fandom. Twenty-one percent of iOS users only use iOS devices, whether iPhones or iPads. Android has the lowest level of concentration, with only 13% that only use Android devices.

Who are the fanboys and flexible?

At first glance, its notable that the single-OS users are older than multi-OS jugglers. The median age of a single-US user is 50 years and that of a multi-OS user is 41. This difference is supported by the dominance of Windows PC users and Android Smartphone/Tablet users – older than their multi-OS counterparts. The median age of Windows-only users is 55, a baker’s dozen more years older than the median age of 42 for those using Windows along with any other major OS.

Are Platforms Used Differently?

The smartphone is the device of choice for nearly every type activity by multiple-OS users and single-OS users, with a few exceptions. Those who use Windows as their single OS primarily use a tower desktop for most of their activities. Also, those using multiple operating systems choose a tower desktop for their cloud storage/sharing activities.

Looking ahead

Although there are cross-platform apps that span OS ecosystems, many of them behave differently from platform to platform. Even small differences stymie users who are looking for a smooth experience across their devices, and especially doesn’t help those with a strong finger memory. Developers face a perennial Procrustean dilemma – either uniquely optimizing for each platform or offering an identical, if somehow substandard, experience.

High cross-platform compatibility is the nearest thing to the elusive “killer app” or “silver bullet”. OS ecosystems will be helped mostly by apps that offer enough functionality to entice users, yet not quite enough compatibility to lose the ecosystem’s unique cachet.

About this TUPdate

The analysis in this TUPdate is based on results drawn from multiple waves of TUP/Technology User Profile, including the 2018 edition which is TUP’s 36th continuous wave. This survey-based study details the use of technology products by a carefully-selected and weighted set of respondents drawn to represent online adults.

Resources

May 2, 2019November 16, 2020

Who Are The Tablet-First Pioneers? [TUPdate]

Will Tablets go mainstream, so much so that they’re the first device consumers reach for? A persistent yet small group of Americans use their Tablet more than a smartphone or PC. Are the rest missing something? Might this edge group grow?

The Size Of The Tablet-First Segment

Over the last five years, the share of connected adults using a tablet as their primary device grew and then shrunk.

This is based on results from five years of our TUP/Technology User Profile study, each wave with over 7,500 representative respondents in the US.

In our 2014 wave of TUP, we found that 5.6% of adults were using a tablet as their primary device – before a PC, mobile phone, or game console. In TUP 2016, the tablet-first rate had grown to 9.3%, or one in 11 online adults. By TUP 2018, this dropped to 7.5%, or nearer to one in 13 online adults.

What other devices do they use?

Tablet-first users may choose to first use their Tablet, yet most have other devices to choose from. Nearly two-thirds of tablet-first users (62%) regularly use a PC, and almost three-fourths (74%) regularly use a Smartphone. They have other mobile devices, such as a Notebook (35%) or Desktop (47%).

Growing Tablet Reliance Among the Stalwart Tablet-First

Most tablet-first users have more devices than their tablet – 94% have 2 or more. Seventy-five percent have 3 or more connected devices they regularly use.

Over the last three years, this number has shrunk somewhat. While in 2016 tablet-first users used an average of 4.3 connected devices, this number has dropped to 3.8.

What are these tablet-first tablets being used for?

Tablet-first users fully enjoy them. The users of Tablets as their primary device are busy with their tablets, checking email, shopping, having fun, and social networking. Over half of adults using a tablet as their primary device regularly use it for a wide range of activities. While checking personal email ranks at the top, shopping is nearly as strong.

What’s notably absent from the list of major activities are more-intensive productivity or graphical activities such as creating presentations. Most of the activities so far are more passive than actively creative.

That may seem odd to Apple-watchers, since much of the iPad’s advertising and development has featured the Apple Pencil for drawing and sketching, as well as creative video apps. Samsung has similarly touted their S-Pen for their Galaxy Tabs. It looks like the installed base hasn’t quite caught the creative bug, since these are relatively recent additions and emphases. Or, more likely, it’s harder to inspire the less-creative to start creating than it is to attract creative types.

Looking ahead

I don’t expect the tablet-first segment to grow beyond being a small group. Size is a key dimension affecting the future of tablets. As smartphones get larger, tablets will continue to be affected. The largest smartphones are encroaching on the size of the smallest tablets. Also, as companies such as Apple position tablets as computers, and those like HP and Dell create 2-in-1 and convertible designs, there’s likely to be further user confusion.

Tablet-first users are functioning well with a broad collection of devices, so it seems unlikely that one single device will capture their hearts and fingers.

About this TUPdate

The analysis in this TUPdate is based on results drawn from multiple waves of TUP (Technology User Profile), including the 2018 edition which is TUP’s 36th continuous wave. This survey-based study details the use of technology products by a carefully-selected and weighted set of respondents drawn to represent online adults.

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April 11, 2019November 16, 2020

How central and vital are home PCs? [TUPdate]

Home PCs users are very active, yet they don’t only stay at home on their computers. They use a wide variety of other connected devices. The majority of home PC users (82% to 95%) also use a mobile phone. Of these, smartphones dominate. It may some surprise those steeped in technology that basic cell phones/feature phones persist in the hands of many – from 9% to 28% of home PC users.

These findings are based on results from our TUP/Technology User Profile 2018 survey, including 11,294 online adult home PC users.

Active home users

Home PC users spend more time with their home PCs than with other devices. In China, smartphone use us nearly at parity. Among home PC users in China, weekly hours using a PC are 33.2, only slightly more than the 32.5-hour average for smartphone use. By contrast, in the UK and Germany, home PC users spend nearly the same amount of time with their home PCs as do users in the other countries surveyed. However, in these countries, users spend far fewer hours with their smartphones. Across all countries surveyed, Tablets are a distant third place, being used for a third to a quarter as many hours as home PCs.

Looking ahead

I expect home PCs to continue as a solid staple among the majority of consumers. Although an increasing number of users are relying on their mobile phones for a growing range of regular activities, users prefer home PCs over smartphones or tablets for certain activities. Both thoughtful shopping and movie watching are helped with the clearer and larger images on bigger screens, such as those attached to traditional home desktops or integrated with all-in-one designs.

The biggest threat to home PCs usage is user’s willingness to shift their activities from one device type or ecosystem to another. Users are showing their growing acceptance of and demand for cross-platform applications while still expressing their incessant demands for convenience and simplicity. As users continue to increase their literacy and comfort with multiple ecosystems, and developers continue to streamline the multi-device/multi-OS experience, users will continue to follow the enticing cookies of compatibility through the forest of interoperability and may yet give up on their home PCs. Meanwhile, user inertia and habit are the greatest friends of the home PC.