Summary: Who Uses Mobile Media Devices?

Survey Results Main Page | DPA Tablet Research Project

Two-thirds of U.S. adults use at least one mobile media device in their daily lives. Roger Fidler’s recent research aims to answer questions about this use: what people are the most likely to consume news on a mobile device, and what devices do they use?

 Devices:

• More than half of adults surveyed use a smartphone daily, and smartphone users make up 85% of all mobile media device users.
• The most popular device category after smartphones is large media tablets, and the overwhelming majority of device owners in this category (88%) use an Apple iPad.
• Other categories that mobile media device users listed were small media tablets (8% of respondents, with the most popular the Amazon Kindle Fire,) e-readers (13%, led by the Amazon Kindle,) and other mobile devices (21%, including Apple iPods.)

Users aren’t limited to only owning one mobile media device, and nearly 70% of users routinely used two or more mobile media devices.

• Smartphone users are the most likely to own two devices, with 60% using at least one other mobile media device.
• Large media tablet owners tend to favor Apple; not only do the majority own an iPad, but 51% of owners also use an iPhone.
• Apple iPhone users are more likely than other smartphone owners to own multiple mobile media devices.

While gender still plays a part in mobile media device ownership, the gap between men and women differs significantly between categories.

• Men make up over 60% of smartphone users, and are almost twice as likely as women to own a large media tablet.
• Women are slightly more likely than men to own small media tablets and e-readers.

Age is still significantly correlated to mobile media device use.

• Individuals between the ages of 18 and 34 make up almost half of mobile media device users.
• Almost 93% of 18-34 year olds who are mobile media device users own a smartphone.
• More than half of non-mobile devices users are 55 or older.
• While the 35-54 age group is fairly evenly split between users and non-users, those who are mobile media device users tend to own more devices than users in other age groups.

Mobile media device users tend to have a higher income than non-users.

• Among all respondents who indicated they had an annual household income of $75,000 or more, 81% were mobile device users.
• Smartphones are popular with both sides of the income bracket, with those who earn less than $75,000 making up just over half of users.
  • Brand difference between income brackets was much more pronounced. While over half of smartphone users making more than $75,000 owned an Apple iPhone, more than half of users who made less than $75,000 owned an Android-powered device.
  • Those with an annual household income of over $75,000 were more likely to own both large and small media tablets.

Mobile media device users include a significantly higher percentage of individuals with university degrees than non-users of mobile media devices.

• Education level, similarly to income, correlated with different brand use. Almost half of those without degrees owned an Android-powered phone, while almost half of users with degrees chose the Apple iPhone.
• Those with college degrees were also much more likely to use an Apple iPad than an Android media tablet.