Tablet adoption has been one of the most striking phenomenon of the past 30 months. As pointed out in a recent article, tablet market will probably overtake notebook market this year, 3 years only after the launch of the first iPad. But do we really know how they are used by consumers? For Mobile World Congress 2013, we gathered 15 keywords and figures to better understand tablet usage, with a Slideshare presentation and some additional comments below.
#1 HOME: 70% of consumer’s time spent with tablets occurs at home (1)
It looks like tablet is not so much of a mobile device after all. The recent succes of iPad mini or Nexus 7′ has nevertheless shown that there is room for real mobile usage on smaller screen devices.
#2 PLAYING: 70% of U.S. tablet owners use their device to play games (2)
No real surprise here if we keep in mind that Angry Bird Space HD was the #1 paid application on iPad for 2012.
#3 TV FRIENDLY: 85% of tablet owners use their devices while in front of the television (3)
It seems that this is here to stay as 26% of Americans say they have this simulteneous use several times a day.
#4 MULTI-TASKING: 40% of Hong Kong tablet owners use them while eating meal (4)
Every tablet owner has most probably already experienced such multi-tasking activities! The same research has shown that 70% are in agreement that they often use their tablet for more time than they originally intended to.
#5 MULTI-EQUIPPED: 20% of US smartphone users own a tablet (2)
In the top 5 European countries this figure is 15,5%, but growing rapidly.
#6 MULTIPLE SCREENS: 62% of global mobile data users now use multiple screens (5)
In their excellent Inspiration Issue Yearbook In Mobi notice that as for smartphones, “multi-tasking while using a tablet is now considered normal”.
#7 VIDEO: 58 billion hours of videos to be seen by U.S. tablet users on their devices in 2017 (6)
This is the equivalent of 10% of all current TV, video, and OTT (Over The Top) consumption.
#8 BOOKS: 60% of U.S. tablet owners read books on their device (2)
This figure is particularly higher in the US than in other countries with similar penetration rates on tablets, where the offer of ebooks in domestic languages remains much smaller.
#9 BANKING: 44% of U.S. tablet owners access their bank account from their device (2)
36% also access their credit card through their tablet.
#10 MUSIC: 50% of U.S. tablet owners Listen to music on their device (2)
Unfortunately the results do not make any distinction between streaming usage and embedded music. Considering the limited storage capacity of entry-level tablets, this might explain this lukewarm figure.
#11 PRIME TIME: 13,9 hours spent per week by U.S. tablet users, more frequently at night from 7pm to 10pm (1)
The big question here is: what’s on the second screen? The answers are: email checking, social media activity and search related to products advertized.
#12 NEWS: 40% of U.S. tablet owners read newspapers and magazines on their device (2)
Similar research indicates that 30% of tablet users actually spend more time reading news compared to before purchasing the tablet.
#13 SHOPPING: 39% of U.S. tablet owners use heir device to buy physical goods (2)
As ABI Research points out “Tablets are quickly becoming the go-to transaction screen within the home”.
#14 SOCIAL: 67% of U.S. tablet owners use their device to access social networks (2)
Here again, no real surprise as Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter are among the top 10 iPad applications for 2012..
#15 SPENDING: 22% of U.S. tablet owners spend $50 or more per month from their device (7)
In the same study, 9% say they spend $100 or more, a “much higher than spending levels observed by smartphone owners” says ABI Research.
If you want to share more insights on tablet usage, please feel free to contact me. You might also take a look at our related article: “10 amazing mobile figures“.
(1) source Nielsen – USA, (2) source comScore – USA, (3) source Forrester Research – USA, (4) source GfK iPanel – Hong Kong, (5) source In Mobi, (6) source TDG Consumer Research – USA, (7) source ABI Research – USA