• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, November 27, 2012

According to the JiWire Q3 Mobile Audience Insights Report, examining consumers’ increased comfort of purchasing on their mobile devices, 85% of on-the-go shoppers will use their mobile device while in-store, and 66% are willing to spend at least $50 when making a purchase from their mobile device.

Additional significant finding in the study show that 81.3% of public Wi-Fi is from free hotspots in the US, a 19% increase from last quarter; Hispanics are 36% more likely to engage on their mobile device while in-store than the general population; and 65% of smartphone owners also own a tablet.

Not only are more people shopping, purchasing, and making larger purchases with their mobile device, says the report, but the “show rooming” effect of comparison shopping on a mobile device while in-store has increased:

• People purchasing on their device while in-store rose 27% compared to last year.
• 66% of consumers are willing to spend $50 or more when purchasing from their mobile device. This compares to 53% in Q3 of 2011, an increase of 25% year over year
• 86% of consumers are more comfortable making purchases from their mobile device, up 26% from 2011

Free Wi-Fi connectivity by consumers continues to grow and dominate the U.S. market, while simultaneously attracting more smartphone and tablet owners to connect. 56% of all public Wi-Fi usage was represented by smartphones (40%) and tablets (16%).

The study tapped into a new, unexplored area of mobile usage by Hispanics, who are increasingly becoming a mobile-savvy audience, says the report. Data points about the mobile habits of Hispanics include:

• Hispanics are 36% more likely to engage on their mobile device while shopping in-store than the general audience
• 52% of Hispanics comparison shop on their mobile devices while in-store, compared with 39% of the general audience
• Hispanics are 83% more likely to search for product information or share shopping updates than the general audience

David Staas, interim CEO at JiWire, says “... smartphones and tablets are becoming mainstream personal shopping devices... understanding where people engage and how different audiences engage is... important for marketers to be successful in mobile... ”

The study also discovered that tablet adoption is rapidly increasing, with 65% of on-the-go consumers who own a smartphone also owning a tablet. Other findings include:

• 44% of non-laptop Wi-Fi connections at universities come from tablets while 39% of non-laptop Wi-Fi connections at hotels come from tablets
• Tablets represent about 20% of Wi-Fi connections within malls, libraries and cafes
• 68% of tablet owners use their devices for travel information, 56% for entertainment, and 52% for shopping and retail.

There are significant differences in activity across retail categories, says the report. Shoppers are 63% and 144% more likely to engage on their mobile devices while at big box retailers than at electronic retailers and clothing retailers respectively. And mobile consumers are active on their mobile devices while traveling: Hotels and airports saw averages of 47 and 37 ad requests per user, respectively.

For the complete PDF report, please visit JiWire here.