Top Uses For Computer And Smartphone Are Device Sensitive

by Jack Loechner, Jan 18, 2013, 6:15 AM

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According to The Harris Poll in November 2012 there are both divergences and similarities in actions performed by smartphone owners using both the phone and the computer. When smartphone owners are asked which of a set of actions (common to both devices) they regularly perform on a smartphone and/or on a computer, the IM, or instant message is the most common smartphone use (87%) and the least common use for a computer (20%).

In contrast, emails are the top use for computers, with 90% for all email uses combined. Email is still a highly utilized feature on smartphones (72% combined), though reading emails (67% personal, 38% work) outpaces actually writing emails (56% personal, 32% work) on smartphones.

Smartphone owners also appear to favor computers for researching goods and services (3^rd most reported activity vs. 8^th for smartphone use) and purchasing products or services such as clothing and holiday gifts (4^th vs. 12^th). In contrast, mapping/navigation is among the top uses for smartphones (73% / 2^nd), but only a mid-tier use for computers (56% / 7^th).

Despite the many differences between smartphone and computer use, combined social media interactions make for the 5^th most frequent use for both a smartphone and a computer. In both cases, reading posts (56% smartphone, 62% computer) is the top activity, followed by sharing  and writing. A similar percentage use their smartphones to "check in" (43%), while far fewer do so on computers (28%).

Media and Communication Actions Regularly Performed on Computer and Smartphone(% of Respondents; Smartphone and Computer; Base: Smartphone users)
Using a Computer		Using a Smartphone
Email [NET]	90%	Send or receive text or instant messages	87%
Send personal emails	84	Mapping, navigation, etc.	73
Read personal emails	82	Email [NET]	72
Send work emails	60	Read personal emails	67
Read work emails	59	Send personal emails	56
Take surveys	86	Read work emails	38
Research goods or services	81	Send work emails	32
Purchase other products or services (e.g. clothes holiday gifts, etc.)	78	Download free applications, music or videos	66
Social Media [NET]	69	Social Media [NET]	64
Read social media posts on sites or apps such as Facebook or Twitter	62	Read social media posts on sites or apps such as Facebook or Twitter	56
Share social media posts (e.g. news, jokes, pictures, etc.)	51	Share social media posts (e.g. news, jokes, pictures, etc.)	44
Write social media posts	50	"Check in" via social media	43
"Check in" via social media	28	Write social media posts	43
Find or research restaurants	61	Play games	56
Mapping, navigation, etc.	56	Find or research restaurants	53
Play games	52	Research goods or services	45
Download free applications, music or videos	38	Purchase applications, music or videos	42
Purchase applications, music or videos	37	Take surveys	24
Video chat (e.g. FaceTime, Skype, etc.)	35	Video chat (FaceTime, Skype, etc.)	23
Send or receive text or instant messages	20	Purchase other products or services (e.g. clothes, holiday gifts, etc.)	23
Source: Harris Interactive, January 2012 ( Multiple responses allowed)

Smartphone owners with children in their household are significantly more likely than those without to indicate using smartphones for most of the activities tested, including mapping/navigation uses, downloading free applications, music or videos, combined social media use, playing games, researching goods or services, and many others.

Actions Regularly Performed Using A Smartphone (by Children in HH; Base: Smartphone users)
	Total Smartphone Users	Smartphone Users With Children <18 In HH	Smartphone Users Without Children <18 In HH
Send or receive text or instant messages	87%	89%	86%
Mapping, navigation, etc.	73	79	68
Email [NET]	72	76	69
Read personal emails	67	71	64
Send personal emails	56	60	53
Read work emails	38	44	34
Send work emails	32	37	29
Download free applications, music or videos	66	72	62
Social Media [NET]	64	72	59
Read social media posts on sites or apps such as Facebook or Twitter	56	63	51
Share social media posts (e.g. news, jokes, pictures, etc.)	44	51	40
"Check in" via social media	43	53	36
Write social media posts	43	51	37
Play games	56	62	52
Find or research restaurants	53	56	50
Research goods or services	45	54	39
Purchase applications, music or videos	42	50	36
Take surveys	24	31	19
Video chat (FaceTime, Skype, etc.)	23	28	19
Purchase other products or services (e.g. clothes, holiday gifts, etc.)	23	30	17
Source: Harris Interactive, January 2012 ( Multiple responses allowed)

The report concludes by noting that understanding what smartphones are used for is an integral part of designing a successful device. The prevalence of text messaging calls for a well designed keyboard interface. Similarly, smartphone users' reliance on their devices for mapping and navigation services calls for either a well designed mapping interface. As reliance on these devices continues to grow both data plans and entire data networks may be affected in any number of ways.

For additional information from Harris Interactive, please visit here.

 

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1 comment on "Top Uses For Computer And Smartphone Are Device Sensitive".

1. Boz Boschen from Capital One
   

   commented on: January 18, 2013 at 3:48 p.m.
   The citation is from January 2012 on the data charts. I'm assuming you got the year wrong.

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