• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, October 8, 2014

A CNBC studysays 49% of 805 respondents “economize” to afford tech devices.  One area they cut spending on: food.

Those skimping the most are women between the age of 18 and 49 and people with incomes between $50,000 and $75,000. And10% have reduced spending on health care in order to afford technology.

Ailing citizens are not sharp citizens. They may have better smartphones, but fuzzy decision-making when it comes to those mobile ads.

Now put those consumers behind the wheel. Another report says people are getting more distracted while driving in cars, now from “hands-free” software in automobiles.

The problem? Some car brands' technology doesn't work so well, with voice-activated systems playing a key role in causing distraction. So road rage takes another ugly turn -- inside the car. Keeping hands on the wheel is the objective, but tech systems can take minds off the roads.

The question is whether marketers can find enough time between the distractions to get messages through.

Still, media business owners should be happy with some of those survey results. According to the CNBC study, seniors were the most committed to paying their cable bills.

And for younger people? Gee, do I really need to tell you what bills they’ll pay first -- or how much distraction they’ll endure? Stomach growls might be preferable to going without their mobile devices.