• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, October 26, 2005

People who go online via wireless connections are more likely than their plugged-in counterparts to purchase high-tech items, like MP3s, flat-panel televisions, and portable gaming devices, according to a new study by Ipsos Insight.

The findings, based on an online survey of 1,044 people conducted in August, suggest that marketers of high-tech products would do well to target wireless Web users. "'Wireless Webbers' are significantly more likely than those relying on wired broadband or dial-up access to own and use digital content, products and services, making them a powerfully concentrated ad target," stated the study.

Almost half--47 percent--of those who accessed the Internet through a wireless connection said they had digital cable TV, compared to 40 percent of wired broadband users and 21 percent of dial-up users. Similarly, 30 percent of the wireless group had digital video recorders, compared to 22 percent of broadband users and 12 percent of dial-up connectors.

Twenty-eight percent of the wireless connectors said they planned to purchase a flat-panel TV within the next six months, compared to 17 percent of dial-up users and 17 percent of plugged-in broadband users.