Is a tablet on your Christmas wish list? Some new research suggests that very few of us actually go out and buy our own tablets, instead relying on the generosity of family and friends.
According to Analysys Mason, 43 per cent of respondents to a survey of 43,000 tablet users in 17 countries did not originally buy the tablet that they used. In fact, 39 per cent of tablets were acquired from family members or friends who had either given the device as a gift or lent it to the respondent.
"This partly explains the under-use of 3G/4G on tablets, because people are more likely to receive non-cellular tablets as gifts," observed Ronan de Renesse, principal analyst at Analysys Mason. "Our survey shows that less than 10 per cent of tablet respondents in the UK and the USA use cellular networks to connect their tablet, highlighting simultaneously the opportunity and the challenge that this market represents for operators."
The survey also found that while 47 per cent of respondents had a tablet with cellular connectivity, only half of them actually used that capability. This is attributed to the fact that Wi-Fi satisfies the connectivity needs of most tablet users, while the price of mobile connectivity is not declining as fast as the average retail price of the devices themselves.
For more:
- see this report
Related Articles:
Deloitte: Two-thirds of U.S. consumers prefer Wi-Fi over cellular
Report: BYOD to drive use of consumer-owned devices at work to 1B
European Commission allows use of 3G and LTE devices on flights