Pew Internet Study: Half of U.S. Not into “Modern Gadgetry”
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Written By Kate Zimmermann | May 7, 2007 | Share This
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The Pew Internet & American Life Project has released a new study on technology adoption in the United States. The most significant statistic is that “49% of Americans only occassionaly use modern gadgetry and many others bristle at electronic connectivity.” 31% of American adults are “elite tech users” and the remaining 20% are “middle of the road tech users”. The Pew broke respondents into demographics ranging from “Omnivores”, who voraciously consume internet tech, to “Off the Network” folks, who live with neither cell phones nor the internet. Not surprisingly, the first group tends to be males in their twenties and thirties, while the latter group is dominated by the elderly.
Though 49% seems like a big portion of the U.S., only 15% of those are “Off the Network” - a number down from 35% 10 years ago (as reported by Alec Saunders). Most respondents express either disinterest or frustration with internet/mobile devices - 79% either fully or somewhat agreed with the statement, “I often feel like my electronic devices can do more than what I actually use them for”, while 42% claimed, “I often feel annoyed by having to respond to intrusions from my electronic devices.” Despite this apparent lackluster adoption, 67% admit that they “like having so much information available”.
Greg Sterling has a comprehensive run-down of the study, or you can download the PDF directly here: A Typology of Information and Communication Technology Users.
Topics: Media Convergence, Technology |