Interest in Currently Available and Upcoming Handheld Electronics Reaching Broader Consumer Base

Interest in handheld electronics is increasing, as a larger number of available devices leads to increased consumer interest, reports In-Stat/MDR. An online survey of the high-tech market research firm’s Technology Adoption Panel (TAP) reaffirms this trend, showing consumer interest in currently available products as well as new ones.

While our survey included more male respondents, higher-end consumers, and early adopters than are found in the general public, many of the results were quite notable. Interest in mobile electronics, which was the primary focus of the survey, indicated that while consumers may currently own a product or express an interest in purchasing one in the near future, they have specific ideas about the features and components the devices should have.

• Of the respondents in the survey indicating they own an MP3 player, about 90% were over 35 years of age, suggesting that these products are attractive to a broad consumer age demographic.
• About 31% of the total respondents had downloaded music from the Internet, most using a broadband Internet connection. The percentage of those who had paid for it rose nearly 20% from 2003.
• 30% of the respondents indicated they were familiar or very familiar with handheld audio/video players. This may signify that marketing and media attention does influence product awareness, especially for new product categories.
• The majority of those owning PDAs indicated they owned a Palm OS-based device. However, the percentage of respondents owning PDAs fell about 10% since last year’s survey.

Table
of Contents

• Executive Summary
  
  
  


• Methodology
  
  
  


• Introduction
  
  
  


• Technology Adoption
  Panel (TAP) Survey
  
  
  
  
  
  • Overall Respondent
    Demographics (Base = 604)
    
    
  
  
  • Survey Results
    
    
    
    
    
    
    • Which of
      the Following Devices/Services do You Currently Own, or are
      You Interested in Buying?
      
      
    
    
    • MP3 Players
      
      
      
      
      
      
      • Who
        Owns an MP3 Player and What Type?
        
        
      
      
      • Do
        you use your HDD MP3 player for anything besides music?
        
        
        
      
      
      • Other
        Uses for MP3 Player Hard Drive
        
        
      
      
      • Who
        is the Manufacturer of Your MP3 Player?
        
        
      
      
      • How
        Much Memory Did the Player Come With?
        
        
      
      
      • Ideally,
        How Much Memory Would You Like Your MP3 Player to Have?
        
        
        
      
      
      • What
        Price are You Willing to Pay for an MP3 Player?
        
        
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • Online
      Music Services
      
      
      
      
      
      • Have
        you downloaded music from the Internet in the Past Year?
        
        
        
      
      
      • Who
        has Downloaded Music?
        
        
      
      
      • Have
        You Paid For Any of the Music You Downloaded?
        
        
      
      
      • Who
        Has Paid For Downloaded Music?
        
        
      
      
      • Which
        Music Services Have You Used?
        
        
      
      
      • What
        Did You Buy?
        
        
      
      
      • Approximately
        How Much Have You Spent on Online Music in the Last Year?
        
        
        
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • Handheld
      Audio/Video Players
      
      
      
      
      
      • Familiarity
        with Handheld A/V Players
        
        
      
      
      • Interest
        in Purchasing
        
        
      
      
      • What
        Capacity Hard Drive Should This Device Include?
        
        
      
      
      • Price
        Willing to Pay for Handheld A/V Player
        
        
      
      
      • Features
        Interested in Using on Handheld A/V Player
        
        
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • PDAs
      
      
      
      
      
      • PDA
        Ownership
        
        
      
      
      • Manufacturer
        of Your Current PDA
        
        
      
      
      • Features
        on Current PDA
        
        
      
      
      • How
        often do You Access the Internet with Your PDA?
        
        
      
      
      • Reasons
        for Accessing the Internet with a PDA
        
        
      
      
      • Features
        of Interest for Next PDA
        
        
      
      
      • Price
        Willing to Pay for Next PDA
        
        
      
      
      
      
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  

List
of Tables

• Table 1. Electronic
  Devices Currently Owned (Base = 604)
  
  


• Table 2. Demographics
  of Respondents By MP3 Player
  
  


• Table 3. Who is
  the Manufacturer of Your MP3 Player (Base = 116)
  
  


• Table 4. Demographic
  Information By Manufacturer
  
  


• Table 5. Ownership
  of a PDA and Interest in Purchasing One in the Next 12 Months
  
  


• Table 6. Features
  on Current PDA (Base = 310)
  
  


• Table 7. Frequency
  of Internet Access with PDA (Base = 310)

List
of Figures

• Figure 1. Total
  Survey Respondent Age Groups
  
  


• Figure 2. Total
  Survey Respondent Gender
  
  


• Figure 3. Total
  Survey Respondent Annual Household Income
  
  


• Figure 4. Age Demographics
  of Those Owning an MP3 Player (Base = 116)
  
  


• Figure 5. Type
  of MP3 Player Owned (Base=116)
  
  


• Figure 6. Do You
  Use Your HDD MP3 Player For Anything Besides Music (Base = 47)
  
  


• Figure 7. How Much
  Memory Did Your MP3 Player Come With? (Base= 116)
  
  


• Figure 8. What
  Type of MP3 Player Would You Buy? (Base = 205)
  
  


• Figure 9. How Much
  Capacity Would You Like Your MP3 Player to have? (Base = 205)
  
  


• Figure 10. Price
  Willing to Pay for MP3 Player: 2003 vs. 2004
  
  


• Figure 11. Have
  You Downloaded Music From the Internet? (Base = 604)
  
  


• Figure 12. Have
  You Paid For Any of Your Downloaded Music? (Base = 189)
  
  


• Figure 13. What
  Music Service Did You Use? (Base = 98)
  
  


• Figure 14. What
  Did You Buy?
  
  


• Figure 15. How
  Much Spent on Online Music? (Base = 98)
  
  


• Figure 16. Familiarity
  with Handheld A/V Players (Base = 604)
  
  


• Figure 17. Interest
  in Purchasing Handheld A/V Player (Base = 185)
  
  


• Figure 18. Capacity
  Hard Drive for Handheld A/V Player (Base = 87)
  
  


• Figure 19. Price
  Willing to Pay for Handheld A/V Player (Base = 87)
  
  


• Figure 20. Features
  Would Use on Handheld A/V Player (Base = 87)
  
  


• Figure 21. Ownership
  of a PDA 2004 vs. 2003