Over 90% of the population owns a smartphone, according to Deloitte Australia. That’s almost 24 million people! Another report says we spend an average of five hours a day on our phone.
And while they let us connect to loved ones and capture memories, there’s also some downsides to our phone addiction. This includes weakening your cognitive abilities, inhibiting your ability to regulate attention and can cause posture issues.
Let’s look deeper into some key smartphone statistics from around Australia.
Key Smartphone Statistics Australia in 2024
- Over half of all smartphones are Apple at 60.9% and around a quarter are Samsung at 25.3%.
- 27% of Aussies are already using 5G, with 44% of people planning to switch this year.
- Over one third of Aussies (35%) now have a pre-paid mobile phone plan
- 23.7% of us have purchased a phone plan online.
- The smartphone market is expected to decline by 1.3% in 2023 due to high inflation and low consumer confidence.
A nation addicted
- Gen Z spends an average of 7.3 hours a day on their phone
- Gen X and Millennials spend around 6
- The baby boomers bring down the national average with with 3 hours a day
- One third of Aussies sleep with their phone in the bed.
- 25% check their phone within 10 minutes of waking up.
- 40% of people take their phones to the toilet
Smartphone use is growing
- The smartphone market grew by 2 million users in the past 5 years.
- There’s expected to be another 1 million users joining them by 2025.
Kids and smartphones
- 68% of kids aged from 3 – 17 own a smartphone and collectively use them for almost a whole day each week (21 hours and 48 minutes)
- Usage is spread across shooting video, taking photos and playing games
- The average age kids are getting a phone is 12
- 10-year old’s are on their phone almost 15 hours a week and this increases to 26+ by the time they hit 17.
Negative effects of excessive phone use
- Blue light from our phones can cause early macular degeneration due to the strain it places on our eyes.
- Some studies have made the link of excessive radiation to cancer. There’s been claims in can increase your chances of cancer by up to 50%
- Sleep disorders are on the rise and have been linked to excessive mobile phone usage.
What about the positives?
- They help us feel connected and safe. 80% of Australians feel secure when they have their phone on them
- During the pandemic we were able to video call loved ones when the nation was in lockdown.
Key takeaway
Smartphones have become an essential part of our lives, connecting us to our loved ones and the modern world.
However, the data points to some alarming trends around our reliance on smartphones which we’d do well to keep in mind.
Sources:
- https://whatphone.com.au/sim-only-byo-plans/best-prepaid-plans/
- https://www.deloitte.com/au/en/services/economics/perspectives/mobile-nation.html
- https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prAP50441823
- https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/australians-are-bringing-their-own-phone-to-new-mobile-plans
- https://www.reviews.org/au/mobile/aussie-screentime-in-a-lifetime/
- https://www.sleepsociety.com.au/blog/australian-smartphone-statistics
- https://aifs.gov.au/resources/short-articles/too-much-time-screens
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6288536/
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