15 mobile device statistics you had no idea about

15 mobile device statistics you had no idea about

A lot has changed since Martin Cooper, the inventor of the mobile phone, made the first cellular call in 1973. Users now not only use phones for telephone communication, but use smartphones for media, research, shopping and, recently, even virtual reality. With the adoption of voice features, smartphones are also becoming our personal assistants.

Here is an overview of interesting statistics from the mobile market.

1. In 2018, the number of smartphone users worldwide exceeded 3 billion, with the Asia-Pacific region accounting for more than half of that number.

2. More than four decades after the introduction of the first mobile phone, almost every developed country surveyed has at least 90% mobile phone ownership.

3. Of the 3.75 billion internet users worldwide in 2019, approx. 85% use a mobile phone to connect to the internet.

4. Users spend an average of 69% of their media time using smartphones.

5. Mobile video advertising spending in the US is projected to nearly double, from approx. USD 16 billion this year to almost USD 25 billion in 2022.

6. By 2023, the number of 5G connections is expected to exceed 370 million, generating USD 88 billion in revenue from fees charged by operators.

7. Currently, 20% of smartphone owners use voice assistants. Apple's Siri remains the most widely used voice assistant on smartphones, but Google Assistant is quickly catching up.

Key mobile device statistics in numbers

8. Only 31% of consumers used mobile payments in-store in 2018. Security concerns and a lack of visible benefits are cited as the two main reasons why users do not opt for this type of payment.

9. One third of surveyed consumers used a mobile AR (Augmented Reality) app. These consumers appear active and engaged, and more than half admit to using mobile AR apps at least once a week. By far the largest app category in this technology is games.

10. Mobile AR users also rate the experience as satisfactory.

11. Gartner estimates that the so-called Internet of Things will grow to more than 20 billion connections by 2020.

12. In 2017, consumers worldwide downloaded 178.1 billion mobile apps. By 2022, this figure is forecast to rise to 258.2 billion app downloads.

13. The 2018 holiday shopping season (from November to December 2018) was the first when smartphones accounted for more than half (51.4%) of all online store visits. In addition, during this period 31% of online sales took place via smartphones, representing a 24% year-over-year increase.

14. Brands now spend almost two thirds of their digital advertising budgets on mobile devices.

15. The mobile artificial intelligence market is expected to reach USD 17.23 billion by 2023, up from USD 5.11 billion in 2018. This growth can be attributed to growing demand for processors used with artificial intelligence, the rise of cognitive computing and the growing number of AI-enabled apps.

Summary

The article gathers 15 statistics showing just how enormous an impact mobile devices have on everyday life. More than 3 billion people use smartphones, and users devote 69% of their media time to them. At the same time, only 31% of consumers opt for mobile payments in stores, mainly due to security concerns. It is also worth noting that the first such situation in history was the 2018 holiday season, when smartphones accounted for more than half of online store visits.

Forecasts point to further growth in 5G, the Internet of Things and mobile artificial intelligence, which is set to reach a value of USD 17.23 billion by 2023. Brands already allocate almost two thirds of their digital budgets to mobile advertising.