Despite the rise of mobile phones across almost every demographic of UK society, it seems the number of children who own their own handset is going down.
A new report from Ofcom reveals that the number of 5 to 15-year-olds who own a mobile phone has fallen from 49% in 2012 to 43% in 2013. The reason? They’re rejecting basic ‘feature phones’ and getting their parents to buy them tablets instead, with uptake this year tripling – up to 42% from 14% in 2012.
More specifically, the percentage of younger children (8-11) who own a basic feature phone rather than a smartphone fell to 15% this year, from 28% last year. Of this age group, 18% own a smartphone, and the same proportion own a tablet, with ownership growning four-fold since 2012.
Among slightly older children, smartphones still remain more widely used than tablets with roughly 62% of 12 to 15-year-olds owning a smartphone, with 26% now possessing a tablet, up from 7% last year. A little more than a quarter of infants aged 3-4 now use a tablet at home.
You can read the full report here.
➤ Ofcom: Children & Parents, Media Use and Attitudes Report
