Picking the right mobile phone can take a bit of time, and research conducted here at Uswitch has revealed just how much time people take.
Men take around 8 days picking a mobile phone, two days more than women who spend around 5.5 days finding the right handset. One in four women take no time at all and pick the first phone they find.
Our research also found that younger people tend to take more time deliberating their next handset purchase. Consumers in the over-55 bracket have a phone picked within 5 days while the younger generation are still mulling it over for seven days and 19 hours.
Battery life and 5G were two important features that came up when looking for a new phone. A longer-lasting battery was the number one feature, needed by 27% of people who were looking to upgrade their existing phone. While 13% were more interested in upgrading to a 5G enabled device, and 12% just wanted more storage space.
As 5G becomes increasingly available, interest grows too. Currently 10% of the consumers surveyed said they have a 5G phone, and 16% plan to upgrade to 5G this year. That means up to 13 million people could be connected to 5G by the end of the year.
These figures are especially interesting when compared to the amount of time men and women spend making another important life decision - choosing somewhere to live.
We discovered that 49% of renters spend more time picking a mobile phone than they would finding a place to rent. People finding a home to live in with a partner or friends took an average of six days and seven hours finding a property and six days and seventeen hours picking the perfect phone.
This suggests that some people have more difficulty picking the ideal mobile phone than they do picking a place to call home. With so many handsets, brands and features to choose from, it’s easy to see why people may get a but lost picking the right phone. That’s why we’ve created a useful Handset League Table tool to help consumers filter out what they need from their next phone, and what the best options then are.
Need help picking a phone? Our handset league table is here to help
Ru Bhikha, one of our telecoms experts here at Uswitch.com, said: “Choosing a new mobile phone is not something that men take lightly, spending two days longer than women picking their next device.
“However, when it comes to choosing a place to live, men are more cavalier, taking half a day less time than women to pick a home to rent.
“The fact that some people put more thought into choosing a phone than their home shows just how important these devices are to us. And with top-tier smartphones costing over a grand, it is right that people are taking their time in deciding which offers the best value for money.
“Getting a longer-lasting battery and 5G are two of the most important things to consumers when they look to upgrade their phones, with more than seven million people saying they plan to get a 5G phone this year.
“Remember that upgrading to a 5G phone doesn’t guarantee you 5G speeds, so check coverage maps for your area or talk to your provider before making the commitment.”
