In order to learn more about its customers, a new survey commissioned by Cisco’s Home Networking business unit took a look at how U.S. households are using their home wireless networks. So what do people do once they’re connected wirelessly? Pretty much the same as they do when wired, with 92 percent saying they mostly surfed the Internet and exchanged emails. It’s the next tier of activities that’s interesting: 67 percent reported they regularly download video and music.
The fact that over half of home wireless network users commonly use them to acquire entertainment is reflected in the data on what kind of devices people connect to their network. The most popular of these is game consoles, which at 66 percent of households connecting them to their network demonstrates console’s growing importance as a gateway for digital content and entertainment to enter the home environment. Smartphones are next, at 41 percent, with wireless printers at 36 percent.
“The Home Wireless Usage survey validates that consumers are now embracing a wireless connected lifestyle for the entire family,” said Brett Wingo, general manager, Cisco Home Networking business unit.
Unsurprisingly, these households use their networks frequently. Of those adults surveyed, 62 percent said they use wireless devices connected to the Internet seven days a week, while 71 percent said they use them between five and seven days a week. Children used the network too, with parents estimating 46 percent of the children in these households using wireless devices at home every day of the week, while 54 percent reported they used them between five and seven days a week.
The Home Wireless Usage survey was conducted by Opinion Research for Cisco’s Home Networking business unit.
Photo by flickr user David Jones, used under Creative Commons license.
