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Smartphones overtake TV

A new poll by Insights West indicates that two-thirds of British Columbians,  66 per cent say their smartphone plays a "very important" part in their lives, that is a significant jump from a similar survey conducted in 2014.

The new poll also includes an alarming number of owners, 21 per cent, who are self-admitted smartphone addicts.

The survey examines smartphone behaviours and attitudes and looks at the impact of these devices on traditional media consumption.

Time spent on smartphones now surpasses that spent on any other device, including TV, which has declined dramatically over the past four years (-21 per cent) from an average weekly usage of 14.2 hours down to 11.2 hours. The 16.5 hours a week spent on smartphones also exceeds the time spent on laptops (10.7 hours), desktop computers (9.3 hours) and iPads/tablets (4.2 hours).

Reading news online from a source like Castanet has jumped 38 per cent from 2014 and 68 per cent for users who read news online at least once a week.

Significant differences from the 2014 poll also indicate an increased number of those that describe their smartphones as being “very important” in their lives, up to 45 per cent from 38 per cent in 2014.



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