Battle of the Sexes: Merry Mobile Activities

I’ve been making a list, checking it twice, storing it in my mobile device…and clearly singing as I do so. Nearly 3 in 10 (29.7%) Mobile Users say they do the same—minus the singing. However, according to Prosper Mobile Insights™, the most popular merry mobile activity among smartphone and tablet users is taking pictures (85.0%), so get ready for all the Instagram notifications! The majority also plan to check the weather and keep in touch with loved ones they won’t get to see for the holidays, thanks to mobile making it so easy to share every holiday moment with those near and far.

Top mobile holiday activities are similar across genders, and there really isn’t much of a battle between men and women when it comes to spreading holiday cheer via technology. Women win the title of “Cheermeister” on nearly all mobile activities analyzed. From sharing holiday experiences through social media, to looking for holiday recipes and even purchasing products, Female Mobile Users appear more likely than their male counterparts to get merry with mobile this year:

Click here to access the complimentary Mobile InsightCenter™ and see all of the holiday mobile activities!

Women are also much more prone than men to use their smartphones and tablets for discovering new decorating ideas, keeping track of upcoming holiday events (thank you Google calendar for reminding me where I need to be all the time!) and keeping gift lists. If you are like me, that gift list doesn’t just say “shirt for brother” – it lists the brand, color, size, special fit and perhaps even a photo so you can just show a store associate and quickly locate what you need.

Speaking of shopping…searching for gifts, stores and deals is another hot holiday activity to accomplish via mobile among both men and women, along with purchasing products. To find out more about how Mobile Users prefer to make mobile purchases, be sure to check out our latest release: Browsers/Apps More Popular than Swipe/Tap Method for Mobile Holiday Purchasing, according to Prosper Mobile Insights™

Source: Prosper Mobile Insights™ Mobile Survey, NOV-12, N=333

© 2012, Prosper®

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Mobile Users Speak: Unlimited Data vs. Giga-budgeting

Does your data run low? Do you guard it on the go? Do you track it with an app or budget like a pro?

Conveniently fitting my rhyme, nearly half of Mobile Users would simply say “No!”

47.2% admit they do not actively track their data usage (50% of Verizon customers and 43.7% of AT&T customers say the same). For those Mobile Users who do watch how much data they use to post social updates, check their email, listen to music and “draw something” for friends, the top activity to manage data is an upgrade! Other consumers with tighter wallets turn off data throughout the day, budget data usage and cut out certain activities that use up too many gigs:

1 in 10 Verizon customers also download an app to watch how close they come to their data limit. 8.7% of AT&T customers say they have switched providers to increase their available data.

It’s clear Mobile Users don’t want wireless companies to do away with unlimited data plans: 80.4% would rather pay a flat rate for data each month, regardless of how much they use while 19.6% prefer to pay per GB used. (I fall into that 1 in 5…paying for 4 GB of data each month and using about 0.5 GB is a little disheartening.)

At the moment, the majority of Mobile Users (66.9%) say they have unlimited data plans. More Mobile Users on Team Verizon (72.4%) have these unrestricted plans while 52.4% of AT&T customers say the same.

Concern over data usage certainly isn’t stopping mobile users from browsing the web on their smartphones or tablets. Most prefer to use their device to access Google and Facebook while others say they ONLY use their device to access email or conduct a browser search—no need for a laptop or desktop for these mobile-savvy consumers!

Source: Prosper Mobile Insights™ Mobile Survey, July 2012, N = 326

© 2012, Prosper®