America, a nation obsessed with tech

Tech lovers used to be dubbed geeks and nerds. According to a new report, we're all geeks and nerds now.

Young, old, single, married--they're all online, using PCs, watching digital TV, and chatting on cell phones, according to a report published Wednesday by Forrester Research. Looking at American consumers by "life stage," Forrester examined the devices people own, what technology they buy, how they use the Internet, and how they set up their digital homes.

(Credit: Forrester Research)

Singles under 40 and couples under 40 sans children are well-connected to the Web, noted the report, with 87 percent of them frequently online, both for personal and work reasons. They're also apt to venture online in locations beyond home or work, with 55 percent of them more likely than the overall average adult to access the Web on their phones.

Among parents under 40 with kids under 18, 88 percent of them regularly use the Internet. They also buy devices for the whole family, such as Blu-ray players, digital camcorders, digital video recorders, and game consoles. In this group, 86 percent own a cell phone that's likely to offer music or video playback.

For parents over 40 with kids under 18, 84 percent of them are online, typically splitting their Internet use between work and home. Two in three of these families have broadband, the most of any group surveyed by Forrester. They also love their personal gadgets, owning the most PCs, laptops, MP3 players, and GPS devices of all the groups.

Among singles over 40 and couples over 40 sans kids in the house, 70 percent are online and gravitate toward services that directly benefit them, such as online shopping. The report found that consumers in this group spent more money online over the past three months than any other group.

Across all technologies, HDTV grew the faster in 2008, discovered Forrester, with almost 10 million new households buying a high-definition TV. The second most popular technology was the home network. Forrester predicts that these two technologies will continue to grow at a record pace over the next five years.

(Credit: Forrester Research)

The venerable PC continues to shine, with the average family owning two or more computers. The under-40 singles and couples are also more likely than other groups to own a laptop.

(Credit: Forrester Research)

More than five in six of all homes own a cell phone, with families with parents under 40 leading the way with 93 percent adoption. Among families with parents over 40, 57 percent have at least three mobile phones.

Forrester's report is based on an annual survey sent to consumers by mail. The company said it received 48,412 completed questionnaires in the U.S. this year.

[shycelticwitch]

Hmmmm anyone else besides myself wondering what will happen to this "technical" society if forces beyond our control render our microwaves useless? I don't worry about what will happen to me, my trade doesn't require a computer to practice it, just creativity. I can still create without modern technology. I also have studied and practiced growing my own food, and have designed a simple single unit device for producing solar AND wind power that will provide enough energy for a 1000 sq ft dwelling.

Nobody knows when (not if) our technological dependence will be tested, but if it's tomorrow, I'm ready! Are you?

[aj37viggen]

...and you can gnaw this simple single-unit device out of free-range wood, right? No, you can't.

An infrastructure-dependent society is a reality; notions of self-sufficiency at anything above the subsistence level are just smugly elitist fantasy.

It's a good thing all age groups are getting interested in tech, because making it work is the only way for society to survive in anything like its present form.

[aeisha1]

what does microwaves got to do this study?

[WinNoMo]

I almost gave up on technology completely. I got so fed up with all the glitches and hidden costs. But I soon realized I really had no choice. There is no escaping technology these days. Well, not unless you want to join a commune or something. I have made a few changes and things are getting better. All I can say is there are alternative technologies that are less painful to use.

[chonnom]

I'd be more impressed if our tech wasn't 10years behind Japan and South Korea.

[Lerianis3]

Ah, but we are only that far behind them because they are SMALL countries and most of the big advancements are happening over there or are tested over there first because they are small countries.

[SergeM256]

They are not small countries, Japan+South Korea would be about half of the US in population.

[dadsgravy]

Hey, I'm that fifth person on the mobile list. Can't stand cell/mobile phones(what ever you call them). But I have everything else tech related. Just don't like the phone. Mobile or stay put. Think that says something about me. But what... Hmmm... bet I can guess.

[EvanSei]

I love tech. I have all sorts of different gadgets I am 16 by the way (big surprise) but I also know a guy in his late 70's who just bought a brand new top of the line HP desktop a new cell phone, and has 2 large HD flat panel T.V.'s (thats surprising isn't it)

[Lerianis3]

I can believe that even the 'jocks' are becoming nerds now. I was talking with a football player at our local college recently about building computers..... he knew more about it than I did in some ways, and he is nowhere near being the stereotypical 'nerd'.