Have you ever wondered how long you could go without your phone? How about how long could you go without a TV? A survey of around 2,000 British people commissioned by Tesco Mobile tried to find out, and the findings were quite surprising to say the least.
First, the study found out how necessary the Internet is to people’s general lifestyle. With all that said and now out of the question, it’s important to note that about 71% of people who answered this survey said they couldn’t get through life if they had to stay off the internet for an extended period of time.
56% said they would be very likely to stop communicating with as many people if they no longer had their phone with them. On average, people could spend about 5 hours and 11 minutes away from their phones, while they could only spend about 3 hours away from a laptop.
It might seem like people are dealing with crippling smartphone addictions, but despite that being the case, there are some clear signs that there’s more to it than that. First, 56% of people said their phones make them more social than they might otherwise be, and 57% said their smartphones are very important to their mental well-being.
49% of the respondents also stated that they need to use the Internet as well as smartphones precisely because it could help them do their work. It shows just how important our phones have become in our daily lives, and it seems unlikely that many people will be able to part with this important piece of technology anytime soon.
The roughly 3 hours and 34 minutes of screen time that smartphones get each day is for a wide variety of activities, all of which are very important, all things considered. For example, 45% of people say they use smartphones to check the news.
32% say they use these devices to pay bills more conveniently, 24% book doctor appointments using smartphones and other similar gadgets, and 22% order groceries using various apps. It just goes to show that smartphones are a necessity, even though people might struggle to make sure that their use won’t lead to any addictive tendencies.
Read more: World Economic Forum Insights on Top Global Risks
