Proof, if you needed it, that the humble mobile phone is becoming a jack-of-all-gadgets. UK broadcasting regulator Ofcom has released its annual Communications Market Report, in which it examines what impact owning a mobile phone has on your use of other gadgets.
Apparently, 55% of mobile users now use an alarm clock less, 51% use a portable radio/tape/disc player less, 38% use a camera less, 34% use an MP3 player less, 22% use radio less, and 15% play fewer console games.
That last stat seems a bit strange, as nobody would suggest mobile games are a substitute for the latest PS3, Wii or Xbox 360 games. However, Ofcom's research found that 51% of mobile gamers play at home, so it could show a trend that people have less time to play on their consoles, but are partially filling that gap with mobile games that don't tie up the TV.
We certainly see the truth in the idea that people are using their phones to handle things that would traditionally have been the role of other gadgets. But there's sometimes a downside. For example, using your mobile as an alarm clock on a business trip to the US means someone might call you at 3am without realising where you are.
Meanwhile, while mobiles might be killing off portable radios, if anything they're boosting the idea of radio itself, since so many people are listening to FM stations on their phones.
Unfortunately, it can't be said that they're doing a similar thing for television. According to Ofcom's report, just 10% of people are aware they can get mobile TV, and only 2% actually watch it. When prompted, more than half of all adults say that mobile TV is "not at all valuable" to them, even young bucks in the 15-24 age range, who should be the most enthusiastic.
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