Mobile devices represent the two fastest-growing consumer electronics (CE) products this year when measured by absolute percentage point growth (rather than relative increase), with tablet penetration up 9% points to 54% and smartphones up 8% points to 72%, according to the CEA.
In fact, smartphones are now the third-most commonly owned CE product, behind TVs (98%) and DVD/Blu-ray players (78%), while tablets have cracked the top 10 (#9) for the first time, replacing basic cell phones, which fell out of the top 10.
Other fast-growing CE products (by year-over-year percentage point gain in household penetration) include:
- Wearable fitness trackers (+6% points to 11%);
- Digital media streaming devices such as Apple TV or Roku (+5% points to 29%); and
- In-vehicle communication devices such as navigation, back-up cameras and hands-free calling (+4% points to 34%).