The Life of a Smartphone - am I good or bad?

I’m owned by 78% of adults and 92% of them say that using me to browse the web is crucial. 71% of people never turn me off and 20% look at me within 5 minutes of waking up!

I’m being used more and more for a wide variety of tasks. The average daily time spent using me is just under two and a half hours, but this rises to over 5 hours a day for one in five people.

Video is now huge; over 300 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute, with around 5 billion watched every day and I’m used for 60% of the viewing.

Only 16% of employers give me to their employees. With 40% of the UK Workforce using me or a tablet for work purposes though there is obviously a growing expectation that employees will use their own device for work. In fact Gartner predicts that 45% of businesses will have a BYOD (Bring your own device) policy by 2020.

So what about using me for learning? According to Lynda.com learners using me complete course material 45% faster than those using a computer, and study for 40 minutes longer, according to MNA Learning.

Experts predict that I am going to be used more and more for online tasks and less for making calls, but is this good for your health? Some people say that using me is habitual, but who is controlling this habit? The BBC video ‘Tricks that keep you hooked on your phone‘ sheds some light.

Research is coming up with some scary findings e.g. 89% of college students report feeling phantom phone vibrations, thinking that I’m requiring their attention, when I’m not, causing quickened heart rate and tightened breathing. Apparently I am training the brain to be in a constant state of stress and fear, having a detrimental effect on my users brain. To read more about this check out the article ‘This is what your smartphone is doing to your brain — and it isn’t good‘ on Business Insider.

sources:

https://www.deloitte.co.uk/mobileuk/work/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-45033302

https://smallbiztrends.com

https://elearningindustry.com/mobile-learning-trends-2018

http://uk.businessinsider.com/what-your-smartphone-is-doing-to-your-brain-and-it-isnt-good-2018-3