Study: Nearly half of home Apple owners are 55 and older

Steve Safran November 29th, 2006

PRESS RELEASE AS PUBLISHED ONLINE, IN FULL, AT http://www.metafacts.com/pages/media/tupan06_announce_061129.htm

November 29, 2006 08:30 AM US Pacific Timezone
Mobile Computers on the Increase in US Homes, According to MetaFacts 2006 Home PC Brand Profile Report

Comparing Installed Bases of Major PC Brands Yields Interesting Results - Half of Apple Home Users Now Notebooks, While Dell is Nearing the Half-Way Mark

ENCINITAS, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Homes are embracing notebook computers, with nearly 52 million as the home’s primary computers, according to analysis released in the 2006 Home PC Brand Profile Report from MetaFacts, Inc. These 51.8 million notebooks are 30.2% of US primary home computers. Not all brands are equal when it comes to mobilizing their customers. In Apple households, over half (52%) of the personal computers are notebooks. In HP/Compaq households, just under one in six (16.1%) are notebook computers, while 46.1% of Dell PCs at home are notebooks. Dell continues to lead in sheer numbers with just over 24 million Dell notebooks in U.S. households, a 46.1% share of the home notebook PC market.
The Home PC Brand Profile Report is one of a series of summary reports on specific topics based on the results of MetaFacts’ 2006 Technology User Profile (TUP) study, which reveal the changing patterns of technology adoption and use in American households and businesses. The Home PC Brand Profile Report includes findings on PC types in homes, year purchased, age/gender of users, where home computers are used (respondents reported using them outside the home from cybercafés to copy shops), PC activities, Internet use, shopping and buying behavior, purchasing channels, printer use and more. The results are reported for all home PCs users in total, as well as separately by major PC brand (Apple, Dell, Gateway/eMachines, HP/Compaq, and other brands).

Newer computer models are now in almost half of homes, with 49.3% purchased since 2004. More than two-thirds of Apple and half of Dell and HP/Compaq primary home computers are less than 2 ½ years old. “A substantial number of home computers are considered new enough that it’s likely to cause resistance for home consumers to replace their PCs,” said Dan Ness, principal at MetaFacts. “This will have implications for releases of new applications and operating systems like Microsoft Vista.”

Among other findings in the Home PC Brand Profile Report are age and gender of home PC users. Nearly half (46%) of Apple’s base is age 55 and older, almost double the share of average home PC users (25.2%). “Apple can claim long-time loyalists, but its future among the young technoliterati is an interesting dynamic,” said Ness. “Gateway has the lead among the 18-24 year olds,” he continued, “with a higher-than-average share of US home’s primary PC users falling into this age group.”

In addition to the Home PC Brand Profile Report, MetaFacts has recently produced the Workplace PC Brand Profile Report, which focuses on PCs used in the Workplace, and the Mobile PC Profile Report, which profiles notebook and tablet PC use.

TUP Profile Reports are one distribution format of TUP findings, offering the benefit of a research study focusing on a specific market segment or technology, with impactful analysis tapping into the nationally-representative surveys in each TUP Full Edition. Companies can also subscribe to the TUP Full Edition to receive complete survey results. Those new to the information provided in TUP can sign up at www.metafacts.com for complimentary TUPdates, which give insights on topics and findings in the full Technology User Profile. Finally, companies who need to delve further into findings can engage MetaFacts for a TUP Custom Re-Contact Study that further probes TUP respondents on issues relative to their specific industry, markets, and products.

About MetaFacts

MetaFacts, Inc. is a national market research firm focusing exclusively on the technology industries. MetaFacts’ Technology User Profile survey is the longest-running, largest, and most comprehensive study of its kind, conducted continuously since 1983. The detailed results are widely recognized as a primary marketing resource for Fortune 1000 companies providing consumer-oriented technology products and services, such as PCs, printers, mobile devices, and related services and products. For more information, contact MetaFacts at 1-760-635-4300, sales@metafacts.com, or www.metafacts.com.