Even though nearly half (43%) of Americans spend $500 or more to upgrade their smartphones, most don’t understand all of the features on their new devices, according to a new report from Decluttr. Additionally, the incredible amount of 5G hype in the market is impacting consumer behavior, as about a third of Americans think they have a 5G capable device, the report reveals.
Damaged phones (31%) and the need for more speed (26%) were cited by DeCluttr as the major reasons that consumers upgrade their phones. Of those who do, 86% think the new phones are worth what they paid for them.
Yet only half of the respondents to the DeCluttr survey could correctly identify the image of their smartphone, compared to images of other devices from the same manufacturer.
Among those who think they own a 5G capable device, 62% seemed to think they were on a 5G network, citing improved performance for their mobile service while “using a 5G network.” Of course the reality is there are very few 5G capable phones on the market, and 5G coverage is extremely sparse right now.
The Decluttr report found more device features that were unknown to respondents, including:.
- Less than half (40%) of Samsung Galaxy S7, S8 an S9 owners were aware that their phones are capable of wireless charging.
- Only 14% of iPhone XR, XS and X owners were aware that their device have NFC capabilities
- Just over half of iPhone XA, XS Max and X owners were aware their phones were water resistant. It is important to not that water resistant does not mean waterproof.
- Over half (62%) who said they have a 5G device said they had noticed service improvements while using the 5G network, even though 5G network capabilities are available in only a very small areas in very few cities.
