Most Americans try to hold onto their electronic devices as long as they can — CBS News poll
Are you the sort of person who goes out and gets the latest electronic gadget, or the type who holds onto what you have until the bitter end? For most Americans, it's the latter.
Seventy-one percent say they hold onto their electronic devices for as long as they can, while just 15% say they buy new ones as soon as they come out. For another 13%, it depends.
This is true of Americans of all ages, though there are differences: younger adults are more likely than older Americans to buy new electronic devices as soon as they come out. Twenty-four percent of adults under 45 do, too, compared to just 5% of adults 55 and older.
Income also plays a factor, indicating perhaps that more Americans might buy new electronic devices as soon as they come out if they have the means to do so. While just 11% of adults earning less than $50,000 a year buy a new electronic device as soon as it comes out, this rises to 20% of those earning $100,000 a year or more.
This poll was conducted by telephone September 14-19, 2021 among a random sample of 1,006 adults nationwide. Data collection was conducted on behalf of CBS News by SSRS of Glen Mills, Pennsylvania. Phone numbers were dialed from samples of both standard land-line and cellphones.
The poll employed a random digit dial methodology. For the landline sample, a respondent was randomly selected from all adults in the household. For the cell sample, interviews were conducted with the person who answered the phone.
Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish using live interviewers. The data have been weighted to reflect U.S. Census figures on demographic variables. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus 3.7 percentage points. The error for subgroups may be higher and is available by request. The margin of error includes the effects of standard weighting procedures which enlarge sampling error slightly. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.