Mobile Devices Threaten Personal Time, Survey Finds

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August 08, 2000 (9:10 AM EDT)

Mobile Devices Threaten Personal Time, Survey Finds

An Embedded Solutions survey found that professionals who use electronic equipment are wary of mobile technology and fear its intrusion into their personal lives, yet they believe multipurpose mobile devices may help them balance their work and home lives.

In its survey of 800 professionals in the United Kingdom, Embedded Solutions, Abingdon, England, highlights attitudes that could inhibit the adoption of new mobile technology.

According to the report, "Portable Electronics Survey: Intrusion Versus Desirability," 55 percent of those surveyed believe an "office in your pocket" is an intrusion into home life. Slightly fewer, 54 percent, fear the ability to embed more applications into mobile devices will enable employers to place unfair demands on their time. According to the report, women are more likely than men to find such devices intrusive.

On the plus side, 72 percent of those surveyed believe that carrying such a multifunction portable digital device would enable flexible work and help professionals balance their work and personal lives. The report said women are more likely to agree with this proposition than men.

"Using a laptop computer means carrying another piece of luggage, and a short battery life limits their effective use," said Jon Treanor, president and CEO of Embedded Solutions, which sells the Handel-C compiler and is working with partners to produce generic, reconfigurable hardware platforms. "A lighter, more energy-efficient device that combines the functionality of a laptop and a mobile phone in a handset the size of a PDA seems an attractive alternative. Such devices are on the horizon, but there seems to be uncertainty about the positive impact they will have on peoples lives.

"There has been much talk about next-generation mobile features such as WAP, 3G, and Bluetooth, but we need to be much clearer about the benefits they deliver, or customers will draw their own conclusions and, as the survey indicates, these can be unfavorable."

The professionals surveyed, covering a range of gender, marital status, age, and seniority, were contacted by e-mail and fax. As such, all are employed and accessible electronically. In addition, 84 percent of the sample said they often carry a mobile phone, 47 percent carry a paper-based agenda, 18 percent a PDA, and 15 percent a laptop computer.

Asked which functions they would use regularly on a next-generation electronic device, 94 percent of survey participants said they would send and receive e-mail, and 89 percent said they would browse the Internet. Telephone functionality was the third most-cited feature, and office applications tied for fourth with computer games. The least popular functions were reading news (34 percent), videoconferencing (37 percent), and video-on-demand (41 percent).

The survey also asked which factors will influence the choice of new mobile equipment. The top five factors in order of significance are: cost, ease of use, features, size, and battery life.

According to the survey, the least significant factors are color, style or fashionability, and brand name.

"The technology industry faces similar challenges to those met by the automotive industry some years ago," Treanor said. "As markets mature, manufacturers need to meet more sophisticated criteria to satisfy purchasing decisions. The companies that succeed are those able to extend their brands beyond the production of grey boxes."