Survey says: Americans don’t like second-hand phones, but US youths are considering them

Your first phone was highly likely to be a hand-me-down that was a bit laggy and maybe, probably way beyond the concept of “security updates”. But what happened when you could afford a new phone?

1. Did you reach for a brand new box of one of the best phones around?
2. Did you consider getting a refurbished phone?
3. Did you even imagine trying a second-hand smartphone?

Well, if most of you gravitate towards the first choice, I can’t really blame you. I mean, everyone needs a phone nowadays, but most people are walking around with cracked screens and — what I hope is just dust — on their speaker grills. And I’m not sure that all refurbishing services offer disinfection too. But am I right with my suggestion? Meet my friend: the results from “How America Buys and Uses Smartphones: PhoneArena Survey” which is super-knowledgeable, tidy and here to offer insight!

However, you know how that saying about cleanliness is, so let’s check the ground rules:

• This is commissioned research, so we’re impartial as can be.
• 2,000 people, vox populi of the US were surveyed.
• 100% accuracy is impossible, but all stats are relevant and up to date.
• Some people have both a second-hand phone and a new one as a daily driver

Let’s start off with a tasty and straightforward pie chart, asking it straight: have most Americans considered buying a second hand phone?

As you can see, more than 80% of our respondents said “No”. And, I can’t say that I was right about the reason as to my assumption, but let’s give me some credit for having the assumption itself be on point, yeah?

From what our research shows, youngsters are more likely to consider the second-hand market, with around 33% of them sharing that they at the very least check how things sit. Then again, most buy new anyway.

Because why risk your health to save a few dollars? Just saying. No judgment from me. I’m just here to report numbers. And by the way, only 6.1% of responders aged 65 and above consider getting a used phone. And you know how they say that people get wiser with age? Just saying…

So, if we turn things around, we can see that a whopping 85% of everyone who owned their device actually has a new phone. Only 12% of the remaining have a used phone and 4% are currently rocking a hand-me-down phone.

Oh, and that 1% of “I’m not sure” is confusing. That’s all I’ve got to say about it.

I really hope that this means that good smartphones are more affordable than ever. Even if we haven’t exactly figured out how to recycle all of the old phones yet, I will definitely get a better night’s rest knowing that maybe most Americans have a stable enough income to afford a brand new daily driver.

But how much did they spend on it and did the purchase destabilize said income? Tsk, you’ll have to join us next time in order to find out! And you better, because once the end of August draws near, you’ll be able to browse the complete “How America Buys and Uses Smartphones” right here!

And this is your reminder to make sure you’ve subscribed below in order to get an email when the full survey is out. After all, you are wouldn’t want to miss seeing it in its entire glory, right?