Smart homes
it’s a similar proportion in Europe, at 45%. But effective working at home requires the tech and connectivity to be effective – and, as we all know too well, this is not necessarily the case. And it is not just in our working lives that we can be thwarted by our connected devices playing up. Most of us have probably missed key moments in a sports game, film or TV drama when the connection was interrupted. And disappointment can quickly set in when you expected to switch on the kettle from under your duvet, or to turn up the central heating ready for your arrival home, only to find that the tech isn’t working. Against this backdrop, the research asked the UK public about
their own experiences of tech failures or issues, how this influences their decisions on buying more tech, and what they are looking for when it comes to easing any tech terrors.
Consumer pain points Te findings suggest that tech meltdowns are all too common, whether it involves a laptop, mobile, gaming device, smart appliance, or other connected home device. What’s more, these tech tailspins – or at least, people’s concerns about them – are the reason why 46% of respondents are not investing more in tech in our homes. Te first important finding is that a significant number of
respondents are frustrated that tech issues are wasting their time. Averaged across all adults, one in three (33.2%) felt that electronic device problems and failures were not just wasting their time, but wasting increasing amounts of it. Tis feeling was most prevalent among the 18-34 cohort, with more than half of this group (53%) talking about their time being increasingly taken up with tech issues. Other age groups are also frustrated, with 37% of the 35-54 group and 15% of those 55 and over bothered about their time being squandered. Another factor causing feelings of electronic letdown is the
frequency of problems. A third of adults are hit by a significant tech issue, such as a soſtware or hardware failure in their laptop, mobile, gaming console or other devices and platforms or a major outage in their connectivity, at least once every three months. More serious still, almost a quarter (23.9%) suffer one of these issues at least once a month – with four out of ten respondents aged 18-34 reporting this level of issues. Whether it is their work, education or leisure time affected, it is clearly an escalating problem, with almost half of respondents (47.8%) saying that the more connected devices they have, the more tech issues and complications they seem to get.
Impacts on buying behaviour Te next element the research looked at was whether the problems people face (or fear) with tech in their homes are shaping their buying decisions on connected devices. Te research found that, yes, it is impacting people’s willingness to buy, with almost half (46%) the respondents saying that
www.pcr-online.biz November/December 2024 | 47
potential tech issues and problems are the main reason why they are not yet investing in connected home devices. Breaking this down by age, there is some variation across different age groups – with 56% of 18-34 year olds, 47% in the 35-54 band, and 39% in the 55+ age band agreeing with this view – but there’s still a broad consistency of view across people of different ages. On a more positive note for retailers, distributors,
manufacturers and others in the industry, six out of 10 people (60.4%) said they would invest more of their cash in connected devices in the home if they were reassured that it would be easy to connect them and that they would get the most out of them in terms of performance and reliability.
Solutions and support Tat point above about willingness to buy, is where support comes into the picture. When home tech users were asked about what type of insurance and support would provide the reliability and rapid recovery that they are looking for, they showed a strong and widespread desire for a single point of contact for all their electronic devices. Two thirds of respondents said they would ‘really like’ such a
package, covering all their devices regardless of where they were purchased or when. And in the 18-34 band, more than eight out of 10 (82%) respondents wanted such a service, which could release them from the need to unravel a tangle of different helplines, hotlines, contact points, tech support desks, warranty documents and troubleshooting documents every time they experience an issue with their device. In short, smart products can bring huge benefits to people of all
ages, but Asurion Europe’s new research shows that dependability and performance issues can easily stand in the way of this – dissuading them from investing in a smart home. Te provision of a single point of support could help to address this point – eliminating the fears or frustrations associated with technology and our growing digital dependency, and opening the doors for a growing take-up of connected home electronics.
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