Only a small percentage of phone users expressed real concerns in a recent survey about how much time they spend on their device. And a large number of respondents were fine with it.
Still, a significant percentage of people use the tools offered by Apple and others to track their screen time.
Market-analysis firm LoopVentures surveyed 501 US smartphone users of a range of ages. “Only 12% admitted being uncomfortable with the amount of time they spend on their device. 65% said they are comfortable (31% very comfortable),” wrote Doug Clinton in an official blog post.
Those opinions are reflected in the responses when asked if how much they expect to use their phone in 2019. About half the participants said their usage is unlikely to change. 24 percent said they’ll likely use it less, roughly the same number as people who anticipate using their phone more in the coming year.
Monitoring screen time
That said, many survey respondents are watching how much they watch screens. “Apple’s Screen Time and Android’s Digital Wellbeing products are less than a year old, but 42% of respondents say they use the products. Of the 18-29-year-old respondents in our survey, 56% said they used one of the two tracking apps,” wrote LoopVentures’ Clinton.
Apple’s Screen Time debuted last fall in iOS 12. It monitors and potentially limits how much time you spend on your iPhone and iPad. It tracks the hours and minutes you spend using each individual app on your devices. It will even show you how long you are on different websites in Safari.
If you don’t like the results, this iOS 12 feature lets you set limits on the time allowed in certain applications, like Facebook. We offer a handy guide on how to set this up.
People may be generally happy about how much they are on their phone, but another recent survey found that’s not true when we’re on vacation. Apparently, too much screen time can ruin a big trip.
