Retail – MetaFacts' TUP findings

November 16, 2016October 28, 2020

Are most home printers purchased where ink is? (MetaFAQs)

Our research shows that most home printers are purchased in one type of outlet, and ink bought somewhere else.

For home printers, Discount retail store such as Wal-Mart or Target and Consumer electronics stores such as Best Buy collectively account for nearly half of the outlets where home printers are purchased. By contrast, consumer electronics stores account for only one in nine home printer ink purchase outlets. Instead, half of printer ink outlets are Office supply retailers such as Office Depot and discount retail stores.

It’s a conflict that has been a conundrum for printer manufacturers for many years. Subscription services such as Hewlett Packard’s Instant Ink have started to change the formula. These programs bypass brick-and-mortar and online retailers alike to entice many printer users to simply buy direct. They also have the benefit to printer manufacturers of reducing consumer’s consideration of options for buying and using refilled ink.

This is based on our most recent research among 7,336 US adults as part of the Technology User Profile (TUP) 2016 survey.

This MetaFAQs research result addresses one of the many questions profiling active technology users.

Many other related answers are part of the full TUP service, available to paid subscribers. The TUP chapters with the most information about activities is the TUP 2016 Printers Chapter.

These MetaFAQs are brought to you by MetaFacts, based on research results from their most-recent wave of Technology User Profile (TUP).

For more information about MetaFacts and subscribing to TUP, please contact MetaFacts.

November 9, 2016October 28, 2020

Who spends most on tech – older or younger adults? (MetaFAQs)

In many tech circles, there’s a strong attention on the youngest adults. How true is it that younger adults spend more than older adults?

Our research shows that when it comes to household tech spending, age matters, although it’s not that simple.

First of all, while the youngest adults often are the most enthusiastic about technology, they don’t have the same financial means of older adults.

The majority of household tech spending is among adults age 30-39.

More importantly, when adjusting for employment status – including the self-employed – the analysis is clearer. Employed adults out-spend those not employed from ages 25 to 54.

There’s a “late life kicker” that’s important to note. After age 60, household tech spending is stronger among those not employed than those employed. Also, although employment rates decline with age, total household tech spending is stronger among the age 65-69 group than the age 55-59.

This is based on our most recent research among 7,336 US adults as part of the Technology User Profile (TUP) 2016 survey.

This MetaFAQs research result addresses one of the many questions profiling active technology users. Specifically for this analysis, we looked at household tech spending along 15 categories of technology devices and services, from PCs, printers, and routers to Internet and mobile phone service.

Many other related answers are part of the full TUP service, available to paid subscribers. The TUP chapters with the most information about activities is the TUP 2016 User Profile Chapter, which includes sections more deeply analyzing by age and life stage.

These MetaFAQs are brought to you by MetaFacts, based on research results from their most-recent wave of Technology User Profile (TUP).

For more information about MetaFacts and subscribing to TUP, please contact MetaFacts.

September 30, 2016October 29, 2020

Is there an age skew for using refilled printer ink? (MetaFAQs)

Who refills their printer ink, or buys refilled toners or cartridges?

Younger adults use refilled ink more often than older adults, with the practice being strongest among printer users age 18-34. In fact, nearly half of printer users using refilled ink are under age 35, and among these younger adults, refill usage rates exceed one in three.

In our other TUP research, we’re finding that while overall printing levels have declined over the last five years, certain segments of graphically-oriented users are printing more than ever. Also, subscription ink replacement plan usage is growing.

About this MetaFAQ

In addition to profiling the spending, demographics, activities, and devices of printer users, many other related answers are part of the TUP service, available to paid subscribers. One section of TUP 2016 which includes extensive results about printers, printer users, and printing activities – the TUP 2016 Printers chapter. This is one of more than a dozen chapters in the entire TUP 2016 study.

These MetaFAQs are brought to you by MetaFacts, based on research results from the most-recent wave of Technology User Profile (TUP).

For more information about MetaFacts and subscribing to TUP, please contact MetaFacts.