When comparing December 2014 vs. December 2010 U.S. figures, comScore data shows that smartphone usage is up 394%, and tablet usage is up a whopping 1,721%, and they now combine to account for 60% of digital media time spent. This dramatic four-year growth is being attributed to the proliferation of mobile devices and according to Pew, 56 percent of all US adults now have smartphones.
comScore's digital time spent figures exactly match the figures we found in our recent "Mobile Fanatics" report. A key finding from the report was that 60% of people use mobile devices to find local/offline information vs. 40% who use PCs. The alignment of these figures reinforces the fact that consumers are allocating more of their media time to mobile devices.
Another interesting insight from comScore's data showed that mobile-only internet usage is also becoming more common. This is being driven by Millennials, with 21% no longer using desktop computers to go online. Furthermore, mobile users 55 and older are growing quickly.