India tops US, China in smartphone use: survey

Indians are the top addicts of smartphones – according to a survey, nearly 57 per cent of Indians said they virtually cannot survive without these internet-enabled phones.

The survey, conducted by Germany-based B2X Care Solutions of users from the top five smartphone regions globally, showed that one in three Indians said they would give up their TV for a week before their smartphone.

The ratio was the same for China – where, however, users are more likely to change their old model for a new one than in India.

The survey polled more than 2,500 smartphone and tablet users from the top five smartphone regions globally, including the US, Germany, Brazil, India and China.

It polled a sample set of smartphone users from 16 to 65 years old who personally owned their devices.

There were 518 respondents from the US, 535 from Germany, 507 from India, 515 from China and 503 from Brazil.

"In America and China, most consumers wait less than 24 hours to have their smartphone repaired while in Brazil, India and Germany it takes almost 8 days for the same repair," the survey found.

Americans tend to be the most satisfied with their repair process, while Brazilians are the least satisfied.

In US, 98 per cent of people between the ages of 16-29 sleep with their smartphones, and 13 per cent would not give up their smartphone for a week even if they were paid $500.

The Chinese spend the most money on smartphones. More than 75 per cent spend more than $250 when purchasing a device, and 80 per cent own two or more smartphones, which they tend to replace after less than a year, the survey found.

Even though Germans are the least addicted to their smartphones, 58 per cent said they still keep their phones on their body or within reach at all times during the day, and 84 per cent want the most technically-advanced model when purchasing a new device.