Smart homes are on the rise, and connected domestic devices are becoming popular amongst the young and old alike. Sure, it’s twenty- and thirty-something men who tend to purchase new technologies while they’re fresh from the factory.
But according to a recent survey by The Harris Poll, Gen Xers, Baby Boomers, and seniors are likewise enthusiastic about outfitting their homes with smart devices.
Smart home technology is a budding industry, so as it stands, device ownership is relatively low. However, the industry remains promising, as consumers who don’t currently own smart home devices express much interest in eventually purchasing them.
Wireless tech dominates
Wireless speakers are the most common smart device already making its way into American homes, with 17 percent of survey respondents reporting that they already have wireless speakers at home.
An additional 35 percent were interested in eventually purchasing wireless speakers.
Smart thermostats on the rise
The second most common smart technology is the connected thermostat, which allows home owners to monitor and control the cooling and heating of their home remotely through their mobile device.
About 11 percent of survey respondents own smart thermostats, and another 40 percent were interested.
In this case, seniors were even more into this smart technology than their younger counterparts.
What about chore-bots?
On the other hand, seniors shrugged at the domestic robots, such as the Roomba vacuum, that are fairly popular amongst Millennials.
According to the survey, about 15 percent of Millennials own some type of chore-bot.
Seniors and Gen Xers equally likely to own
The Harris Poll also collected data on smart home security systems, smoke detectors, lighting, energy use monitors, laundry machines, locks, and water detectors.
The survey examined ownership and interested in smart home technologies across different age groups, revealing that seniors were just as likely as Gen Xers to own a smart home device, and 85 percent of senior respondents would recommend smart home devices to a friend. You can read the full study on emarketer.com.
#SmartHomes
Ellen Vessels, a Staff Writer at The American Genius, is respected for their wide range of work, with a focus on generational marketing and business trends. Ellen is also a performance artist when not writing, and has a passion for sustainability, social justice, and the arts.
