According to a new report by The NPD Group, high-definition televisions (HDTVs) and laptops have become more popular with kids, while all other consumer electronics have remain stable in popularity.
The report, Kids & Consumer Electronics 6, states that HDTVs and laptop computers surpassed digital cameras last year in percentage of households that acquired one in the past 12 months. Cell phones, however, remain the most acquired consumer electronic device with 30 percent of households with kids ages 4 to 14 purchasing mobile phones in the past year.
When asked about future purchases in the next 12 months, 18 percent of parents surveyed stated they plan to purchase an HDTV for their child in the coming year, compared to the 17 percent of parents who plan to purchase a cell phone or digital camera for their kid.
Televisions (both standard and high definition) remain the most widely used consumer electronic devices among kids with 74 percent of children in the 4-14 age group watching TV. Computers (both desktop and laptop) are second at 70 percent.
Additionally, the report shows that (with the exception of desktop computers) more households are downloading content to various devices for kids such as portable and console VG systems, cell phones, laptop computers, and PDMPs.