A new report from Frost & Sullivan was compiled following a global survey of 555 CXOs in hopes of finding that which drives mobile device purchasing decisions today.
“The mobile and wireless industry is experiencing rapidly-evolving device trends that influence the uptake of smart phones and tablets among CXOs (C-level executives, directors, managers),” the report summary reads. “Of the 3 form factors evaluated (laptops, tablets, and smartphones), the most significant growth was from tablets, which approached 50 percent adoption among CXOs in 2013.”
In comparison, the data shows, laptop computer usage has been on a steady decline from its previous peak in 2011.
All told, the new CXOs Mobile Devices Report finds that the CXO ownership rate of laptops is declining. “However,” the report authors deduce, ownership of tablets is gaining pace due to their convenience.
Roughly one third of CXO respondents indicated they are looking to replace their laptop with a tablet.
While convenience and interoperability with other devices are the chief reasons over half of the CXOs gave for favoring a particular mobile operating system, they still demonstrated unique purchase channel preferences depending on the type of mobile device. For instance, CXOs usually acquire laptops through their employer, smartphones through mobile operators, and tablets from manufacturer stores.
“In terms of features, CXOs look for reliability, performance and convenience in laptops for office use,” said Frost & Sullivan Mobile & Wireless Research Director Brent Iadarola. “Apple iOS was the most preferred mobile operating system for a future tablet (64%), followed by Android (22%) and Windows (11%).”
