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S. Koreans buy new smartphones every 14 months: poll

August 4, 2015

South Korean smartphone users change their devices every 14 months, research showed on Aug. 5, 2015, with teens changing their devices in less than a year. This undated file photo shows a smartphone advertisement in Seoul. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Aug. 5 (Yonhap) — South Korean smartphone users change their devices every 14 months, with teens changing their handsets in less than a year, a poll showed Wednesday.

According to the survey conducted by the Korea Information Society Development Institute (KISDI), South Koreans on average used their handsets for 19 months, but those using smartphones changed their devices sooner.

The poll was conducted on 10,172 respondents, where 92.4 percent said they had a mobile phone.

Among the age groups, South Korean teenagers used their smartphones for the shortest time at 10 months, while those in their 50s bought new handsets every 21 months. Those in their 60s and 70s changed models every 29 months and 34 months, respectively.

Nearly all South Koreans in their 20s used smartphones, with the ratio standing at 99.3 percent, hovering far above the 13.8 percent posted by those in their 70s. Over 91 percent of teenagers had smartphones.

By brand, users of smartphones produced by Samsung Electronics Co. bought new models every 14 months, whereas those with Apple Inc. products changed devices every 15 months, the poll also showed. Users of LG Electronics Inc. devices held a comparable figure of 13 months.

The findings also showed those using smartwatches bought new ones every seven months, marking the shortest term among all devices.