Midwest uses mobile different than East Coast
On a recent family vacation to DC/NYC, I couldn't help but notice that people on the East Coast use their mobile devices far differently than we do here in the Midwest. I cannot go so far as to attribute it to a reason "why", but I'm going to guess. Nevertheless, there was a clear difference in what people were doing with their mobile devices.
First, what are people doing differently in NYC/DC than here in the Midwest?
First and foremost, I saw more people using mobile devices as an entertainment medium or device. While a crude measurement, I saw many people connected to their phones via headsets. Admittedly, I was looking over some shoulders. So I saw this first hand that people were listening to music or watching videos. This means a number of things. Though on the surface this may not look like a big, difference, it is huge. Entertainment on your phone, whether video or music, means that your phone is hooked up, most likely, to your desktop computer. If it is not connected to your desktop computer, at the very least it requires an internet connection. *Note: In the subway systems in both DC/NYC, internet access was not available to the devices, where I was noticing most of this use. Even most people that I know here in Cincinnati that own iPhones, which means they both a desktop and internet connection, I don't often see them using their devices for entertainment. Entertainment goes beyond the basic use of the phone as a text, email and phone device.
My suspicion in this case is that as people have more down time with their phone, waiting and commuting on public transportation. They will be exploiting the capability of their mobile devices. Before I travel, I load up my iPhone with video and audio. Before I had an iPhone, I did the same with my Treo device. Point being, I believe that travel and commuting gives you both the reason and downtime to figure out how to load up your mobile device. When you are car commuting, you simply don't have time to interact with the phone as much. So the need obviously isn't as great. Additionally I would add that commuting on a regular basis also requires a notion of efficiency. You're always going to take your mobile device with you, why not let it do more?
The last thing that I'd add here is that this wasn't just iPhones. I saw people with Nokia products, BlackBerry Devices and Motorola devices. iPhones are easy targets to know why and how people are using their devices differently, but loading up some of the other devices simply isn't as easy. As I mentioned, in the Midwest, there is less of a need. Our commutes here are largely in our personal vehicles. Simply said, the need is not as great. Most of the folks that I know, even with smart devices, they use them primarily for email, text and phone service. Clearly, the needs and use are different. The more that people expect and want of their phones, the opportunity/need will exist for developers and marketers.
~marty follow me on twitter @marty_b
