Access to Devices an Issue

Access to devices is another issue, with 26 percent of those with home broadband access and 21 percent of those with mobile-only access claiming that too many people share the computer or mobile device.

Mobile-only access is itself a form of under-connectedness.

“Parents and children who only have internet access via a smartphone or tablet go online less often and for a smaller set of activities, as compared with families who have broadband access and a computer at home,” according to the research.

Parents with mobile-only access are less likely to go online to look for information, keep up with local news, bank or pay bills, apply for jobs and services, or shop.

Children ages 6-13 with mobile-only access are less likely to use the internet or computers on a daily basis, play digital educational games, do homework on the computer or internet, or look up things they are interested in online.

Families with mobile-only access are more likely to live below the federal poverty level and are more likely to be immigrants.

Because parents with computers use the internet for a broader range of tasks than those who are mobile-only, “it is significant that more educated parents are more comfortable using computers, even among parents who have access to both devices.”

Seventy-nine percent of college-educated parents are more confident using computers instead of a mobile device, compared to 39 percent of those with less than a high school education.

See all the data below (click to enlarge image).