The Secure Data Recovery service surveyed 2,200 Americans across several states about how often and in what manner they break their devices. Breaking a phone and having to replace it is something 76% of participants admitted to—this writer experienced such a nightmare with a new Galaxy S7 Edge in 2016. If destroying a handset wasn’t bad enough, 31% of those surveyed said they also completely lost the data it contained. Looking at individual states, Texas (95%), Missouri (88%), and Oklahoma (88%) were the locations with the highest number of phone breakers.
Not everyone replaces a phone (or one of its components) after a breakage. The sight of people using handsets with broken screens is a pretty common one, with almost a fifth of participants (18%) currently using a phone with a cracked display—1 in 4 of these are members of Gen Z. Expect to see plenty of examples of this in Mississippi (29%), Texas (29%), Louisiana (28%), South Carolina (28%), and California (27%). Amazingly, dropping a phone is a weekly occurrence (at least) for almost half (44%) of the participants. Mobile owners in Utah are the clumsiest in this regard. Some other stats include 1 in 10 people not using a phone case. That’s a low number, but 45% say they’ve broken a mobile while it was in a case. Other common mishaps include accidentally throwing a phone (46%), spilling a drink on it (43%), and, a stat that illustrates the popularity of using a phone in the bathroom, dropping it down the toilet (23%).
It’s a similar story when it comes to laptops, with drops, spilled food and drinks, and cracked screens common reported problems. Americans have spent an average of $534 on laptop repairs in their lifetimes, but only 37% pay for damages themselves rather than relying on warranties. Thanks, Secure Data
