Cingular Finds Men Chat More Than Women

For the sixth consecutive year, Cingular's annual survey on wireless usage reveals that men talk 16% more on their wireless phones each month than women. This year's survey revealed that men talk an average of 546 minutes per month on their cell phones, compared to 470 minutes per month for women. The gender gap however has closed considerably over the last year. In 2005, men used their wireless phones an average of 571 minutes per month compared to 424 minutes per month for women.

"Cell phone usage is at an all-time high for both sexes," said Jennifer Bowcock, director of consumer media relations, Cingular Wireless. "Cingular is committed to meeting this growing demand by providing exclusive, innovative products and services that ensure our 55.8 million wireless customers have plenty to talk about."

When it comes to talking business, men use their cell phones more than women - 33% compared to 14%. In matters of the home, however, women continue to rule the nest. On average, women use the home phone 471 minutes per month versus the 274 minutes per month that men use.

In keeping with the 2005 survey results, women continue to lead men when it comes to camera phone usage. In 2006, 51% of women use their camera feature frequently or occasionally with only 40% of men using as often. With this said, camera phone ownership among both sexes is up significantly. In 2006, 46% of the men surveyed and 42% of the women own a camera-capable cell phone. In 2005, only 21% of men and 25% of women owned camera-capable cell phones.

In this year's survey, Cingular wanted to identify which gender was the most absentminded when it came to keeping up with their cell phones. While only one-quarter of those surveyed admitted to having ever lost a cell phone, men proved to be slightly more forgetful than women - 28% compared to 23%.

The 2006 study also revealed:

• Eighty-four percent of women use their wireless phones to talk to friends and family, versus only 64 percent of men.
• Convenience still remains the top reason for wireless phone usage among men and women, with 66 percent indicating they primarily use their wireless phones for convenience purposes. Safety is second at 17 percent.

Since Cingular first began conducting its wireless usage study, guys have gabbed more each year*:

                    MEN                            WOMEN
   2006:   546 minutes a month       vs.    470 minutes a month
   2005:   571 minutes a month       vs.    424 minutes a month
   2004:   455 minutes a month       vs.    391 minutes a month
   2003:   438 minutes a month       vs.    377 minutes a month
   2002:   589 minutes a month       vs.    394 minutes a month
   2001:   372 minutes a month       vs.    275 minutes a month

*Average wireless phone usage per month

The national survey of 1,016 qualified adult wireless user respondents (48 percent male and 52 percent female) was conducted for Cingular Wireless by International Communications Research in May 2006. Last year's study was also conducted in May using the same methodology and sampling demographics."

Posted to the site on 12th June 2006