The year is 2021 and everything feels different – people are spending digital currencies with dog faces on them, controlling their homes when they ’re on a vacation abroad , have autonomous cars do the driving for them a nd are ditching classic TV-watch ing for other options for entertainment.

So, how is everyone staying entertained all the time?

The answer is of course — Mobile devices — and they’re quickly taking the role of TVs and desktop computers. This comes as no surprise given the advancements made in the last decade with mobile devices themselves, fast internet connection, network coverages and lowered costs.

Nowadays, consumers with even the most affordable mobile devices in remote areas could enjoy a world of options.

Anything from streaming high-stake live sports events, to binge-watching Game of Thrones or browsing through an expansive game selection of an online casino . It’s all done through these devices.

Mobile vs. Desktop
In this world, there are two major players — mobile phones and personal computers (laptops and desktops). According to most reports, mobile phones (smartphones) are the more dominant device.

Below are some key figures to better understand how the world of mobile devices is pushing away desktop use:

Market Share

Mobile phones are dominating the global market share with a market control of around 55%. In 2020, personal computers sold an amazing 275.15 million units, probably engineered by the pandemic’s propensity for remote living. Mobile phones sold even better — at least 1.38 billion of smartphone units were sold around the world with brands like Samsung and Apple dominating the phone market.

Although websites are typically more enjoyed on desktops, the proliferation of apps of all sorts available on smartphones easily puts them ahead of the curve.

Music, Videos and Streaming

Mobile phones are definitely the more addictive device. Great screen, great camera and amazing picture and video quality are some of the hallmarks of today's smartphones.

More people spend their time on phones. The average Australian spends about 5.5 hours a day while Americans do so for around 5.4 hours, while desktop or laptop usage is somewhere around the two-hour region. More streaming services subscriptions come from mobile phones than they do on PCs.

Online Search

Google, the tech giant synonymous to “search” has numbers that can further explain the who’s who in the world of mobile devices. With 92.18% market share, no other search engine comes close to Google.

There are at least 3.5 billion Google searches daily on Google, and 63% of these searches come from mobile devices.

The trend seems to be that mobile phones are useful for the most basic research while desktops are for more in-depth reading. That is exactly why more people spend more time on a website accessed through desktop than they do on mobile devices.

E-Commerce

Shopping has always been fun and entertaining. But, what device leads the popularity race here?

This is one aspect that desktop devices might just be more dominant.

Mobile phones have 65% of traffic but the conversion rate for mobile phones is not as high. Even with 35% of traffic, desktop accounts for 53% of online sales compared to mobile users 47%.

Recent numbers suggest that mobile devices may soon become more dominant in the e-commerce space too. For instance, 88% of consumers who find a local business online using their phones eventually reach out to that business in less than twenty-four hours. 79% of smartphone users have purchased at least one item with their mobile devices in the last half year.

Desktop may be leading now — but it doesn’t look like that will last long.

The final word

In the end, the very analysis of mobile phones (smartphones) against personal computers (desktops and laptops) reveal all there is to know about the relevant devices in this complicated modern world. It’d be pretty hard to enjoy many benefits of digital entertainment, if a person does not have at least one of these mobile devices.

And that tells us one thing — there’s more to come. When tech giants battle for supremacy, the innovations they come up with benefits us all.