A new Consumer Smartphone Usage survey conducted by mobile phone power bank providers Adoozy revealed that South Africans are so reliant on their cellphones and the services they provide that they cannot spend more than an hour without them.
Almost half (40%) of the study respondents, who were mostly young South Africans aged 18 to 35, indicated they would rather endure the frustration of sitting in a traffic bottleneck than give up their phones.
Nearly 16% would rather endure the agony and anguish of a dental visit than go without their phones.
A total of 92% respondents feel they could not go more than 24 hours without their mobile device, and 64% claim they could not even make it an hour.
“Young South Africans, in particular, get a lot of flak over how much time they spend on their phones. Of course, we should be using smartphones responsibly. But people have fully embraced the extent to which a modern mobile phone can enhance and add value to their daily lives.
“For example, in a country bedevilled by crime and violence against women, 72% of respondents in our survey answered ‘yes’ to the question ‘have you ever used your mobile phone to get out of a dangerous situation?’ That is a potentially life-saving benefit,” chief executive of Adoozy, Kegan Peffer.
He went on to say that South Africans use their cellphones every day to mail money, bank and make payments, buy groceries, use ride-hailing services, and navigate their surroundings.
“Additionally, they use them to be more productive at work and in their companies,“ he said. They even use their phones to track their health using apps like fitness trackers.
According to a study published in April by the technology website Electronics Hub, South Africans spend 56.8% of their waking hours per day, or nine hours and 24 minutes, gazing at screens.
The report draws on data from DataReportal (2024) and Sleep Cycle, with Electronics Hub ranking countries based on various types of screen time across devices and media platforms.
“We’re a planet addicted to our screens. It’s not a new problem—worrying about how much television time we clock up has been around since the 1950s,” said Electronics Hub.
According to the study, South Africans spend an average of 11 minutes more gazing at their screens than Brazil, which is in second position in the world.
Psychologist Salmaan Khader told Independent Media Lifestyle that while technology can be used to create educational apps and games that promote cognitive development in children, as well as to aid with early reading, numeracy, problem-solving, and creativity, it is not without risks.
“Excessive screen time, especially passive consumption of content, may hinder cognitive development as it can displace other important activities such as reading, physical play and face-to-face interactions,” he said.
