Most Ukrainians are in no hurry to upgrade their smartphones: 60% buy a new phone only when the old one finally breaks down. Another 18% of respondents usually receive smartphones as gifts, and only 1% of respondents regularly buy new models once a year.
Most Ukrainians are in no hurry to upgrade their smartphones: 60% buy a new phone only when the old one finally breaks down. Another 18% of respondents usually receive smartphones as gifts, and only 1% of respondents regularly buy new models once a year.
This is evidenced by the results of a Rakuten Viber survey among 20,000 users of the messenger, published on October 22.
The team also asked Ukrainians whether they plan to buy technology amid the projected increase in prices for smartphones, laptops, and other devices. The responses showed that for most, the cost of technology remains the main obstacle.
When asked "Usually, how often do you buy a new phone?", Viber users answered this way:
60% use their smartphone until it breaks completely, and only then do they buy a new one;
18% — do not buy phones themselves, they are usually given as gifts;
15% — change their smartphone every 2–4 years;
6% — buy a new phone less often than once every four years, as they prefer to invest in other equipment, such as laptops;
1% buy a new model about once a year when it comes out.
Therefore, regularly updating a smartphone remains an atypical practice among those surveyed. The largest group of respondents uses their devices until they finally break, and almost one in five receives a phone as a gift.
In another survey, Rakuten Viber asked users whether they were planning to buy tech now, before prices rose. The question was about the expected price increases for smartphones, laptops and other devices, particularly amid a shortage of RAM.
The answers were distributed as follows:
74% do not plan to make purchases because they cannot afford to purchase equipment at current prices;
16% do not plan to change their decisions due to price increases;
5% want to upgrade their equipment now so as not to spend more in the future;
3% — will buy used devices if prices rise;
2% plan to take out a loan to purchase equipment now.
Thus, only 7% of respondents are considering two purchase options before a possible price increase — upgrading equipment with their own funds or purchasing on credit. Another 3% are ready to switch to used devices if prices increase.
At the same time, 74% directly stated that they cannot afford the technology even at current prices. This was the most common response in the second survey.
