---
title: "Need that Computer and Cellphone"
description: "Computers are deemed a necessity by just half (51%) of the adult public, and cell phones by 49%. But both of these products are making a swift climb up the necessity scale. "
date: "2009-01-27"
authors:
  - name: "Pew Research Center"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2009/01/27/need-that-computer-and-cellphone/"
---

# Need that Computer and Cellphone

The two most ubiquitous products of the information era — home computers and cell phones — are currently situated in the middle of the consumer-necessity pack, with the public evenly divided about their status as a necessity rather than a luxury. A Pew Social & Demographic Trends survey finds that computers are deemed a necessity by 51% of the adult public, and cell phones by 49%. But both of these products are making a swift climb up the necessity scale. A decade ago, just 26% of adults considered the home computer a necessity, and back in 1983, when computers were still a novelty, only 4% felt that way. Meantime, cell phones were still so exotic in 1996 that they weren’t even placed on the survey. [Read More](https://www.pewresearch.org/pubs/323/luxury-or-necessity)