Astonishingly, Teens Use Less Phone Data Than Adults [Infographic]

So you know how the youth of today is so addicted to technology that they Snapchat each other while sitting on the same couch? Despite that lazy media stereotype, it turns out that teens actually use less data than adults.

Teenager picture from Shutterstock

According to new research from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), based on data from Roy Morgan, 89 per cent of teenagers 14-17 have a mobile, and 69 per cent have a smartphone. In December 2013, they spent 14 hours and 42 minutes online. That’s a high number, but much lower than adult aged 18 to 54, who spent 40 hours and 21 hours online in the same month.

We can think of a few potential explanations:

• Adults can afford a decent data allowance
• Adults can spend a lot more time goofing off on the internet at work
• Teenagers habitually lie about their usage because they’re sick of being nagged by their parents about how much time they spend online

Any other theories? Meanwhile, here’s an infographic with some more of the results.