Being A Mother Makes Women Want Smartphones

While parenthood generally makes moms and dads want to keep their phones off and away, smartphones are becoming increasingly popular with new mothers. iPhones, Blackberrys, and Androids may all be flashy phones to have, but having children apparently makes them all the more desirable.

Livescience reports that in a recent survey, 53% of mothers purchased a smartphone in response to motherhood. Although a mother is 18% more likely to have a smartphone than her childless counterparts, she uses her phone in different ways. Childless women reportedly use texting, address books, and emailing capabilities the most. But once kids roll around, mothers primarily use camera and video features as well as lots of apps.

I was surprised to not find games under this list, and not because mom is fiddling around with checkers while she waits at the pediatrician’s office. Rather because every parents I know relies on some sort of smartphone game to keep the little one entertained for long car rides or for moments here and there. Handing your kid an iPhone for 15 minutes while you tend to some other chore is a blessing to modern parents who start up a game of pinball and wonder how their parents managed without such a device.

Although modern women are using their smartphones to actively manage their hectic schedules, and capture cute moments with video and snapshots, it is concerning what these numbers suggest. While mothers are more likely to have a smartphone, I hope motherhood is not incentivizing higher usage of said phone.

We live in an increasingly digital age which results in a faster pace of living for everyone. While our improved technology does come to the aid of parents, the usurped minutes here and there as we gaze lovingly into an aglow screen are also minutes away from our loved ones — specifically our kids.

(photo: geekandhype.com)