For quite some time now, the number of people in the U.S. that have dropped landlines in favor of cell phones has gradually increased. However, it seems we've reached a milestone. According to the Associated Press, the number of U.S. households opting for only cell phones has for the first time surpassed those that just have traditional landlines.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey released Wednesday said that fully 20 percent of U.S. households only had cell phones in the second half of 2008. That's a three point increase since the first half of 2008--a big jump, statistically speaking--and also three points higher than the 17 percent of households with landlines but no cell phones.
For comparison purposes, in 2003, just three percent of households were wireless only, whereas a whopping 43 percent had landlines but no cell phones yet. In the meantime, about 60 percent of households have both landlines and cell phones. The report attributed the accelerated shift to the recession, and the fact that the cell phone offers extra features--namely, mobility and texting, among others--that landlines generally don't have.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey released Wednesday said that fully 20 percent of U.S. households only had cell phones in the second half of 2008. That's a three point increase since the first half of 2008--a big jump, statistically speaking--and also three points higher than the 17 percent of households with landlines but no cell phones.
For comparison purposes, in 2003, just three percent of households were wireless only, whereas a whopping 43 percent had landlines but no cell phones yet. In the meantime, about 60 percent of households have both landlines and cell phones. The report attributed the accelerated shift to the recession, and the fact that the cell phone offers extra features--namely, mobility and texting, among others--that landlines generally don't have.
