When it comes to business, Apple’s popular iPad tablet is viewed as a critical tool, according to an online survey of 1,320 iPad owners employed at companies of varying sizes and across industries, conducted by online and mobile presentation company Brainshark. The iPad is helping users with their jobs to such a great extent, almost half of respondents (47 percent) said they’d rather have an iPad for work than a bigger or better office or a more senior title (34 percent).
Sixty-eight percent said they’d rather have an iPad than their own parking space at work, while almost one in four (23 percent) would prefer the tablet over an extra week of vacation each year. The survey, conducted in August, asked respondents about how they use their iPad for personal and business activities, and how and whether the device has impacted their lives and routines. The survey found 92 percent of iPad owners said the device currently supplements their notebook, but more than half (51 percent) think it will be their primary computing device within the next two years.
“Ever since the iPad burst onto the technology scene, it’s indelibly changed the way and speed at which individuals and businesses communicate,” Andy Zimmerman, chief marketing officer for Brainshark, said in a press statement. “No one doubts the device’s popularity, but what’s really eye-opening about these statistics is just how inextricable the iPad has become from users’ everyday lives. From a business perspective, it’s now incredibly important for companies to find ways to conveniently reach their audiences on this device of choice â making it easy for them to view presentations and other important materials.”
When using their device for business, owners say they check work emails (82 percent), do Web research (72 percent), use business apps (46 percent) and view or deliver presentations (74 percent). Sixty-four percent of those surveyed said the iPad has made them more productive, while 32 percent said they have become more successful at their jobs an able to close deals more effectively (21 percent). When traveling for business, 89 percent of iPad owners reported using their iPad, with 79 percent saying it improves connectivity while on the go. Sixty percent of users say they currently bring their iPad and notebook with them, but more than one in three (35 percent) bring just their iPad and leave the notebook at home.
The usefulness of the tablet-and business users’ dependence on it, is reaching new heights, which the survey illustrated through the use of some eye-opening questions. When asked what they would go without before they would give up travel with their iPad, nearly half (48 percent) say they would forego meals, 41 percent would skip drinking water, and more than 1 in 3 (35 percent) would give up bathroom breaks. More than half (55 percent) said they would rather forget deodorant than forget their iPad.
