Report: U.S. teens hooked on iPhones

Apple’s iPhone is often considered a luxury product, since budget-minded consumers generally buy cheaper Android devices.

However, 82% of U.S. teens now own iPhones, according to Piper Jaffray’s spring 2018 “Taking Stock With Teens“survey, compared to 78% in fall 2017.

Furthermore, 84% of those 6,000 respondents, who had an average age of 16.4, expected their next phone to be an iPhone. That represents a record high in forward demand, based on Piper’s prior surveys.

That rising demand could boost sales of Apple’s upcoming phones, which are expected to retain the iPhone X’s form factor at lower price points. Piper Jaffray also noted growing interest in the Apple Watch, with 20% of teens planning to buy one in the next six months, up from 17% last spring.

Family income levels weren’t deciding factors in iPhone ownership, since only 23% of respondents came from “upper-income” households, where the average household income was just more than $100,000 annually.

However, the survey didn’t break down iPhone ownership by model, so some teens were likely using older devices.

Leo Sun owns shares of Apple. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Apple.

The Motley Fool has the following options: long January 2020 $150 calls on Apple and short January 2020 $155 calls on Apple.