According to Opera’s monthly stat-fest State of the Mobile Web Report mobile users are a bunch of night owls, the survey found that around the world, 8 p.m. to midnight are the day’s prime mobile browsing hours. Regardless of differences in economy, culture or location, those four evening hours account for a disproportionate amount of mobile data consumption, unless of course you’re in the UK where we’re just as likely to use it between 8am and noon.
The survey of Opera users – which now includes iPhone users thanks to the Opera iPhone app – looked at one 24-hour period (Saturday, May 22nd) to see how Opera Mini is used throughout the day in the top 10 countries, usage measured according to the amount of data transferred.
– In all of the top 10 countries, the highest level of Opera Mini use is at the tail end of the day–from 8 p.m. to midnight. That said, users in the United Kingdom are just as likely to browse on their phones between 8 a.m. and noon.
Highlight findings from the report are;
- There is little difference in data consumption between weekdays and weekends.
- Unsurprisingly, the least amount of mobile browsing is done in the early morning (when most people are asleep), between midnight and 8 a.m.
- Compared to users in the other top 10 countries, users in the United Kingdom are more likely to be browsing with Opera Mini between 4 a.m. and noon.
- Compared to users in the other top 10 countries, users in the United States are more likely to be browsing with Opera Mini between midnight and 4 a.m.
- Compared to users in the other top 10 countries, users in India are more likely to be browsing with Opera Mini between noon and 4 p.m.
- Compared to users in the other top 10 countries, users in Ukraine and South Africa are more likely to be browsing with Opera Mini between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
- Compared to users in the other top 10 countries, users in Nigeria and Vietnam are more likely to be browsing with Opera Mini between 8 p.m. and midnight.
In general, the survey found that evening browsing (between 4 p.m. and midnight) is more common than daytime browsing (between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.), except perhaps in China and the United Kingdom where daytime/evening usage is about even. The difference in Opera Mini usage during peak hours versus off-peak hours varies in each country. The biggest difference is noticeable in Vietnam (27% between 8 p.m. and midnight versus 9% between midnight and 4 a.m.).