About a quarter of men in Britain would rather spend the evening alone with a new gadget than with their wife or partner, a new survey claims.
The Stuff magazine-commissioned survey of 952 people, conducted by NOP, showed that one in four men have avoided the marital bed in favour of playing computer games, Web surfing or late-night DVD watching. "The revelation... confirms many wives are now widowed by a gadget rather than by a love rival," the men's magazine concluded.
A stunning 33 percent of the British men who participated in the poll confessed that they have more fun with their gadgets than with their wife or partner. Unsurprisingly, 22 percent of wives said that they did not understand what Stuff magazine described as their partner's "love affair" with gadgets. Around 40 percent of wives admit they take second place after the games console, computer or DVD player.
The average gadget-loving survey respondent said that they spend about two hours with their favourite gizmo -- alone -- before heading off to bed to be with their spouse. One in ten men will spend up to four hours avoiding the marital bed, Stuff said.
"I think this wholesome and safe affair with the gadget is far better than any other form of infidelity -- at least wives and girlfriends know exactly where their fella is, even if they don't know exactly what he's doing," commented Stuff publishing manager Eddie Johnson.
"Our research reveals many men put gadgets at the very heart of their lives and often put their wives or girlfriends second," Johnson added. "This is clearly a reaction to the Sex and the City revolution. Women have become obsessed with their own gadgets and toys -- now men are fighting back with a harmless love affair with consumer electronics."
Such sentiments solidify the widely held belief that men are the biggest purchasers of consumer electronics and gizmos. And research earlier this year by Dutch consultancy KNOTs largely upholds this belief, confirming that men tend to be bigger purchasers of less widespread items, such as PDAs, flat-screen TVs and CD writers. Interestingly, however, that same Europe-wide research showed that women are also willing to buy new technology, especially commonly used devices like mobile phones, digital cameras, MP3 players and new televisions, for which purchase rates are about equal, KNOTs said.
What's more, a poll released last month by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) and conducted by Peter D Hart Research Associates found that a full quarter of video game players are adult women, compared to the mere 20 percent figure for six- to 17-year-old boys. In total, females account for 38 percent video gamers, ESA said.
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