One in five Australians use mobile device in bed to avoid partner, Telstra research

AUSTRALIANS’ love affair with their mobile device in the bedroom is becoming stronger than love for their partner, new research shows.

Alarmingly one in five people admit they use their device while between the sheets to avoid their other half and only 15 per cent say they would “never” stream a device while lying horizontal.

The research commissioned by telco Telstra also found about 32 per cent say they regularly go online while in the bedroom,

It showed the busiest time for video streaming on home broadband networks was between 8pm and midnight and it’s significantly impacting our sleep.

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The Sleep Health Foundation’s Professor Dorothy Buck said all mobile devices including smartphones, tablets and laptops should be kept out of the bedroom.

“Before you are going to sleep and you are on a device it’s going to impact the level of hormone released to help you go to sleep and it will make it harder for you to fall into sleep,’’ she said.

“I would suggest not using devices in bed at all, the bedroom should be kept as a place for sleeping and intimacy.”

Relationships Australia Victoria senior manager Sue Yorston agreed, saying couples should have “agreed times to turn off a device.”

“Good communication is a clear indicator for a healthy relationships and where there is a lack of communication it shows there’s problems,’’ she said.

“When you are on a device you are in a totally different zone, it excludes your partner.”

Telstra this week rolled out a series of new home internet bundles to cope with the nation’s addiction to using their devices at home — the plans will also help bolster in-home speeds and coverage for customers.

The telco’s executive director of fixed products and services Stuart Bird said Aussies now have an “insatiable desire” for video-on-demand services and the “one size fits all plan” no longer exists.

“Customers can stream, surf and share with less interruption in more places at all the same time,’’ he said.

He said one TV episode eats about 1GB of data, or you could watch all four seasons of House of Cards using just over 50GB, a two-hour movie 2.5GB and a three-minute YouTube video 50MB.

The research showed users are increasingly using their devices outside of the living room — streaming from the bedroom (60 per cent), kitchen (20 per cent), garden (17 per cent) and even the bathroom (12 per cent).

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Originally published as Partner ignored for a mobile affair