TV, radio, smartphone use in Germany

A new survey by pollsters from TNS Emnid shows that - considering Germany's population as a whole – TV sets are still pretty much deemed indispensible in roughly a quarter of all households. No less than 33 percent of respondents indicate they wouldn't know how to "survive" without their daily dose of television.

A far more recent consumer electronics gadget, the smartphone, takes second place in the Emnid study. 27 percent of those polled see themselves "dying" without the nifty devices, which are good for a lot more than just making phone calls.

The good old radio sets bring up the rear in the survey. Nevertheless, one in five Germans still believe that listening to the radio is essential, pointing out that the radio sets they use don't necessarily have to be at home, but can also be in their cars.

But if you ask the younger generation - in Emnid's case Germans aged between 14 and 29 - the picture changes dramatically, giving you an idea of how fast two of the "protagonists" under review might vanish.

In the age group mentioned, the smartphone is the uncontested winner, with 67 percent of respondents believing the Earth would stop turning, if they didn't have one.

A staggering 47 percent among them would "definitely go back home," had they left their smartphones there before going to school, college, work or what have you.

Asked about the things that drive them up the wall when using smartphones, those polled singled out connectivity issues, slow internet and - above all - batteries' fast recharging cycles.

In the same age group, television only plays a role for 8 percent of respondents, while radio gets an even worse deal, with just a tiny 5 percent still deeming it important.