Pew: US Tablet & E-Reader Ownership Now At 43 Percent

This morning, the Pew Research Center released new survey data about tablet and e-reader ownership in the US. Previously, the organization had said that US tablet ownership among adults was 34 percent.

The survey data released today indicate that 43 percent of Americans over 16 own either a tablet or e-book reader (or both). The data show that 35 percent of Americans over the age of 16 own tablets and 24 percent own e-book readers such as the basic Kindle.

The survey from which these data come was conducted between July and September among more than 6,000 people over the age of 16.

What does this mean in terms of real numbers? There are roughly 240 million people in the US over 16. If the Pew survey data can reliably be extrapolated it would mean the following:

• Tablet owners: 84 million
• E-Reader owners: 57.6 million

These data were released in anticipation of Apple introducing new iPads next Tuesday. We’ll be there to cover the event.