SUNNYVALE, CA--(Marketwired - Dec 11, 2013) - According to a recent Scout GPS survey, 90 percent of Americans typically take holiday road trips and, for 35 percent of Americans, the drive is at least 100 miles. While the length of holiday road trips may or may not have changed since the 1980s, both mobile and in-car technology have advanced dramatically, significantly changing what people do while they are on the road to see family and friends. This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Scout GPS from November 8th-10th, 2013, among 2,044 adults.

Entertaining the Kids
Keeping kids amused while in the car can be a challenge for many parents. In the 1980s, when mobile technology was extremely limited, road trip games -- like "I Spy" or counting car colors -- may have been one of the primary ways to pass the time. However, in 2013, only 27 percent of parents* say that their kids now play these games. Some may have also replaced family sing-alongs with individually listening to music on headphones, as 27 percent of parents say they or their kids sing songs during holiday road trips but 42 percent say they or their kids are listening to music on headphones during holiday road trips.

The most popular way of keeping kids busy while in the car seems to be playing video games on mobile devices (e.g., cell phones, tablets, gaming devices), with the majority (54 percent) of parents saying their kids do this. Surprisingly, this is not limited to older children as 36 percent of parents with children age two or younger and 62 percent of parents with three to five-year-olds note that their kids play video games in the car during holiday road trips.

Kids in the 1980s could only imagine the car of the future that would allow for movie watching, but now it is reality for many children, as nearly half (46 percent) of parents say their kids watch movies in the car during road trips. In addition, 30 percent of parents say that their kids text or access the internet on mobile devices in the car while traveling during the holidays, including those who are parents of a child age two or younger (22 percent).

It's not just in the car
Mobile devices have made a dramatic impact on how many kids spend their entire holiday vacation. One-in-five parents (21 percent) admit that their children spend five hours or more on mobile devices per day during the holiday season, including seven percent of parents with children two or younger and 19 percent of parents with children three to five years old.

What are the adults doing while the kids are on their mobile devices?
So, while the kids are listening to music, watching movies or playing video games, what are the adults doing? Sixty-two percent of Americans who own mobile devices say they check email (on their devices) during holiday road trips, with two-in-ten (21 percent) checking at least every hour. Thirteen percent of mobile device owners aged 18 to 44 say they check their email "constantly" (at least every 10 minutes) while on holiday road trips.

In-between email checks, 72 percent of mobile device owners say they use their mobile device to take pictures or videos during the road trip and one-third admit that they do so constantly.

Sharing pictures with out-of-state family and friends in the 1980s required a camera, a roll of film, an envelope and stamps, not to mention more than a week for developing and mailing. However, in 2013, with mobile devices and social media sites like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, it is much simpler to share while on the go. Forty-one percent of mobile device owners say they post or upload pictures to these sites even while they are in the car on their holiday road trip. Almost a quarter (23 percent) say they post 3-10 pictures while on the road, while three percent might "overshare," admitting they post "every picture" they take in the car to a social media site.

When asked what kind of pictures they mostly take during the holidays, 41 percent of U.S. adults say mainly group family pictures, 22 percent say pictures of kids and 19 percent say scenic/landscape pictures. Surprisingly, only four percent say they mostly take pictures of food and only two percent say they mostly take "selfies."

Options for listening to music during holiday road trips have also changed for adults since the 1980s, when cassette tapes and AM/FM radio were the primary choices. Thirty-nine percent now listen to music on CD, more than a quarter (27 percent) listen to music downloaded onto a mobile device such as an mp3 player or mobile phone, 18 percent listen to streaming music (e.g., Pandora or Spotify) via a mobile device or their car, and almost one-in-five (19 percent) listen to satellite radio. Of those who have a mobile device such as an iPod, phone or other mp3 player, more than one-in-five (21 percent) have over 500 songs downloaded and 10 percent say they have more than 1,000 songs downloaded. Despite all of these choices, AM/FM radio is still a popular option, as 69 percent of Americans say they listen to AM/FM radio during holiday road trips.

Navigating the Drive
Mobile and other GPS technology have also changed how we get directions and navigate the road during holiday road trips. In the 1980s, stopping to ask for directions may have been a popular way to get help when lost but, in 2013, ten percent of Americans say that they have never stopped to ask for directions in their life. Perhaps not surprisingly, younger Americans are even less likely to have done this, with 20 percent of those aged 18-34 saying they have never stopped to ask.

In the 1980s, lost drivers may have chosen to call a friend -- but they would have most likely had to do this from a nearby pay phone rather than from a cell phone (don't forget, the first commercial cell phone, Motorola DynaTAC, launched in 1984 and cost $3,995**). However, in 2013, things have changed and twelve percent of U.S. adults say they have never used a pay phone in their life. In addition, more than two-thirds (67 percent) say it has been six or more years since they last used a pay phone to make a call, with nearly half (46 percent) indicating it has been more than 10 years.

*All survey results mentioning "parents" reflect parents with one or more children under the age of 18

** http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorola_DynaTAC   

For additional findings and an infographic highlighting the results visit www.scout.me/survey.

Scout is developed by Telenav, Inc. (NASDAQ: TNAV), the leader in personalized navigation. Scout is available on Android, iPhone and Windows Phone 8, and includes traffic features that help make peoples' lives less stressful, more productive, and more fun when they're on the go.

Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Scout GPS from November 8 - 12, 2013 among 2,044 adults ages 18 and older, of whom 436 are parents of children under 18. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Mary Beth Lowell (marybethl@telenav.com).

About Telenav, Inc.
Telenav's mission is to help make people's lives less stressful, more productive, and more fun when they are on the go. Our personalized navigation services help people make faster and smarter daily decisions about where to go, when to leave, how to get there, and what to do when they arrive.

We aim to be everywhere people need us. Our partners are wireless carriers, automobile manufacturers, app developers, advertisers and advertising agencies. Our carrier and automotive partners include AT&T, Bell Mobility, Boost Mobile, Ford, NII Holdings, QNX Software Systems, Rogers, Sprint, Telcel, T-Mobile U.S., U.S. Cellular, and Vivo Brazil. You can also find us in mobile app stores and on the web at www.telenav.com and www.scout.me.

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Copyright 2013 Telenav, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

"Telenav," "Scout," the Telenav and Scout logos, "telenav.com" and "scout.me" are registered and unregistered trademarks and/or service marks of Telenav, Inc. Unless otherwise noted, all other trademarks, service marks, and logos used in this press release are the trademarks, service marks or logos of their respective owners.

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