More elderly Hongkongers have smartphones, survey shows, but ‘access to such devices does not necessarily mean digital awareness’

More elderly Hongkongers had access to smartphones last year, according to an official survey, but observers warn that owning such devices does not necessarily make them digitally smart.

The increased smartphone penetration among the city’s older population was mainly due to the mandatory use of a Covid-19 contact-tracing app to enter various premises including restaurants and government facilities, social workers and experts said.

More than one in four elderly in Hong Kong still did not own a smartphone, according to the thematic household survey report released by the Census and Statistics Department on Thursday.

The report showed that nearly 1 million people aged 65 and above had a smartphone in 2021, accounting for 73 per cent of the total elderly population, up from 68.1 per cent a year earlier.

The survey, conducted between April and July last year, found the overall popularity of smartphones in Hong Kong also continued to increase, with about 6 million people aged 10 and above having a smartphone in 2021, or 92.9 per cent of the total. The rate was up from 92.1 per cent in 2020.

Many elderly residents flocked to buy smartphones after the government introduced the “Leave Home Safe” risk-exposure app in November 2020 and made it mandatory for people to scan a QR code using the app to enter various premises.

Some organisations also donated devices to the underprivileged elderly who could not afford one.

Francis Fong Po-kiu, honorary president of the Hong Kong Information Technology Federation, said the mandatory use of the app was a major incentive for elderly residents to get smartphones.