Wealthy Singaporeans are the most voracious consumers of cutting-edge technology of all the Asian countries, according to a study by global research firm Synovate.

Singapore is now the top market across Asia-Pacific in smartphone and notebook ownership, according to the Singapore break-out results of the 2011 Pan Asia Pacific Cross Media Survey from Synovate. The results were compiled from the responses of nearly 1,700 Singaporean affluent individuals and traced lifestyle and financial choices for the last 15 years. 

Smartphone ownership has doubled in a year - in 2010, 23 per cent had smartphones, while now more than one in two Singaporean elites (55 per cent) own a smartphone, the highest of all Asian regions. Singaporean affluents also have the highest ownership of laptop and notebook computers at 83 per cent, versus the regional average of 56 per cent.

Also, mobile phones that are not ‘smart’ enough are quickly being replaced, according to the report. Ownership of mobiles that are not smartphones has dropped from 91 per cent to 49 per cent over the past year.

Over three quarters of Singaporean affluent individuals own a plasma or LCD screen TV, while 60 per cent now own a digital still camera.

The affluent group in Singapore showed the highest connectedness to the internet of all the Asian regions, with 97 per cent of them having links online. Over half of the elites already had access to the internet since 1997. 

Luxury and travel

In terms of travel, Singaporeans emerged as the top fliers, with one in five going on one or more business trips compared to 13 per cent regionally and 48 per cent going on one or more leisure trips versus the 41 per cent regional average. 

"A barometer of the health of the business environment is the number of people going on business trips to capitalise on business opportunities available. Thirty-three per cent of the Singaporean elites surveyed has gone on one more business trips, compared to 27 per cent in 2010. This is double the regional average of 15 per cent," said Clare Lui, director of Synovate Hong Kong. 

Increased indulgence can also been in the affluent Singaporean group over the years. Two out of three Singaporean affluents said they like to treat themselves to something special even if it’s expensive, an increase of 11 per cent from last year’s results. This is evident in increased regular consumption of wine and champagne. Regular wine consumption quadrupled from 5 per cent in 1997 to 21 per cent in 2011. Champagne consumption also more than doubled from 3 per cent in 1997 to 7 per cent. 

Intention to purchase on several product categories has increased over the past year – from personal (23 per cent to 26 per cent), household ( 20 per cent to 26 per cent), to luxury products (16 per cent to 22 per cent).

Over the past year, there has been a jump of 14 per cent of elites stating that paying extra for quality is worthwhile (from 57 per cent to 71 per cent).

Wealth management

When it comes to wealth management strategies, Singaporeans also appeared to have the most sophisticated choices, the study said. For one, ownership of unit trusts or mutual funds have gone up from 5 per cent in 1997 to 35 per cent to 2011. When asked whether they keep themselves updated with the latest global financial news, Singaporeans once again emerged at the top with 54 per cent saying they do, followed by 52 per cent from Seoul, and then 49 per cent from India. 

"Media owners delivering international content to Singapore can take comfort from these findings that the elite group is highly receptive and appreciative of the content provided," said Steve Garton, the global head of media and managing director for media, Greater China. 

The survey was conducted from the third quarter of 2010 to the second quarter of 2011.

View the Synovate PAX Fact Sheet here.