The Netherlands embraces smarthome: houses are slimmer
Many Dutch people embrace the smart home. According to a survey by Statistics Netherlands, 72 percent of the Dutch population owns at least one smart device. The most popular? The slim meter.
Do not pass on meter readings
Fewer and fewer Dutch people have to sniff and pass on their meter readings themselves, because no less than 59 percent of citizens have a slim meter for gas, electricity or water. They often automatically inform the energy supplier about the state of consumption. 27 percent of the Dutch have a slim thermostat. While all slim products come with certain challenges, they also have their benefits.
Thanks to such a slim meter, the Dutch are more aware of their consumption, because you can often read this in an app. This allows them to better manage how much energy, gas and water they use. Especially now that there is a large demand for gas and a lesser supply, it is good to put people’s noses at the facts via such a slim meter.
Smarthome equipment
Although the slim meter gives the figures a big boost, it does not mean that the Netherlands is a huge forerunner in the use of slim devices. For example, only 14 percent of respondents have slim plugs, lighting and other smart home equipment in their home. When it comes to dust and devices, such as a robot, the following is lower. A meager 6 percent of the Dutch have a slim household appliance.
The number of people using a smart security system such as from Ring, Arlo or Nest is also quite low: only 11 percent have a sleek smoke detector security camera. We do, however, regularly talk to a voice, because a fifth of the respondents indicated that they sometimes use Siri, Alexa or Google Assistant.
Wearables popular
As a people, we love cycling, walking and running (logically, without too many hills), which is probably one of the reasons that wearables score well. Just under 20 percent of the Netherlands has a smartwatch or a pedometer. CBS conducted the survey among 6,500 people aged twelve years and older, of whom the people who have no slim appliances at all at home, absolutely do not have one because there is no need. But, there was also never a desire to use smartphones, so who knows, she hasn’t tacked yet.
The survey reveals more facts about the Dutch, such as that 24 percent of the Dutch buy mobile phones and laptops online and 22 percent transfer equipment and electronics. That is less than we buy clothes on the internet, because that is the highest at 59 percent.
IT more popular at MBO
It also turned out that courses in the Technology & Process industry are the third popular MBO courses, after Care & Welfare and Economics & Administration. At HBO and WO people are much less interested in technology: there the focus is on Business & Administration. A shame, because there are many jobs available within IT.
Would you like to learn more interesting facts about your fellow countrymen? Then check Netherlands in Numbers of the Central Bureau of Statistics.
Laura Jenny
When she’s not clicking somewhere, she floats in the wonderful world of entertainment or on an airplane to a cool place in the world. mario…