Laptop Buying Spikes to Highest in Pandemic: CTA Tracker

An estimated 18% of U.S. homes added new laptops in the two weeks ended Oct. 18, reported CTA’s biweekly COVID-19 tech purchase tracker Wednesday. That “wave 20" result was up 5 points from wave 19 ended Oct. 4 and was the highest level of laptop purchase activity recorded since CTA began the tracker weekly in late March. Other trends: (1) An estimated 15% of U.S. households bought new TVs, up 2 points from wave 19; (2) Headphone/earbud purchase activity rebounded to 20% of U.S. homes after two declines; (3) Smartphone additions at U.S. homes stayed at 17%.