Girls new best friend is a new plasma tv!

A girl's best friend? Try plasma
Oxygen study says tech gender gap has closed; most women would choose a flat-screen TV over a diamond necklace.
Photos: Wild for women's gadgets
By Reuters
Published: August 2, 2006, 5:41 AM PDT
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Diamonds are no longer a girl's best friend, according to a new U.S. study finding that three-fourths of women would prefer a new plasma TV to a diamond necklace.

The survey, commissioned by women-centric cable TV network Oxygen Media, found that the technology gender gap has virtually closed, with the majority of women snapping up new technology and using it handily.
Gadgets for girls

Women were found on average to own 6.6 technology devices, while men own 6.9, and four out of every five women felt comfortable using technology, with 46 percent doing their own computer troubleshooting.

"People make the assumption that women are not as advanced as men when it comes to technology, and I was surprised at the parity men and women now have, in terms of technology," Geraldine Laybourne, chairman and chief executive of Oxygen, told Reuters.

The "Women's Watch: Girls Gone Wired" survey of 1,400 women and 700 men ages 15 to 49, which was conducted by market researcher Teenage Research Unlimited, found that given the choice, women opt for tech items rather than luxury items like jewelry or vacations.

The study found that 77 percent of women surveyed would prefer a new plasma television to a diamond solitaire necklace, and 56 percent would opt for a new plasma TV over a weekend vacation in Florida.
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Even shoes lost out. The study found that 86 percent would prefer a new digital video camera to a pair of designer shoes.

Over the next five years, according to the study, women see themselves increasing their activities in six tech areas: digital cameras, cell phones, e-mail, camera phones, text messaging and instant messaging.

Laybourne said this increasing use of technology among women was expected to continue, with advertisers needing to ensure that they are addressing women's increased usage and knowledge.

"Women don't feel like they have been given credit for what they know and they are condescended to," Laybourne said.

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