Band 7+: The chart below shows the percentage of UK households with selected consumer durables between 1998 and 2005. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

The given bar graph illustrates the proportion of residents of England with selected customer appliances in 1996 and 2006.

Overall, almost all the items owned by domestic individuals experienced increased growth over the period. Telephones and washing machines remained the most purchased products, while mobile phones and internet connections, despite being the least popular choices, had the most noticeable surge over the period.

In 1996, telephone ownership was highest among all the groups, standing at nearly 95%, before declining slightly to about 85%. In contrast, washing machines experienced significant growth, climbing from approximately 65% to about 82%. Similarly, both microwaves and fridges reached a gradual peak at nearly 80% and slightly lower than microwaves, about 78%, respectively.

In comparison, the most dramatic change was shown by internet connections, accounting for just about 5% in 1996. By the year 2006, the data jumped rapidly to roughly 60%, almost reaching the levels of fridges and microwaves. However, mobile phones had more demand than internet connections initially, representing 20%. Although over the period of time, it lagged behind, constituting close to 40%.