The chart illustrates the proportion of European households possessing various consumer goods between 2004 and 2008.
Overall, with the exception of the telephone, there was a notable increase in the ownership rates of most household goods throughout the given period, with certain items observing particularly extensive growth.
Looking first at the devices that recorded modest growth, TVs, CD player, Microwaves, Clothes dryers, and dishwashers all saw their ownership rates increase by around 5% between 2004 and 2008. By the end of the period, their respective household penetration had reached approximately 99%, 77%, 70%, 65%, and 30%.
More significant gains were observed in the adoption of home computers and mobile phones. The proportion of families possessing a computer increased twofold over the 4 years, reaching roughly 71% by 2008. However, the most pronounced surge was seen in the figure for mobile phones, with its ownership rate tripling from initial data of 30% to just south of 90%.
In contrast, telephone was the only category that observed a decline in its ownership rate over the given period, falling marginally from 93% to 91%. Notwithstanding this, it still remained the second-most prevalent household item.