IELTS Writing Task 1 – Academic – Consumer Durables
The table below shows the consumer durables (telephone, refrigerator, etc) owned in Britain from 1972 to 1983.
Version 1
The table compares the percentage of households in Britain with various appliances from 1972 to 1983. Overall, dishwashers and video recorders were not as popular compared to other appliances. In contrast, TVs and vacuum cleaners were common throughout this period.
In 1972, only 37% of people in Britain had central heating. However, this number increased over the next few years, and by 1983, it had doubled to 64%. In comparison, telephones were in 42% of British households in 1972, and after 11 years, 77% of households had a telephone. Washing machines were present in about 80% of households by 1983, which was a 14% increase compared to a decade earlier. Refrigerators were in 94% of households in 1983, an 11% increase from 1972.
The increase in vacuum cleaner ownership was only 8% from 1972 to 1982, reaching 95% of British households. The highest appliance usage during the 11-year period was for televisions, which increased from 93% to 95% in 1983. Dishwashers had very low usage; they appeared in 1978 with only 3% of households, and by 1983, this had grown to just 5%. Video recorders became popular in 1983, with 18% of British households having one.
Version 2
The table compares the different home appliances owned by British people from 1972 to 1983. Overall, televisions were owned by many Britons, while videos and dishwashers were the least owned equipment.
In 1972, only a third (37%) of the British population had central heating, while two-thirds had washing machines. Over the next 11 years, these numbers increased, and by 1983, six in ten British people had central heating, and 80% had washing machines. In contrast, the percentage of people with telephones was 77% in 1983, a 35% increase from a decade earlier.
Consumer durables such as video players were the least popular, with only 18% ownership in 1983, while dishwashers had the lowest percentage from 1978 to 1983, averaging around 4% over those five years. In contrast, vacuum cleaners were used by 87% of the British population in 1972, increasing to 95% after a decade. Televisions had the highest ownership throughout the years, rising from 93% to 98% by 1983.
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