SiliconVallaeys.com

According to a 2009 Pew Research Center poll, a significant percentage of consumers don't consider a television or a home computer to be a necessity rather than a luxury they could do without. Because of the recession, more people now think these things are luxuries than 3 years ago. Only high-speed internet access has gained in the necessity column, going from 29% in 2006 to 31% today.

By comparison, a car is a necessity to 88%, television set to 52% and home computer to 50%.