Google: Filipinos search for “gadgets” most

Posted on May 10th, 2011. Written by Rico.

According to statistics compiled by online service Google Insights for Search, no other country has searched for the term “gadgets” more than the Philippines—from a period covering 2004 to the time of this writing (May 10, 2011).

Google Insights for Search provides an in-depth look at what kind of information people search the web for through Google. The “beta” service—advertised as still in the development phase—lets users zero in on specific regions, time frames, and even search topics.

It’s thus possible to see which search terms are popular for a particular country, during a particular time. As of this writing, the top two Google searches for the Philippines (again from 2004 until now) are “Philippines” and “lyrics” respectively.

The fact that Filipinos have searched for “gadgets” most was highlighted by Google country representative Aileen Apolo (the same person who told us about the Angry Birds merchandise), in a press statement sent to local media.

What does this little tidbit of information mean exactly? The statement characterizes the Philippines’ search habits as a “unique interest in technology”. Could it be that, despite living in a country where the impoverished majority can only afford the most basic of tech-based products and services, many Filipinos are that interested in technology?