As part of some internal research, Network World conducted an online survey to find out readers’ home networking habits.

Seems we made some wrong assumptions. We thought many of you had already connected advanced devices to your networks - networked storage drives, media players and VoIP boxes. But in fact, most have only connected the basics - PCs, notebooks and printers.

We received 1,584 responses on the survey conducted last month. When we asked what type of Internet connection you’re using, cable dominated with 49.2%; DSL users made up only 28.4%. We were a little surprised that 17.7% still use dial up. Perhaps cable or DSL isn’t yet available to these readers, which is good news for alternative service offerings such as broadband wireless or satellite.

As we expected, most have been relying on broadband for some time now. More than half (50.4%) have had their connection for more than two years; nearly 10% have had it for six to 12 months.

When asked what types of devices are connected to the network, computer desktops (98%), printers (90%) and notebooks (86%) dominated; after that the picture blurs. Thirty-nine percent of respondents have a Web camera connected, and 32% have an external hard drive. But devices such as game consoles (14%), media center PCs (13%), personal video recorders (11%), digital media players (9%) and VoIP boxes (8%) have yet to make much of a dent. 

Could this be because the devices are still so new, or don’t readers see a need for them? Are they still too expensive or hard to set up?

Responses to another question offered clues. We asked what devices you plan on connecting in the next 12 months. Here, some newer devices fared better: VoIP devices (27%), personal video recorders (26%), media center PCs (22%) and network-attached storage devices (22%).

I'd like to hear from readers on this one. Send me a quick e-mail (kshaw@nww.com) and let me know what types of devices you have on your home network, what you plan to add in the next 12 months and why. We'll share some responses in a future column.