They’re still being shaped by the changing world around them, but this year’s incoming freshmen are the next crop of consumers for marketers to prepare for. The characteristics that don’t need research to reveal: these teens are not likely to become cable TV subscribers and would rather lose their wallet than their cell phone. Phone landlines are not even mentioned in the article; perhaps already gone to the graveyard with cassette tapes. A less obvious shift: the new rite of passage into independence isn’t the driver’s license but getting a cell phone. And that happens a lot earlier than the DMV test. Ford Motors has also found that status symbols like luxury cars are not as appealing as they were with the previous generation. Ford is marketing social connection features and fuel efficiency gauges to these younger millenials. The most remarkable statistic: only 5% of the freshman surveyed planned to buy a personal computer. And yet 76% spend more than an hour a day on Facebook. You see why Ford will be making sure its cars have mobile phone connectivity.