IELTS Speaking Part 2: A Problem with an Electronic Device – Model Answers 2026

This is a new Part 2 topic in the official IELTS Speaking question bank for May–August 2026. You have one minute to prepare and two minutes to speak. Start with the situation immediately.

Cue Card

Describe a time when you had a problem with using an electronic device.

You should say:
– When it happened
– Where it happened
– What the problem was
– And explain how you solved the problem at last

Model Answer

About eighteen months ago, my laptop shut down completely while I was working on a report that was due the following morning. No warning, no error message. The screen went black mid-sentence and the machine would not restart.

It happened at home, on a Sunday evening. I had been working on the report for most of the day and was close to finishing. The timing was about as bad as it could have been. I had a nine-hour deadline, an unfinished document, and a device that was completely unresponsive regardless of what I tried. I attempted a hard reset, checked the power supply, tried a different charging cable, removed and reinserted the battery. Nothing changed.

I called a friend who works in IT support. He walked me through a remote troubleshooting process and eventually suggested the problem might be a RAM stick that had come loose, which can happen after the laptop takes a knock. He talked me through opening the back panel carefully and reseating the memory module. I had never opened a laptop in my life. My hands were not entirely steady doing it. But I followed each step exactly as he described, and when I pressed the power button again the machine started up normally as though nothing had happened.

The relief was immediate and disproportionate to the situation. The kind of relief you only feel when something resolves itself that you genuinely were not sure would. I saved the document to three separate locations within the first thirty seconds of being back in. I finished the report by eleven that evening and submitted it before midnight. The experience changed my backup habits completely and permanently. I now save to cloud storage automatically throughout every session. I have not thought seriously about losing work since, which is a considerable improvement on how anxious I used to feel about it.

Why This Works

The answer uses a specific sequence with real stakes (nine-hour deadline, close to finishing). The resolution includes a specific technical detail that sounds credible. The closing reflection shows that the experience had a lasting practical effect.

📌 Band 7-8 Vocabulary:
– unresponsive — not reacting to input or stimulus
– troubleshooting — diagnosing and solving technical problems
– RAM stick — a module of random-access memory in a computer
– reseating — removing and replacing a component to restore proper connection
– disproportionate — too large or too small in comparison to something else

IELTS Speaking Part 3: Electronic Device Questions and Model Answers

Question 1: Why are people keen on buying new electronic devices?

Model Answer:
Partly genuine need and partly manufactured desire. Technology companies, particularly Apple and Samsung, have mastered the art of making last year’s device feel insufficient before it has stopped functioning. Apple’s annual iPhone release cycle has trained consumers to associate the newest version with status in a way that was deliberately cultivated. Beyond marketing, there are genuine performance improvements in each generation, particularly in cameras and processing speed, that matter for specific use cases. The result is a market where the average UK smartphone is replaced every two to three years, even when the previous one still works.

Question 2: What impact do electronic devices have on people?

Model Answer:
The impact is both enormous and contradictory. On the positive side, smartphones have put more information, communication capability, and productivity tools into more people’s hands than any technology in history. On the negative side, the same devices have been linked to declining attention spans, increased anxiety, and disrupted sleep patterns. Jean Twenge, a psychologist at San Diego State University, published research showing that the rise of smartphone adoption correlates closely with a significant increase in depression and loneliness among teenagers in the US and UK. The devices are not inherently harmful. The design choices made by the companies building them are where the accountability lies.

Examiner Tips for IELTS Speaking Part 2 Electronic Device

Tip 1: Include a specific technical detail.
RAM, hard reset, power supply. You do not need to be an expert. One accurate technical term used naturally is enough to signal vocabulary range.

Tip 2: The stakes matter.
A nine-hour deadline makes the laptop failure genuinely dramatic. Without stakes the story is just a technical inconvenience.

Tip 3: For Part 3, name real companies and real researchers.
Apple, Samsung, Jean Twenge. Named references give Part 3 answers immediate weight.

Common Mistakes on This Topic

Describing the device problem without describing how it was solved
Using only “broken” and “not working” without more specific vocabulary
Part 3 answers that give only a personal opinion with no external reference
Opening with “I would like to describe a time when my device broke…”

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this a confirmed IELTS Speaking Part 2 topic for 2026?
Yes. A Problem with an Electronic Device appears in the official IELTS Speaking question bank for May–August 2026 as a new topic.

Does it have to be a serious problem?
No. A phone that stopped working before an important call, or a printer that failed before a deadline, are equally valid. What matters is the quality of the description.

What if I solved the problem by buying a new device?
That is a perfectly valid solution. Explain the decision and what it cost you in time, money, or inconvenience.