Cellphone feels like a part of your body? A global survey has found that most people can't live without their mobiles, never leave home without them and, if given a choice, would rather lose their wallet.
Calling mobile phones the "remote control" for life, market research firm Synovate's poll said cell phones are so ubiquitous that by last year more humans owned one than did not.
Three-quarters of the more than 8,000 respondents polled online in 11 countries said they take their phone with them everywhere, with Russians and Singaporeans the most attached.
More than a third also said they couldn't live without their phone, topped by Taiwanese and again Singaporeans, while one in four would find it harder to replace the mobile than their purse.
Some two-thirds of respondents go to bed with their phones nearby and can't switch them off, even though they want to, because they're afraid they'll miss something.
"Mobiles give us safety, security and instant access to information. They are the number one tool of communication for us, sometimes even surpassing face-to-face communication. They are our connections to our lives," Jenny Chang, Synovate's managing director in Taiwan, said in a statement.
Mobiles have also changed the nature of relationships, with the survey finding nearly half of all respondents use text messages to flirt, a fifth set up first-dates via text and almost the same number use the same method to end a love affair.
Apart from the obvious calling and texting, the top three features people use regularly on their mobile phones globally are the alarm clock, the camera and the games.
As for email and Internet access, 17 percent of respondents said they checked their inboxes or surfed the Web off their phones, lead by those in the United States and Britain.
One in 10 respondents log onto social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace regularly via mobile, again led by Britain and the United States.
"As the mobile becomes more and more an all-in-one device, many other businesses are facing challenging times. The opportunities for mobile manufacturers and networks however are enormous," said Synovate's global head of media, Steve Garton.
Not everyone is tech savvy, however: 37 percent of respondents said they don't know how to use all the functions on their phone.
是不是觉得手机已成为身体的一部分?一项全球调查显示，大多数人觉得离开手机无法生活，从来不会不带手机出门，如果非要有所取舍，则宁愿舍弃钱包。
这项由思纬市场调查公司开展的民调称，手机已成为人们生活中的“遥控器”，它们无处不在。截至去年，手机用户的数量已超过没有手机的人数。
该公司共对来自11个国家的八千多位受访者开展了一项在线调查。调查结果显示，四分之三的受访者称自己无论去哪都会随身带手机。俄罗斯人和新加坡人对手机最为依赖。
超过三分之一的受访者称，他们离开手机无法生活，其中以台湾人和新加坡人为最甚。而四分之一的受访者则觉得手机比钱包更重要。
约三分之二的受访者睡前会把手机放在身边，而且他们即使想关机，也不会关掉，因为害怕错过电话。
思纬公司驻台湾常务董事Jenny Chang在一份声明中称：“手机给了我们安全感，让我们更安心，而且能随时接收信息。手机是我们第一大通讯工具，有时甚至超过了面对面的交谈。手机是联系我们生活的纽带。”
手机还改变了人们谈情说爱的方式。调查发现，近一半的受访者利用短信调情，五分之一的受访者通过短信安排初次约会，另有相同比例的人用同样的方法结束一段恋情。
除通话和发短信这两个主要的功能外，从全球来看，人们最常使用的其它三项手机功能是闹钟、拍照和游戏。
而至于发邮件和上网这两项功能，17%的受访者称他们利用手机查收邮件或浏览网页，这其中以美国人和英国人居多。
十分之一的受访者经常通过手机登录Facebook和Myspace等社交网站，英美人在这一项所占的比例也是最高。
思纬公司全球媒体总裁史蒂夫•加顿说：“随着手机逐渐成为一种集多种功能为一体的通讯工具，很多其它行业正面临着挑战。然而这对手机制造商和网络来说却蕴含着巨大的机遇。”
但并非所有人都是科技通。37%的受访者称，他们不知道如何使用手机上的所有功能。
