Study: Adults Increasingly Cell-Savvy

Adults are becoming increasingly cell addicted, with four out of 10 considering dropping their landline service. The findings were part of a larger mobile lifestyle survey released on Monday by America Online, the Associated Press, and Pew Research Center.

In previous studies AOL had focused on children and teenagers, which AOL Wireless director of emerging technologies Raine Bergstrom called "the trendsetters." Mobile use among this demographic is highest, and thus gauging their cellular activity has proven to be the most logical way of measuring the success of mobile features.

The new survey shows "the mobile phone is becoming more addictive" across a broad segment of the population, Bergstrom told BetaNews.

He said that the group wanted to peer into cellular use among adults, marking the first time a study aimed at those 18 or older was commissioned. Some of the results in the survey came as a surprise to researchers, Bergstrom said.

Just over half of all adults keep their mobile phones on continuously. Additionally, among those ages 18 to 29, the study found 40 percent say they likely will get rid of their landline phones.

"As the mobile phone becomes an ever-more essential communications tool, we are beginning to get measures on some important societal impacts," said Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet & American Life Project. "The cell is playing a key role in our daily lives, whether it's used for emergencies or as the primary technology for our most basic interactions with others."

Surprisingly, the most commonly cited "must-have" feature is not a camera phone or text messaging. Rather, 51 percent of respondents cited the capability to use mobile maps from the device. Bergstrom speculated that the addition of GPS features in phones was driving much of this demand.

Other must-have features include text messaging, 48 percent; camera phone, 47 percent; games, 34 percent; and mobile e-mail and mobile search with 32 and 31 percent, respectively.

Three in 10 also expressed interest in browsing the Web from their phones. Bergstrom said such high interest in the mobile Web was surprising. "Until recently, browsing the Web on the phone was a very poor experience," he explained.

AOL may take interest in another finding in the survey: 18 percent of users say that they would either like to, or have used a mobile IM service on their phones. To many, SMS text messaging is not enough, the study found.