The report by O2 says that smartphones have become a digital "Swiss Army Knife" with a focus on various demands and uses beyond making phone calls.
Smartphone owners were found to currently spend over 2 hours a day using their phones, in which users spent 25 minutes browsing the internet, 17 minutes checking social networks, 13 minutes playing games, and 16 minutes listening to music.
Making phone calls was only the fifth use on smartphones with users only spending 12 minutes a day making calls. Phone calls were only slightly above emails (11 minutes) and texting (10 minutes).
"Smartphones are now being used like a digital ‘Swiss Army Knife’, replacing possessions like watches, cameras, books and even laptops," said David Johnson, O2’s general devices manager.
"While we’re seeing no let-up in the number of calls customers make or the amount of time they spend speaking on their phones, their phone now plays a far greater role in all aspects of their lives."
The study also found that more than half of the respondents reported they use their phone as an alarm clock and around 50% said they use a smartphone instead of a watch.
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Photography was also found to be a popular use of smartphones with 39% of respondents saying they have switched to their phone camera instead of a separate one and 75% saying they had taken photos with their mobile phones.
"We’re starting to see more and more phones being developed that interact with their users in new and interesting ways," said Johnson. "Intelligent voice recognition and eye tracking are making phones even easier to use and we know our customers will love them."
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