Voice is still the dominant form of smartphone communication in the UK, according to a new report from Ericsson ConsumerLab.
The ‘Communication in the World of Apps’ report found that more than 30 percent of time spent on smartphones is on communications through voice, instant messaging VoIP, emails and social networking.
In the UK and US voice remained the dominant mode of communication, with 53 percent of time spent on communication apps going on voice calls. Japanese and South Korean users prefer text messages and locally developed communication apps.
In addition, the report showed that communication apps were more dependent on mobile broadband; 40-50 percent of data consumption for communication apps uses mobile broadband, whereas the corresponding figure for video is just 20 percent.
The research also showed a virtual popularity deadlock between WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger in the UK, with 54 percent and 54 percent respectively using each app more than once a month.
While 98 percent of Indian respondents used WhatsApp more than once a month, in the US Facebook Messenger took the top spot.
"Smartphones are replacing a variety of specialised devices. Among the myriad activities that you can carry out on smartphones, communication remains dominant," says the report.
The report surveyed 23,000 Android users from, the UK, Japan, the US, Japan and South Korea.
