Losing a mobile phone would be similar to a bereavement for almost half of young people, according to a report today.
Research among 25 to 34-year-olds found 46 per cent "could not live without their mobile", although users were increasingly likely to send text messages rather than make a call.
One in three of those questioned by Henley Management College said they had personalised their ringtones, while 12 per cent had changed the fascia.
The research, which involved 50 interviews and three focus groups, found three distinctive groups of mobile phone users: Cyborgs - The generation who could not remember life without a mobile phone and believed the phone was an extension of themselves.
Prosthetics - Highly dependent on mobiles for organising their public and private lives but don't see the phone as part of themselves.
Connected but unattached - Use mobiles mainly for work or emergencies and rarely send texts.
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