Rise of the apps sees fall in UK mobile phone calls

Research shows 78 percent of the British public believe they couldn't live without their smartphone

Rise of the apps (Getty)

The number of calls made on the UK’s mobile devices has fallen for the very first time, despite our growing dependence on smartphones.

According to Ofcom, the popularity of apps like WhatsApp, Snapchat and Facebook Messenger has cut the amount of time we spend calling friends and family the traditional way.

While three-quarters of people believe voice calling is still an important reason to use smartphones, 92 per cent said their phone’s web browsing capacity is vital.

The regulator found the total volume of outgoing mobile calls fell by 2.5 billion minutes last year to 148.6 billion minutes. Yet adults now spend an average of 2 hours and 28 minutes a day online via their smartphone. Young people (18-24 year-olds) are absorbed for even longer, spending 3 hours and 14 minutes online using their phone each day.

Remarkably, 78 per cent of adults said they could not live without their smartphone. Two in five adults check their device within five minutes of waking up. And seven out of 10 commuters spend time on their smartphones on the way to work.

Ofcom’s latest research shows some people feeling uneasy about their own smartphone obsession. Two in five people said they spent too much time looking at their device, and 54 per cent admitted their smartphone use interrupted face-to-face conversations with friends or family.

There is general agreement on the most annoying ways people use their devices. Three-quarters of people find it irritating when a fellow passenger is listening to music or playing games loudly on public transport, while 81 per cent object to other people getting absorbed in phone use during meal times.

“Over the last decade, people’s lives have been transformed by the rise of the smartphone, together with better access to the internet and new services,” said Ian Macrae, Ofcom’s director of market intelligence.

“Whether it’s working flexibly, keeping up with current affairs or shopping online, we can do more on the move than ever before. But while people appreciate their smartphone as their constant companion, some are finding themselves feeling overloaded when online, or frustrated when they’re not.”

The smartphone is now more treasured than the television set - 48 per cent of people said it was the one device they would miss the most, compared with 28 per cent who said their TV was still their most important possession.