Shoppers to rely on smartphones for Christmas

It has revolutionised the way we listen to music, take photos and exchange gossip but the smartphone is now set to also transform the nation's shopping habits this Christmas.

The accountancy firm Deloitte expects that smartphones will "influence" 10 per cent of retail purchases in stores in December.

Deloitte forecasts that consumers will make £330m of festive purchases directly on their smartphones this year and a further £500m via tablet devices. But this figure pales in comparison with the £3.2bn of sales that smartphones will influence this Christmas, as consumers use the devices to research prices, store Christmas shopping lists.