Australians would rather go without food than be without their smartphones, survey shows

SMARTPHONES are taking over our lives with users willing to forgo food, clothes and mates in favour of devices, survey shows.

MORE than 440,000 Australians would rather go without food than their hi-tech smart phones.

Teenagers, in particular, would rather give up speaking to friends, lose their wallets and even their clothes than lose their iPhones.

As sales of devices such as Apple's iPhone 4 continue to boom, a nationwide study being unveiled today reveals just how much the gadgets are taking over our lives.

The study, on behalf of INQ Mobile revealed:

* More than 57 per cent of Gen Y would ditch meals for the day rather than endure 24 hours without their mobile.

* One in 10 preferred to use Facebook to find a new boyfriend or girlfriend rather than go out and meet people.

* More  than 57 per cent said leaving the prized gadget at home would ruin their day.

The ability to keep up with social networking on the run has given a huge boost to smartphone sales. Research firm Gartner estimates we will buy more than 5.7 million this year, up from 4.4 million last year.

Gen Y student Jess Manolitsas, 18, of East Malvern, sends at least 100 text messages a day, spending up to $400 a month on her phone.

"If I have nothing to do I always check my phone, it stops boredom," she said.

Her friend Aly Howard, 17, sends 3000 messages a month and would rather give up her wallet than her iPhone.

"Wallets are replaceable," she said.

India Patterson, 17, said: "The iPhone does everything, it's great."

More than 61 per cent of people surveyed said they spent up to four hours a day checking Facebook. A similar number admitted to "Facebook stalking" - regularly checking social-media sites.

With Christopher Gillett