Making calls least popular smartphone function

London, June 30 (IANS) Mobile phones began life as machines built for talking - but now, actually making calls is one of their least popular functions.

Smartphone owners now spend just 12 minutes talking on their phones a day - but spend two hours using the gizmos, Daily Mail reported Friday.

Texting - formerly one of the reasons people became addicted to phones - is now less popular, with users spending just 10 minutes sending messages.

In terms of time spent, British users spend more time surfing the internet, checking social networking sites, playing games and listening to music.

The study of 2,000 smartphone users marking the launch of the Samsung found we spend almost 25 minutes a day surfing the internet.

Mobile phone users also spend a further 17 minutes checking and updating social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, the Mail said.

In comparison, just 12 minutes is spent actually talking to someone on a phone call, while sending text messages accounts for only 10 minutes of use a day.