Feature

Where’s the phone?

Women miss more calls than men. Belt-pouches are a sign of middle age. Most men carry their phone in their right front trouser pocket. And only in Asia do women habitually attach charms or ornamental straps to their handsets.



This all comes from a series of Nokia interviews covering more than 1,500 people in cities around the world. Among the key facts produced:


- 60% of men carried their mobile phone in their trouser pockets, most in the front righthand pockets (reachable by the dominant right hand). 30% “sometimes or always” missed incoming calls.

- 61% of women sampled carried their mobile phone in a bag, usually a handbag. A much higher proportion – 50% -- said they missed calls, either because they weren’t noticed or because the phone was buried too deeply in the bag.

- The use of belt pouches among men for carrying phones ranges from zero in Tokyo to 38% in the Chinese city of Ji Lin. It does become more popular as respondents become older; “perhaps this reflects a preference for convenience over elegance” note the researchers.