Survey: People hate to give up their phone

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NEW YORK, June 30 (UPI) -- Most Americans would rather give up alcohol for a week than give up their cell phone for the same time period, a survey conducted for Best Buy indicated.

Nearly 60 percent of respondents said they'd rather abstain from drinking rather than put away their cell phones for a week, results released Tuesday of the survey by GFK Roper showed. Respondents also said they'd rather give up television for a week, 33.1 percent; survive on bread and water, 11.5 percent; even have their teeth drilled by a dentist, 14.5 percent, than do without their mobile phone.

The weekly survey of 1,000 adults for the big-box retailer also indicated consumers age 65-plus don't darken a mobile phone retailer's door -- 62.1 percent said they never shopped for a mobile phone.

Thirty-seven percent said respondents said they text because they want to avoid long or tough conversations, while another 27.2 percent said they just don't like phone conversations.

The biggest, baddest behavior involving a cell phone by far -- 51.4 percent -- reading a text while driving. About a quarter of the respondents said they secretly read text messages of their significant others or their children.