Plugged In: Half of Americans Can't Go a Day Without Phone, Study Says

What's just as important as deodorant, nearly as critical as the toothbrush, and far more crucial than coffee? Our smartphones, apparently. According to a new study commissioned by Bank of America, a whopping 47 percent of Americans surveyed admitted they wouldn’t last a day without their smartphone.

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A total of 91 percent of the 1,000 respondents called their phones "very important" -- the same percentage who said their car and deodorant are very important too. And of those ages 18 to 24, 88 percent said they view their mobile phones as more important than the Internet, deodorant, and their toothbrush. “It’s a little depressing that these numbers are so high," said Dr. Andrew L. Russell, director of the Program in Science and Technology Studies at Stevens Institute of Technology, "but the way we live now, it doesn’t surprise me.”

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