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Story URL: http://networks.silicon.com/mobile/0,39024665,39160120,00.htm

Rise of the manbag: Are gadgets to blame?
We're carrying too many techie toys...

By Will Sturgeon

Published: Wednesday 05 July 2006

The number of gadgets we're carrying around on a daily basis - from BlackBerrys and mobile phones to iPods and PDAs - means men in the UK may be forced to embrace the metrosexual phenomenon of the 'manbag'.

Smaller than a sports bag and often more stylish to boot, the manbag is becoming a must-have item for all UK gadget fans keen to stow their multiple devices.

And while four per cent of men surveyed for a piece of research from business communications company Damovo still go for the 'batman' utility belt approach of clipping their gadgets around their waist, it seems that stereotypical image of the gadget fan at large is being killed off by the manbag.

A third of respondents (32 per cent) still manage to get their techie toys into a pocket but by far the most popular option is putting all the gadgets into a bag.

On a more serious note, the research discovered that 66 per cent of respondents are required to carry a mobile device for work and 44 per cent said it is very important they do so.

And while the idea of being 'always-on' and contactable by the office at all times may not be everybody's idea of a quiet life, almost three-quarters of respondents (73 per cent) said the greater use of mobile devices has improved their work-life balance.

In terms of what users want from their mobility strategy, 43 per cent want the flexibility to work from any non-office location, while 12 per cent want to lessen the load of their gadgets and use just one converged device.

Separate research from silicon.com last year revealed three-quarters of us regularly carry at least three gadgets each day, while eight per cent of respondents said they carry five or more gadgets.