In an always-on, connected world with a surplus of new devices fit for every function, location and context it’s no surprise that mobile phones are helping people multi-task and even duck out of awkward situations. A recent Yahoo! Mobile/Razorfish study reveals interesting gender differences in usage and ranks the smartphone as the highest rated device in the home with 75% of votes.

The more than 2,000 U.S. respondents that participated in the study were asked questions on their multi-tasking habits and device preferences, bringing to light some interesting trends and valuable insights.

• Mobile phone scapegoat: The study found 52% of consumers use their mobile device to escape awkward situations. Women are more likely to use their phone as an excuse than men.
• No need to stop & ask for directions: Overall men (59%) are using their web-enabled mobile devices most frequently for navigational purposes.
• Are you ready for some football?: Men were almost twice as likely to say that checking their mobile for sports news causes arguments with their significant other (29%) compared to women (17%).
• Smartphone is the new fact checker: 58% of men are ‘fact checking’ on their mobile web browser while at a live sporting event, with nearly half (47%) checking out scores of other games and players.
• Did you see that?: An overwhelming 90% said that multi-tasking on their smartphone (while watching live TV & commercials) was to communicate with others (via text or phone).
• Laptop vs. tablet: Over three quarters (77%) of content searched for on laptop/desktop devices while watching TV is NOT related to the show they are watching. However, over half (57%) of people multi-tasking on tablets are searching for related content.
• The more inquisitive female: Young women are the prime demographic to surf the Internet related to what they’re watching (65% of women under the age of 35, compared to 47% of men of the same age).
• The gender divide: Men are more likely to use their mobile device as a functional, all- in-one tool; whereas women are more likely to use it as an extension of the traditional phone, to update and connect with friends across their social networks on the go.
• Mobile shopping is a man’s world: Online purchases on smartphones are more popular with men (70% under 35 years) than with women (64% under 35 years).

According to Yahoo! Shopping the top searched mobile phones are:

1. iPhone 4s

2. Samsung Galaxy s2

3. Samsung Galaxy Nexus

4. Motorola Razr

5. Nokia n9

For more information about the Yahoo!/Razorfish study, go to: Forget Mobile - Think Multiscreen

To learn more about Yahoo! Mobile, check out mobile.yahoo.com and ymobileblog.com/blog. Search for "Yahoo!" in the iTunes App Store or Android Market to discover industry-leading apps, such as Livestand, IntoNow, Yahoo! Messenger, MarketDash, Flickr, Sportacular and dozens more. With more than 100 mobile partnerships, you can find your favorite Yahoo! experiences on nearly every mobile device and platform.