Whatever happened to romance?!

The traditional Valentine's treat.

I love you ... and you too sweetie.

Romance is not a novel concept. From time immemorial (ok, not really) women had been identified with the pink misty veil of love and romance. Men, on the other hand, have been known for a tendency to measure egos in a never ending battle to dominate and control.

Of course, this is a profoundly terrible typification but you would be surprised as to how much these kind of images permeate our culture and influence our every day decisions. Perhaps that is why lads get candy and flowers for their love birds on Valentine's day and why women get to not spend a dime and be mad if they don't get presents. But perhaps this cruel and material demand is finally taking its toll on the new generations, as more and more people are falling out of love... and in love with their mobile phones.

A few weeks ago Virgin Mobile (those lovely people that make your precious Virgin phones) released the results of a survey on mobile phone users about how their technological relationship with their beloved gadget compared to the one they had with their significant other. The results are quite surprising.

• Almost 40% of the group would give up their Valentine before their phone.
• More than 50% of those aged 18-34 are holding their mobile phone... rather than their Valentine's hand.
• 68% of those aged 18-34 have their mobile phone with them all day, every day.

Love truly conquers all, but this recent poll shows that a lot of people are secretly (or openly) having an affair with their mobile devices. Mobile phones have become our true companions in life, at least in the most literal sense. Most people, whether they need to be within dial reach at all times or not, carry their loved gadget with them at all times. This, of course, isn't as appalling as you would think as most people would concur that lugging their loved ones around all day can get pretty tiring, and their significant others can't be turned off so easily when you need some peace and quiet.

The results of the survey, however, break down a little differently between the sexes. It was found that while a majority of men (53 per cent) said that they are holding their phones more often than their loved one's hand, women responded the opposite way. The results were 60 to 40 per cent, with a preference for hand-holding (as we were taught to do) over fondling the little plastic toy. What to do about these results? Is there anything to do? Well, if you have been particularly cruel to your male toy, eh companion, you might want to give him more reasons to pick you rather than his latest tech gadget. In any case, love is still very much alive, despite the profound bond that some people have with their phones.