Mobile phones are so integral to our lives that Australians deem it twice as bad to lose a phone than house keys.

That might not be surprising given that the research showed one in four Australian men claim to have secretly stored phone numbers that are deliberately hidden from girlfriends, wives and friends.

This is in stark contrast to only one in twelve women who do the same.

But if you’re single and lose your phone - forget it!

Single Australians rated it twice as bad to lose a phone compared to Australians who are in a relationship.

The mobile phone is also the friend that takes the brunt of some people’s anger too with almost 60 per cent of Australians admitting to regularly swearing at their mobile phone, as a way to release frustration.

For the Generation Y, losing their mobile phone can be traumatic and one third of all 16 to 20 year olds believe it’s worse to lose their phone than their keys or wallet.

And they should know because nearly 50 per cent of Australian males surveyed, aged between 16 and 19, have lost their phone, but significantly only 20 per cent of females in the same age group have lost their phones.

However 25 per cent of people surveyed, have broken their mobile phone, dropped it in water or lost it altogether.

Like the TV remote, we regularly misplace our phones and nearly 80 per cent of us have to call it to locate it.

The research showed that Australians are using a wider range of features, including text, MMS and photo capabilities, and more often, with 99 per cent, 94 per cent and 90 per cent of Australians respectively using these features.

Microsoft’s annual mobility research polled 1,125 respondents across Australia.