The average Briton interacts with an internet connected device more than 34 times a day.

Research by the Interactive Advertising Bureau aimed at understanding the impact of online devices on people’s shopping behaviours saw 1,350 participants wear cameras that took a picture every five seconds. It was found that one-in-six smartphone owners use their online devices at some stage when purchasing goods.

The survey found participants averaged a total of two hours 12 minutes per day using a connected device, while for 46% of this time – one hour and one minute – they used at least two devices, sometimes three, simultaneously.

Tim Elkington, IAB head of research, explained the rationale behind using the fisheye cameras was to escape the inadequacies of using ‘consumer recall’, to establish what influences consumer behaviour.

He said: “If you try to remember how many times you use your laptop or mobile a day, it’s almost impossible. So we decided to change the nature of the question and that was to get people to wear cameras.”

The three day study also found over half (52%) said they prefer to check their smartphone if they have any 'downtime'. Among 18-30 year olds, the figure rises to over six in 10 (62%).

Elkington said: “We’ve entered the new age of ‘omni-screening’ – where people are ‘always on’. One of the side-effects is that online is now a hobby. Four in ten people say they often shop online when they’re bored, among 18-30 year-olds this rises to almost six in 10.”

The findings also stressed the importance of ensuring out-of-home media placements that have an element of digital 

Elkington told Marketing Week: “Respondents said that if they see an outdoor ad, they are more than likely to respond to it, if at all, initially with their mobile phones.

“As an advertiser, you have to think about how easy is it for a consumer to respond to an ad.”