A US survey asked teens to focus on all of the ways in

which they spend time and interact

More than half of teens hang out with their closest friend

online on a regular basis

Mobile devices help facilitate frequent connections between close friends.

Many of those who have met a friend online say they spend time with their closest friend on a regular basis online

A full 60% of these teen mobile internet users are in touch daily with their closest friend (including 42% who make contact many times a day).

Some 21% of teens, however, said 'something else' to any of the three most common ways they get in touch with their closest friend.

These new avenues of communication broaden what it even means to be 'friends', changing how teens connect and how they share with one another.

But phone calls - a technology from the analogue era - are the second most popular method overall, with 69% of teens citing it as one of their choices.

This is followed closely by the 66% of teens who say social media is in their top three preferences, while just 21% of teens noted gaming in any of their choices