The cell phones of the 1990′s are prehistoric compared to the popular mobile phones available today.

No longer are mobile phones just being used to make phone calls, instead they serve as media devices that allow you to take pictures, record video, communicate via text and Email, access social media websites, play games, keep time and date, calender events and access the internet, all with a few taps or types.

Since many people rely heavily on mobile phones as both a professional and personal tool, it comes as no surprise that more adults are downloading mobile apps to personalize their mobile phones to their unique needs.

When you look at the numbers of  preloaded  mobile applications and the hundreds of thousands of other mobile apps available for download, it’s almost impossible not to be one of the adults that have made this trend almost double since 2009.

Apple boasts over 500,000 apps available for their iPhone 4S.  For those using an Android phone, the Android Marketplace is flush with paid and free apps including games, Facebook, GMail, Pandora and many others.

A recent study conducted by Pew Research that polled 1,948 Americans found that  84% of U.S. adults reported having a cell phone, and of that group, 38% have downloaded an app to their phone.

Of those polled, the largest demographic of mobile app downloaders were those in the age 18-29 age group, with  60% reporting that they’d downloaded a mobile app. They were  followed by 46% of those polled in the 30-49 age group reporting the same. Only 15% of those polled in the  50+ age group responded they’d downloaded a mobile app.

The study found that young adults, adults with higher education levels and incomes, and those living in urban and suburban areas are the most likely to download and use mobile apps. The study also showed a slow but steady increase in the use of tablet computers, which also rely heavily on applications for the end user.

Do you use mobile apps? If so, what is the one app you can’t live without and why?