Research from search intelligence agency Hitwise has revealed that mobile phones are the most searched for consumer electronic device on the internet, with the Apple iPhone leading the pack.

According to the Hitwise Hot Consumer Electronics List, mobile phone terms make up almost 30 per cent of all consumer electronics searches. Out of these, around one in 12 searched are for the iPhone, or variations on this term.

The data reveals that the iPhone has remained at the top of the pile almost constantly week-to-week, except for one week - ending February 14th 2009 - in which the new Nokia 5800 XpressMusic claimed first place among mobile phone searches. In addition, graphical illustrations from Hitwise data show that Apple is also the most searched for brand across consumer electronics devices, accounting for 12 per cent of all branded searches.

Richard Seymour, UK Client Intelligence Analyst at Hitwise, attributes this dominance to the popularity of its iPods and iTunes service with consumers. Nokia comes in second with around half Apple's share of branded searches, with Samsung, Dell and Sony rounding out the top five. After mobile phones, video games constitute the second most searched for consumer electronics category on the web, with nearly 10 per cent share.

For the week ending March 14th 2009, Resident Evil 5 was the most popular video game search. Computers and laptops come in third place with 9.5 per cent search share, while software (8.5 per cent) and televisions (4.5 per cent) take fourth and fifth place respectively.

The Hitwise Hot Consumer Electronics List is compiled using Hitwise's unique search data analysis tool, which lets the company see which gadgets, brands and models UK internet users are searching for on a weekly basis.