Women are more likely to use cellphones for texting or emails to build relationships and have deeper conversations, while men prefer using their devices for entertainment purposes and accessing social networking sites, a new US study has found.

Women college students spend an average of 10 hours a day on their cellphones and men college students spend nearly eight, with excessive use posing potential risks for academic performance, researchers from Baylor University said.

"As cellphone functions increase, addictions to this seemingly indispensable piece of technology become an increasingly realistic possibility," said researcher James Roberts, The Ben H Williams Professor of Marketing in Baylor's Hankamer School of Business.

The study noted that approximately 60 per cent of college students admit they may be addicted to their cellphone, and some indicated they get agitated when it is not in sight.