According to a new survey of 8,585 US adults, released by the National Retail Federation, consumers plan bring the full authority of their mobile and tablet devices to bear on the challenge and opportunity of holiday shopping. More than anything else the survey data reflect the degree to which people have come to rely on these relatively new tools for shopping.

Smartphones -- Almost 53% of smartphone owner-respondents said they will use their phones in holiday shopping in some form:

• 31% will research products and/or compare prices
• 14.1% will purchase products
• 17.3% will redeem coupons on/with their phones
• 15.6% will use apps to research or purchase items
• 25% will use their smartphones to look up local retailers' information (address, hours, etc.)

Tablets -- Just over 70% of tablet owners said they will use their "pads" for shopping and buying:

• 50.8% will research products and/or compare prices
• 34.8% will actually make a purchase with their devices
• 21.5% will redeem coupons
• 33.8% will search for or lookup retailer information
• 21% will use apps to research items or buy products

Demographic data:

• Those 18-24 are most likely to use smartphones (72.2%) and tablets (86.4%) in shopping this year
• Smartphone owners: 17.6% of men and 10.8% of women plan to buy with the device
• Tablet owners: 38.5% of men 31.3% of women plan to buy with the device