A recently published report from Opera Mediaworks tells us quite a bit about the popularity of phablets as well as the strong social media and mobile ad engagement habits of phablet owners.

The new study on phablet users identifies how their media consumption habits differ from those of smartphone and tablet users, as well as how their receptivity to mobile ads changes throughout the course of a day.

“Phablet users skew closer to smartphone users than tablet users in the types of media they consume,” the company explains. “Yet their behavior is distinct enough to warrant its own profile.”

For example:

• Social networking is the top category (constituting 53.8% of impressions), just as it is on smartphones. But, it is much higher than the Q1 global average of all mobile devices (27.2% of impressions).
• Unlike smartphone users, who use their device to consume Sports and News & Information content, phablet users’ consumption in these categories is fairly low.
• Despite the bigger screen size, phablets are not replacing tablets when it comes to Games or Music, Video & Media — tablets still far outpace phablets in these categories.

Opera Mediaworks also examined the volume (ad impressions) and engagement levels (click-through rate) on traffic in the United States over a 24-hour period.

Among the findings:

•  Phablet traffic volume is highest in the morning (9 am-12 pm), but receptivity to ads is very low. Traffic then dips for the rest of the day, but engagement lifts significantly, peaking during the evening hours (8 pm -10 pm).
•  As expected, tablet use is highest in the evening, as users are away from work and in “lean back” mode at home. However, engagement levels on ads in the evening cannot match those on phablets.
• Engagement on both phablets and tablets is low in the early evening hours (5 pm -7 pm).

For the full report from Opera Mediaworks, click here.