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360 tops chart as most used console - survey

Survey shows 52% of PSP owners are female; 73% of US households own gaming device

The Xbox 360 has come out on top as the most popular console in terms of minutes spent using it, according to a survey.

Statistics compiled by US market research firm Nielsen have revealed the 360 accounts for 23.1 per cent of total console usage minutes.

In contrast, the PlayStation 2 accounts for 20.4 per cent of the total, and the Wii 19 per cent.

The research also revealed a closing gender divide among the users of some consoles, with the most notable being PlayStation Portable owners of which 52 per cent are now female. Female Wii owners were found to account for 49 per cent of the market.

The percentage of female respondents deemed active gamers - defined as playing games for at least one hour per week - was 45 per cent.

In terms of overall gaming device ownership, 73 per cent of households were found to own a device used specifically for gaming while 54 per cent of households said they own a videogame console or handheld gaming device.

Household penetration of the 7th generation of games consoles stood at 41 per cent, while the percentage that own a handheld console was 23 per cent.