More than 100 million handsets with touch screens will be shipped in 2008, according to new research.

A study from ABI Research said that increasing numbers of handsets with touch screens have started to appear in the market following the lead set by Apple's iPhone.

Other devices include the LG Prada, the HTC Touch, the Samsung Ultra-Smart F700 and the Sony Ericsson P990, M600, and W950 handsets.

Touch screens and touch pads are gaining popularity and becoming more common on handsets, while helping to make the handsets more intuitive, pleasant and efficient to use, the report stated.

ABI Research industry analyst Shailendra Pandey said: "Handsets with intuitive user interfaces allow quick and easy access to various applications and services and can result in higher revenues for mobile operators by generating greater usage of value-added services.

"Mobile operators are therefore keen to promote and market handsets with good user interfaces on their networks."

The study noted that many smartphones and high-end handsets with attractive features have been commercial failures simply because their user interfaces have been too complex and difficult for convenient use.

ABI expects that more than 500 million handsets shipped in 2012 will sport a touch-based user interface.

"A good handset user interface is important not just to meet and exceed user expectations, but to support fast and flexible design changes, operator customisation and late software distribution, while maintaining low demands on the hardware," said Pandey.