I love technology.
I work with it all the time, I use it constantly and I love owning gadgets (although I am not one of those people who buys things on the bleeding edge).
So it is kind of strange to most people that I don’t own a smartphone, especially if I don’t own an iPhone, given my age.
Honestly, I think it could be very good to replace my GPS and a whole bunch of other functions at once, but I am still not sold on the idea of an all-in-one; they never seem to be absolutely fabulous at any one function, but are mostly mediocre at many.
My cellphone is a simple Krazr that came for free with a deal I had signed up for, and it does its job.
I’ve contemplated getting a smartphone just to see what it’s like but my life is just not that energetic or interesting. Even now, I forget my cellphone and when people call, I am not pouncing on it — I let it go to voicemail.
But what I hate the MOST about people who own smartphones (not all of you, of course), are the addicts who walk around on the street, oblivious to the world while thumbing on their phone frantically.
WTF could you possibly be doing for the time you are walking (15 minutes to get lunch) that you can’t pay attention to the road and the cars, or you can’t talk to the people you are walking with…..
….that you can’t pay attention to where you are walking on the street and you make other people have to try and avoid your half drunken-like walking…
….that you cannot stop touching your phone and checking your emails every 5 seconds; I hate to say it, but you are probably a lot like me — just NOT that important…
….that you HAVE to leave your phone out on the table while you’re eating with friends, and the minute it flashes or buzzes, you have it in your hands a millisecond later.
…that you can’t put your freaking phone down to live in the moment.
I have seen people OBSESSED with their phone.
Even in meetings, they’re playing with the case, they’re opening it, closing it, reading emails, checking the time, turning apps on and off, changing colours…
It drives me CRAZY.
It’s rude, and unless it’s a dire emergency, there is no excuse to do that when you are with others (professional or not), and even if you are alone, it’s annoying when you bother others because you are too busy playing Pong to watch who you are walking right into.
For me, I just jot down a quick note to myself, and I go to my laptop later on and go through the list of things I have to get done.
I have no need or desire to do things instantaneously, and as I’ve mentioned before: I am just not that important, to need to be reached 24/7.
Yes, it’s a useful, handy, fun and functional piece of technology, but I hate how it seems to change people.
This is why I’ll probably never get a smartphone — I am just not cut out for that.
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Amen!!! My girlfriend is glued to her iPhone!! It drives me BONKERS!!!
You and I soon may be the only people in this world who have the 'normal' phones! I agree with you on the whole smartphone stuff. They can be 'cool' but all I need my phone to do is to make and receive call and sms. All the other things are handy but the novelty wears off.
Also I HATE HATE HATE those people who are constantly on their smartphone doing stuff when they are supposed to be spending time with you. It's not polite and live in the moment, not the facebook moment.
I too wasn't too impressed with smartphones until I 'converted' to phones-that-can-do-more-than-just-phoning in 2004 and I've been very happy thus far. But I now need to manage my addiction to gadgets and the internet.
So I'm trying to spend more time without my phone and more time doing analogue reading, ie, reading books. I don't always take the phone with me when I drive somewhere. It helps that I do not carry a handbag. So it sometimes happen that I get sms messages hours later. And you know what? The world has not come crashing down. My Twittering has calmed down — I used to send 20 tweets a day but I'm down to 20 tweets over a 1-month period. And I don't feel that I'm missing out on much substance either. There's still too much to read.
This is an excellent observation and I agree: "And the whole point of a discussion is not to get the answer instantly, but to figure it out through talking, what you think the answer is."
The bestest thing about my smartphone is the calendar function. I try to attend as many public lectures on various topics and I would definitely lose track of them without the phone's calender function.
Completely agree! I have a friend that is downright annoying to be around sometimes because she'll be on her phone and ignoring the world around her. I see people's Facebook/Twitter updates that are like "having a romantic dinner with my husband" and all I can ever think is "so how about you get off your freakin phone and enjoy your time with him?" It's crazy that enjoying a moment has turned into needing to share that enjoyment with the online world, instead of just soaking in all of the feelings you have in that moment and experiencing it like we have for thousands of years before smart phones! haha
For purposes of full disclosure, I do have a smart phone and I do use it inappropriately at times, but generally I'm good about it. In fact my boyfriend and I have a no-phone rule during all meals and when we're having special dates or the like.
Amen. I'll be hanging out with a friend I only see once a month or so and she will check her smartphone every 5 seconds. It's really disrespectful to the person you are with. We will be having a conversation then she will look down to browse the web, check her email or something else that makes me feel like our time together is unimportant.
There needs to be smartphone etiquette for 20 and 20 somethings.
my honest opinion is people who are obsessed with their phones have nothing else to do in life if they did they would be out working,volunteering,spending time with their family and friends….people who lead full lives are the ones who are doing something or engaging someone, and not people who spend their time checking their phones.
Yes phones are cool, I'm not against people owning smartphones, but in the end its just a phone, it doesn't care about you, it doesn't love you, it won't change the world by being a big brother or a big sister. Its just a thing that consumes time and makes you an observer rather than a human living a life.
Um…..I think I am one of those people at the moment. I'm sorry! The phone is still new, and I'm still obsessed with its shiny fun-ness. Although I'm starting to catch myself thinking "Why am I checking Facebook again", or 'It's Sunday, nobody is going to e-mail you, put the phone down" – so I'm thinking my obsession is waning and soon I'll be back to being a normal, productive, non-annoying member of society. Until then, I'll try to walk in a straight line and keep an eye out for cars and everyone else.
I completely agree with you. But then again, I was a smartphone user until just recently (a month ago?). When you have one, it's hard to put it down. It's crazy to explain, but I was one of those people you described. Walking just around the block to pick up my lunch and I would check my gmail (surprisingly no emails between then and about a minute before when I checked at my work computer) and then opening up a news website and barely reading a sentence before I arrive at my destination. But it's what I did. I knew what I was doing was annoying to others and stupid because I was letting technology take control of my life. That's when I decided to get a basic phone when my contract was up. So here I am with my perfectly working phone with a nice pixel camera but NO INTERNET ACCESS which is great. Another great thing is with a smartphone, you are accessible every single way possible and I hated that I couldn't simply ignore my friend's call. Now I feel so much more better. Maybe it's my "new" self looking for a simpler, uncomplicated life, but I love it.
(and yes, combing everything-into-one always suck!)
I have never owned a smartphone but I think I’d go back to a regular phone. I just let it go to voicemail and try to email instead of calling.
Agreed on the phone-obsession thing. I have a smartphone, and I like it a lot, but I could live without it, and I'm not overly obsessed with it. It's nice to have it for email and things since there are times when it is helpful and I don't have my laptop, and I like to read blogs or things while I'm riding the bus or something. And I have used the Google map app to keep me from getting lost. So, useful, yes. Necessary, not really. And like with everything, there are times and places where it's appropriate and when it's not, and there are some people who really don't understand that.
that is the reason why I dropped my 3G data plan, left my smartphone for an ordinary phone with no extra functions (not even a camera) and are content with my pre paid line :DD.
It feels good to not listen to Twitter refresh itself every 5 minutes or not hearing your incoming mail in the middle of the night.
My sister just got a BlackBerry and she refuses to put it into vibrate or silent mode at night and we can all hear her non stop Twitter updates or her non stop BB chat notifications. It’s incredibly annoying!
It would drive me crazy to hear a phone beeping all night. I’d smash it in a fit of half-sleepy rage.
I know exactly what you mean. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only person in the world who doesn't have a smartphone (which obviously shows my privilege). It annoys me to know end when people are playing on their phones or take phone calls when you're at dinner, traveling somewhere, etc. I think it's so rude.
I'll probably upgrade at some point because my bf's new cellphone (droid incredible) does do everything well, or at least the major stuff. It has point by point gps navigation, is great for surfing the net, he even watches movies on it. But even then, I'll be sure to put it away when it's time to interact with other people.
I appreciate cell phones for what they offer and use mine instead of a landline. But I loathe how it has become an additional appendage for some people. It is not necessary (or appropriate) to use it everywhere you go.
I've been thinking about this as well. I love shiny gadgets, but I am not really sure that I want a smartphone. We don't have a landline, and my current phone works very well as a phone. I'm not sure that I want to give that up just yet.
couldn’t agree more haha. bf has an iphone and it isn’t so bad, but it still irritates me at times. I have a Nexus one that came free when i was working at Google, but I have yet to buy a a data plan for it, so it’s not really a “smartphone” in that I can’t access anything outside of the apartment/wireless areas. I know how much it changes people, and I’m not willing to be changed like that! Yet, anyways =). Also, I don’t want to pay for it!
I'm guilty of being glued to my Crackberry. I used to be one of those "I just want a phone" people, but I'm a convert. I love being able to quickly answer all those crazy questions that pop into my head throughout the day when I'm away from my computer (or don't want to wait for it to boot up). I love being able to keep shopping lists and to-do lists on my phone. I love being able to check my online calendar from anywhere. When I'm traveling (not-driving, of course) or on walks I like to listen to music or video, or read RSS feeds. I also like to be able to check my email and Twitter. Plus, it's nice to be able to look up product reviews and ingredients at a store (the latter is especially nice considering that some ingredients aren't obviously vegan or not). I can even find vegan-friendly restaurants on the go and the map feature is super handy.
My husband has TWO smart phones — both a Blackberry and a Pre. He needs at least one for work to keep up with the MANY emails he gets during the day while he's out and about. The Pre can do more and he prefers it. We can even use it to remotely set our thermostat (nice at night when we're in bed). But the Blackberry is his official work phone since it's older and cheaper to replace. He still uses the Pre a lot for work, but only a few people (non-work people) have that number and he doesn't take it with him where it might get easily damaged. (The Blackberry has already survived quite a few close calls). Having separate phones allows him to also shut off his work phone while still being available to close family and friends. And it's also nice that he can talk on the Blackberry while looking stuff up on the Pre.
BUT, regardless of how useful smart phones are, if you don't need or want one, then it certainly seems silly for you to get one! And none of it excuses people from being rude. Many of the same complaints can be made about people who walk around with their noses in a book.
Agreed. I ascertain that unless you just placed an offer on a house or have a family member in labor, your phone should be put away while engaging in conversation (lunch, etc.) with a friend.
I am forever reminding the BF that there is no need to consult wikipedia while we are engaging in conversation over dinner. It is rude and annoying. I don’t care if we could learn more on the subject of discussion at the moment. Put the damned phone away.
And the whole point of a discussion is not to get the answer instantly, but to figure it out through talking, what you think the answer is.
Then check.
And even those answers could be “wrong”, depending on the situation. It’s super annoying to not have any fun or spontaneity left in discussions when you can just google it