Step away from the smartphone... Shhh it'll be ok.

[Mother Of Four]

So, after Christmas (We didn't put a penny on credit, if we didn't have the cash it didn't need bought. ) we decided to take a good hard look at expenses in our lives.

First discretionary spending to get the knife was Time Warner Cable... We have had the TV service for a while now without anyone really watching it. We typically use the net for that, so out it went. Savings- 67 dollars a month. Should have done that a long time ago, OTA tv is free lets use it.

Noting how well that felt, my phone rang. I don't have a new smart phone, I have an older mesmerize. We've never had to have the biggest or the brightest new shiny thing but as I picked up my phone with the custom ring tone and my husbands cute face plastered on it I thought to myself 'Self? Why the heck do we have smart-phones?'

With a smart-phone, I have to pay for data. They give you no other choice. Do we use data? Very little. We mostly use the phones for what they are, phones. I have one son in college, one in the Army as a field medic, one girl graduating this year and volunteering at hospice and one 16 year old daughter who is a chatterbox so phones are kind of a given.

But...do we really need smart-phones?

Sure GPS is convenient, but with it comes sacrifices. Basic skills like navigation are dying.
For instance: when was the last time you saw someone use an atlas?



No need to wait for your phone to load, and no crossing your fingers hoping that the digital voice won't become vindictive and send you down a dead end 10 miles from your destination. No fretting over if your battery is going to die in the middle. "What..wait? Did it say exit 15b or 50b?"

You know the conclusion I came to is? We have smart-phones because as human creatures we've become lazy. "Oh I'm sooooo boooooored!"
Really? What happened to having a conversation, instead of playing Angry birds? It's all about the instant gratification folks. The whole, I need an answer and can't wait a single minute generation. Has anyone else had their phone blow up because you decided NOT to answer right then and since you didn't, something just HAS to be wrong?

"But MoF... what happens if I need to check the balance in my checkbook?" my answer "Why don't you check it before you leave the house? That way you know how much you have BEFORE you go to purchase something."

"But MoF ...how am I going to keep track of my appointments?" my answer "Ever hear of a calender? They certainly don't cost you the amount of money a smart-phone does."
AND...it has the added benefit of being accessible to the entire house so everyone knows what's going on. A 2.99 calendar and a couple knock off magnets holding it to the fridge and you're in business. Heck, if you are computer savvy make one for your desktop.

"But MoF... the smart-phone takes over the spot of having a PDA!" Well, not much argument there but we're talking about family plans and not business phones. I don't know what my 16 year old daughter would need with a PDA.

"But... it's so hard to text on one of those flip phones!" my answer "Gee I guess that means you won't be blowing up peoples phones with messages then, I suppose you'll just have to use your voice." Most times if it's an emergency people talk voice anyway, you wouldn't send a text to your loved ones saying "Just got into a wreck, car is totaled LOL ...TTYL!"

Besides, most anyone who's posted to a forum knows that a lot is lost in text. Tone of voice, facial expression...heck you can HEAR if the person is smiling on the other end when you talk voice.

So today the howls of anguish will ensue as I go to our cell phone carrier and switch us all to handy dandy lil flip phones. I'm sure the hair tearing and pounding of chests will be dramatic. My answer is the title of my post.."Step away from the smartphone...Shhhhh it'll be ok."


Savings? A whopping 100 dollars a month... unflippin real. Unlimited talk and text for five lines? 119 a month total. That's less than 25 dollars a phone. Can't beat that with a stick.

[Lasher]

1. I might get a smart phone

If I do, I'll set it up just for cell phone service. I'm thinking I would use it with wi-fi.

[peacebird]

2. We cancelled hbo and the cable for the second tv. I watch tv less than once a week, why pay $16

A month for that? The primary tv is hubbys, mostly for sports or playing games on.... Oh, and we have plain old flip phones so we can get a family plan that allows us to give our parents free cell phones for all their long distance.

[dipsydoodle]

3. I guess this is age related

Those of us who grew with fixed phones in our houses don't necessarily relate to those who are seemingly dependent on mobiles or other "new age" toys. First mobile I had was back in '87 : fixed analogue in a the car used mainly for customers to contact me when I was out and check for messages on the business line at the house too. I've still got the original 'phone number with just a zero added from when it all went digital. Despite the fact I may these days have the latest smartphone I really use it for making odd calls to my daughter, get the hump if someone other than my daughter phones or texts me using it , and for taking odd spontaneous pictures of my cats whatever.

I only got the Samsung Note so's I could take pictures and write across them "wish you were here - NOT" The fact I have yet to work out how to do that is incidental.

"Ever hear of a calender?"

[obamanut2012]

19. I grew up with a land line, I no longer ahve a land line

My only phone is my cell. I am not under 40.

[pink-o]

26. Sorry, I disagree. Just turned 58 and I LOVE 21st century technology.

C'mon, it's a boomer dream. When we were kids, we wanted Star Trek communicators and tri corders, tablets that gave you instant info, et al. Okay, I didn't get my jet packs or my moon base, but if you'd told me at 10 yrs old I could have all the music I ever loved at my fingertips, I would have been ecstatic.

Yeah, I can go off the grid and live as I did in the past, but I don't want to. I might retire on the beach, but it better have a wifi hot spot!

[proud2BlibKansan]

66. Me too. I'm a year older.

I don't understand our generation's resistance to technology. I love my smart phone and my iPad and my iPod.

[SharonAnn]

27. As a senior who relies on smart phone for contact from my children/grandchildren, I resent

that costs are so high for someone like me.

I'm a widow, there's only me in the family so no "family plan" is available.

My calling, data, and text use is minimal yet I have to pay for a plan that costs too much.

Yet I do want to have access to calling, data, and text for the occasional times that I need it. However, changing to some lower cost services mean I have to change my phone number and that's a problem because it's on my business cards and all my business Web accounts as well as my (large) extended family.

I would like to be able to get these features for a much lower cost since that would reflect my actual usage.

Frustrating.

The wonders of deregulation and the powers of monopolies and oligopolies.

[hedda_foil]

92. Almost all the cell phone carriers will ttransfer your phone number to their phones.

It's quick and easy. That includes the no contract carriers. I hope this helps.

[librarylu]

104. No text but....

Have you thought of getting a MagicJack? With the new one you can keep your old phone # and the computer doesn't have to be on.

I've had the MagicJack Plus for a year. It costs about as much a year as I used to pay a month just for local service. No extra charge for long distance and the clarity is so good it's like using a land line.

[Starry Messenger]

74. Not me. I'm 42 and I love technology.

I'm thinking of getting a wireless printer for my iPhone. I don't think it is a substitution for human power, but used in tandem it can be very powerful. I just wish so much of it wasn't controlled by huge corporations.

[SidDithers]

4. Oh FFS. Is it Luddite day at DU today?...

Sid

[JoePhilly]

5. LOL!!! (Message sent from Joe's iPhone)

[Panasonic]

6. I wouldn't insult them.

I'm getting the same way myself.

I'm saving $26 from switching from cable to DSL next week, and get 40/20. I pay $80/month for shared bandwidth 30/5 DSL speed. I will be paying just $56/month now.

[SidDithers]

14. Tell it to the OP. The insults started there...nt

Sid

[obamanut2012]

16. +1

[tjwash]

33. Wimps - I recently started hauling my clothes to the creek and beating them on a rock.

It is so much cheaper than going to the laundromat.

Next on my list is living in a hermit-cabin a-la Dick Proenneke

I tried coming to the annual DU get together, but as I was wearing animal skins (freshly rock beaten of course) and bare feet, I immediately got paint thrown on me by the PETA folks.

[tavernier]

39. Not cheaper.

Creek? Have you priced water front property?

[Trajan]

84. LOL ....

Yep .... Beating clothes on a wet rock will save you about $0.80 .....

I remember watching my mom wash clothes in a giant sheet metal tub, using a washboard (fancy rock-like surface) ....

She did have one modern item - a hand cranked clothes wringer .....

Ah .. THOSE were the days ....

[trumad]

7. No way would I give up my Galaxy Note 2.

My GPS on this thing is second to none. Read enough maps in my time to appreciate GPS. Besides, I never figured out how to refold a map.

[WolverineDG]

8. To each their own, I suppose

I have a smart phone, unlimited everything (no really). I still prefer to use maps, but the GPS is handy when they are not available or if I want to see what the place looks like or any landmarks around someplace I've never been before, especially if I have to go there at night. I've already cancelled HBO & other movie channels though. I just don't watch that much live TV anymore.

[NCTraveler]

9. No thanks.

My smart phone makes me more efficient and better organized. I could not be more happy with it.

All that technology makes those darn whippersnappers lazy. Lazy little putz. It is going to save me money, I am going to go without, so it is a waste for everyone else.

[blueclown]

10. This thread is so unbelievably sanctimonious.

"We have smart-phones because as human creatures we've become lazy."

That's offensive, to say the least. Many of us use smartphones because they are more convenient than pulling out a separate map or a separate calendar or carrying around your checkbook all the time.

"Basic skills like navigation are dying.
For instance: when was the last time you saw someone use an atlas? "

Another sanctimonious whopper.

Why use an atlas when you have something that is much more intuitive to use?

"Step away from the smartphone...Shhhhh it'll be ok"

And finally, the insulting part. Just because you don't like your smartphone, or the idea of the smartphone, doesn't mean that you need to be insulting to everybody who does. The notion that a smart phone is an addiction that many cannot stay away from is offensive.

I see you also listened to the consensus in your house [sarcasm]. You have your husband and your daughters who are against losing their smartphones, but apparently their opinion doesn't matter. Specifically regarding your husband, is this how most of the decisions in your house are made? Your ignore his opinion (and the opinion of your daughter) to pursue your own self-centered goals?

[SidDithers]

13. Thank you...

Well said.

Sid

[obamanut2012]

21. thank you thank you thank you

[sibelian]

46. ??? EH? There's nothing even slightly insulting about it.

The only reason you could possibly perceive it as insulting is if you yourself already harbour some secret guilt about using such things or something!

Just to address *one* of your points, I find atlases vastly simpler to use and more sensible than electronic equipment. Where's the thing? Look it up. Check the page. THERE it is. Three steps! Totally intuitive, to me.

What on Earth is insulting about somebody else making decisions about what to do with their money?

I think you're colossally oversensitive. Maybe she can decide to chuck away things and it isn't all about YOU, hm?

I await your tsunami of invective.

[blueclown]

51. Did you read the OP at all?

The OP is making some very definitive judgments about the type of person who uses a smartphone. Since it clearly doesn't effect you, that doesn't make it any more offensive.

There is nothing insulting about the decisions one makes with their own money. What's insulting is when the offending person makes a series of judgments about people who use such technology, ignores conflicting voices within the household and tells those who use the technology to "step away", as if using a smartphone is an unhealthy addiction.

[sibelian]

59. I can't believe you're taking this much offense

Surely you aren't referring to that series of hypothetical questions she poses? They sound like *sensible* questions to which she offers *sensible* answers - I cannot see any overtone of "superiority"!

[Mother Of Four]

63. Thank you....

Imagine my surprise when I logged in to check a very tongue in cheek post about a choice we are making for our family... the title was actually something I said to my kids. I was sharing a thought process, thats it.

I've seen words like sanctimonious, luddite, insult etc and I literally went "Wtf?" before calling a friend and reading the post to her. I asked her "Uhm...is this insulting to people who don't want to do what I do?" she replied "No..I think it's funny!" then went on to crack on me about "Ever hear of a calendar?" and made funnies about my kids looking at it every which way trying to figure out where the "on" button was. Saying things like 'Mother...what IS this odd new piece of tech? How does it work? Where do you put the batteries?'

Yeesh...there's been posts about how people use it for their business, and I specifically said I wasn't talking about business phones.

People need to lighten up a little I think, and not assume I'm calling anyone out. I don't even know HOW to respond to half of the posts. Anything I say will just toss gas on the fire because they are convinced I was insulting them for wanting to use a smart-phone.




Edited to add: She and her family live on their smart-phones and she laughed, she didn't take it as an insult at all.

[sibelian]

71. PS - check out #15 if you want insulting!

[LibertyLover]

11. I'm not interested in having a smartphone at all

I've got a plain flip phone with basic service. So does my husband. The kid is only 10 so she doesn't need a phone yet. I've got a lot of friends who have the latest and greatest smartphone and they'll tell me they'll text me to which I reply, don't bother, I don't text. I have a Blackberry from the office which doesn't work at my house and an iPad from the office which does. I'll happily use the iPad for work and my Nook tablet for reading. I have e-mail, so use that.

[dipsydoodle]

114. If someone from the 1950s suddenly appeared today

[Tommy_Carcetti]

12. I reluctantly got an Iphone several months ago and I still don't understand its appeal.

So far I've used it almost exclusively to:

a) Call people
b) Occassionally text
c) Take videos and pictures

Of those three things, the only thing different about it is that it admittedly does take good pictures and videos compared to my old phone. And that was the only reason I agreed to get the thing in the first place.

But never used its GPS. Never played any games on it. Never read any books on it (that sounds incredibly frustrating anyways). Never used its calendar.

I disabled the email function after initially installing it. I didn't want to have to carry my email inbox everywhere. I like to be able to step away from my computer, not have it constantly in my pocket at all times.

I think I used the internet function on it once--during an Orioles playoff game when I was at dinner and wanted to keep tabs on the score. And that ended up more frustrating than anything else.

If it wasn't for the camera function, I would have ditched it already. As it stands now, I'm still not sold on its utility.

And before someone accuses me of being some aging technophobe/Luddite (as someone above me claimed), I'm a male in my early 30s with plenty of cool electronics in my home. I should be Apple's target audience. But for the life of me, I still don't understand what makes these things so special. I walk by the Apple store in the mall without a second thought of stopping in.

I was reluctant to get it in the first place, and aired my grievences right here when I first got it. I was told by some Apple fans here to give it a month, and by the end of the month, I won't be able to put it down or know how I lived without it for so long. Well I gave it a month, two months, three months....and my life has not changed at all. It's not like electricity or indoor plumbing to me, something that when you get, you don't know how you lived without it. Sorry. Just don't get the craze at all.

Glad to know I'm not the only one.

Oh, and on a somewhat unrelated note, I love atlases. I love looking at the maps, planning all the imaginary road trips I'd love to take if I only had the time (and maybe I will), looking at the different cities and seeing what they are like...it's something of an odd obsession of mine, but something I can only get from a physical map or atlas and not a GPS.

[frylock]

15. some people simply aren't smart enough to fully utilize a smartphone..

and that's OK. in the meantime, you go on ahead and use your multiple, bulky mapbooks, and those of us capable of navigating GPS will carry an entire world atlas in our pockets.

[Brickbat]

17. Step away from your computer. Shhh, it'll be OK.

[obamanut2012]

18. I'll take a GPS over an atlas any day

As well as a smartphone over a luddite phone. My cell is a mini computer, and one that I use a lot.

By some of the OP's logic, might as well go back to typewriters, 86 (or 87) e-readers, hybrids, and bunches of other things.

Saving money is one thing, but slagging technology and those who benefit from it? Ridiculous.

[sibelian]

47. Pf! There's nothing wrong with typewriters!

The amount of time wasted in offices over trying to get fonts right along with paragraph spacing, section breaks, text boxes, table boundaries.... BAH. we got WAY more work done when we were all properly trained as touchtypists and just used the machines properly! I remember very clearly exactly how much I could get done on an electric typewriter and word processors are WORSE. Too may unnecessary factors involved!

Vast amounts of the lifestyle tech produced today serves no particular purpose other than to be shiny and make people feel good about themselves for owning it. I had a PDA for a while - what an amazing waste of time and money! The stupid thing forgot everything when it ran out of power!!! How was it an improvement over a piece of paper? It WASN'T.

[obamanut2012]

49. 100% not true

I bet you think carbon paper was better than copiers, too.

[sibelian]

53. LOL! Yes, it in some instances it was!

When was the last time you had to call out and pay a technician to fix a sheet of carbon paper?! lol. Just because something's electronic doesn't mean it's better! OK, there are things photocopier's can do better than carbon paper but it's wrong to think that it should have replaced carbon paper universally. If a simple solution is good enough, what's the point of introducing a whole bunch of factors into the problem by coming up with a more complex one?

I'm the sort of person that sews a new button on a shirt if one comes off. I have friends that would throw out the shirt! You get my drift?

[tridim]

55. Typewriters sucked worse than rotary phones.

Sorry.

I have no idea what you're talking about. Word processors are orders of magnitude easier to use than a typewriter, considering even just the backspace key.

Typewriters were better than movable type, but that's about it.

[sibelian]

58. There's nothing wrong with rotary phones either!

Lol

What's the point of having a machine that takes 5+ minutes to START, crashes constantly, needs a dedicated helpline in case things go wrong with it, makes bizarre decisions for you about where you want the text, what it's supposed to look like, can't handle you starting a numbered list without freaking out... introducing all sorts of totally unnecessary things that you need training in to understand if you want to make them stop, etc, etc, etc when all you need to do is type something?

There is possibly one major advantage over typewriters in that you can store data electronically but even that is a very *fragile* advantage because the storage is frequently not backed up! So we've saved some trees and end up accepting an attrition rate for data. Not good! Fine if you're running your own business, no use if you're running a hospital! Training people to back up results in a small percentage of them backing up sometimes and then just giving up.

Don't get me wrong, computers are cool. Spreadsheets! Now you're talking. Word processors, in the workplace, on the other hand, are a pain in the arse. I've completely lost count of the number of times my colleagues have had to interrupt me to ask me for the fuckteenth time what the *insert* button does!

[GoCubsGo]

20. I have been with people whose GPS got us lost on multiple occasions.

I prefer to stick with paper maps, as they are more accurate. If I could afford a smart phone, I might have one, especially if I was in a job where a smart phone makes life easier. But, as it is, I only have a cell phone in case I need to call AAA when my 17-year-old car breaks down. I wouldn't call myself a "Luddite", just someone who doesn't feel the need to be connected to everyone 24/7.

[KatyMan]

22. Every since we've had airplanes...

We've all lost the ability to navigate via the stars. When was the last time you saw someone use one of these?



And don't get me started on cars and what they've done to the average person's ability to maintain and care for horses!

PS: The only cell phone I have is a Blackberry from work, which is a crap device...but luddite-ism should be discouraged.

[drmeow]

23. My smartphone reduces my energy use

I've had the same phone for 3 years and, when all I want to do is check my e-mail or look up the hours and location of the nearest store (so I reduce my driving - and, yes, it is more efficient than the phone book cause the phone book doesn't tell me which store is closest), I check my smartphone instead of powering up my computer. By cross checking the map feature on my smartphone (which, not being an iPhone, has a reasonably accurate mapping feature) I can cluster my errands more efficiently and save gas. So, instead of replacing a functioning product whose carbon footprint gets smaller each day it stays in use and replacing it with a product which used up more raw materials, water, and energy to be made and then shipped from Asia, I'll keep my current smartphone and pay a little extra to be a little more green.

[lightcameron]

24. Woohoo! Party like it's 1995!

The road atlas might be the funniest part of this post.

I'm off to cook breakfast now, so I have to go find two sticks to rub together so I can build a fire to make toast.

[Earth_First]

25. I got your stick right here...

[IDemo]

28. We both retired from telephone company jobs and haven't had a land line since

But we're on Tracfone, no Smarts included.

[raouldukelives]

29. I've heard some people don't have them at all.

Preferring to be pro-labor over pro-slavery. Pro-environment over pro-pollution. Pro-people over pro-profits.
Weirdos!

[Lifelong Protester]

34. I'm with you.

Was in Quebec City this summer. At the hotel, I was complaining about a road sign missing. The concierge said "I hope you weren't using a GPS. None of the lower town shows up on it."

GPS? Me? Fat chance. I prefer using my own brain cells and an atlas. And the atlas fits under the truck seat. No folding required.

[phylny]

112. GPS via my Garmin and my cell phone has been wonderful.

I travel doing early intervention visits all day long, and I think it's terribly unsafe to repeatedly glance down at a map or printed directions when I'm driving in traffic, especially in areas I'm unfamiliar with, since I drive alone.

Fat chance I'd allow my own brain cells to be splattered all over the atlas after an accident due to distracted driving, folded or unfolded.

[SheilaT]

30. Well, I'm with you,

MoF. I have an ordinary stupid phone, as I like to call it. I can make and receive phone calls. No texting.

I think regular maps have it all over a GPS. For one thing, they give you a much better overall view of wherever you're headed than anything on a tiny screen possibly can. And has no one here ever experienced the GPS being wrong? Wasn't there some huge story recently about one of the providers (and I honestly cannot recall which one) having all sorts of incorrect maps?

About ten years ago my husband got a GPS for his car. It was useful at times, but pretty soon he'd use it to direct him to places he knew perfectly well how to get to. Places he went to regularly. Then he bought me a GPS for my car. I used it a couple of times and found it less than useful, especially to try to ask it for a route while I was already driving. The final straw was when I asked it to route me from Overland Park, KS, to Tulsa, OK. It wanted me to go via Wichita and Oklahoma City. Look at a real map to see how ludicrous that routing is. Oh, and in case you don't already know, Overland Park is a Kansas suburb of Kansas City, MO.

To top it off, I could NOT get the stupid GPS to clear that trip. It apparently thought that I absolutely needed to take that trip before I went anywhere else.

I gave the GPS to my brother.

[Lex]

31. My smartphone is absolutely essential and very efficient for me to manage my business.

I am so glad I have it.

[stevenleser]

32. Advocating not having a tool that keeps you well informed and organized? On a political site?

[blueclown]

35. Demagoguery isn't only limited to conservatives.

As we see from the OP, liberals can use demagoguery just as well as right-wingers.

[Starry Messenger]

81. I wonder if they are using punch cards to access this web site...

LOL.

[Codeine]

89. "Hang on while I log on to DU and rail against

modern technology and Internet connectivity."

[tabbycat31]

36. I have a smartphone and have for 3 years

And I am not going back. I also take it that you are older than me (I was born in 1980). It seems that if you use your phones only for emergenices, then you also have a landline. I haven't had one of those in about 10 years and don't miss it one bit. And to educate you about the younger generation, many prefer texting over talking (I know I do). My love interest does not call me, he texts me, and I am fine with that.

People have different priorities when it comes to where they spend their money. When you have a job that requires you to be available by email 24/7 you need a smartphone. At the place I stayed on my last race, I didn't have internet there, so I was able to use my smartphone to compile nightly reports to send to my boss.

I also use a GPS too. And I can read a map (my dad made me prove I could read a map before I was allowed to get my license). I used the one on my phone for awhile until I got sent to a district with poor reception, so I bought Sidney the Garmin. (I named her so I could yell at her). I am fine navigating highways, but when I get off the highway and looking for local places, that's where I get lost. It's particularly helpful when you are out canvassing a neighborhood.

[Lex]

38. You were born in 1980 and I

was born in 1965, but I feel the same as you about my smartphone. So extraordinarily efficient for keeping up with my business, for checking bank balances on the fly, finding restaurants, movies, and stores while I'm already out and about, quickly responding to clients and others. And the GPS feature of my phone has kept me from wasting time looking for an address more times than I can count.

[obamanut2012]

50. Exactly -- it's not an age thing

My mother is in her 60's, and agrees with us, except she still has a landline, because my Dad insists on having one.

[MadrasT]

37. Meh.

I love my smartphone.

I also love real maps, and don't have any of the following in my home: land line phone, cable TV, internet service, an iPad, a Kindle, or even a computer.

I use the smartphone for email, internet browsing, and it is really handy to have a GPS when I'm driving at night in a city and reading a map would be more dangerous if not impossible. I do not "text" people. Texting sucks.

It's basically the only "device" or wired technology I own.

[fishwax]

40. I'm glad that works for you, MoF. I *could* do w/o mine, but see no reason to. It's very productive.

[dipsydoodle]

41. And some take just that bit too far.

[white_wolf]

42. You know why I don't use an atlas?

Because my smartphone is a much better navigator than I am. I know there's a good chance of me getting myself lost, but my GPS takes care of that problem. Plus if I'm driving alone it's can be dangerous to pull out a map. Why would I want to make life more difficult for myself. Step into the 21st century shh it'll be okay.

[pinboy3niner]

43. What's a smartphone, lol?

It may be convenient to be connected wherever you are, but when I'm out and about I usually prefer not to be interrupted or bothered, wherever I am.

My old cell that I used when I traveled is in a drawer somewhere, probably with the battery totally encrusted with gunk by now. And my landline has been down for nearly 2 months--though I really want to get that one working again.

It's a tradeoff, and just a matter of what you are willing to trade off.

Savings? I've had a few.

I may need to get a new cell before long, but for now I'm content.

[REP]

44. Smartphones do have dictionaries and autocorrect for spelling and possessives ...

... just FYI.

[hobbit709]

45. My Tracfone costs me about $7/mo

Makes calls, receives calls. I don't even have the text messaging and voice mail on. It has no other features. 90% of the time it's not even turned on.

And before someone accuses me of being a Luddite. I fix computers for a living(sort of)
I have 4 computers running constantly at my house. Each one for a specific purpose. I have a tablet that I use primarily as an ereader. I have a notebook that gets used maybe once a month. I have an HTPC with about 400 movies on it hooked to my TV.

[sibelian]

48. Atlas for me, thanks.

Smart phones are basically just expensive toys. For doing useful things in my life I prefer things that can't break...

Apple could re-invent the SCREWDRIVER and give it chips and lasers and a "screwing options" menu and a whole host of easily duped people would fork out $500 for them and fit shelves with it badly.

There's a difference between being a luddite and not using machines that are NOT, in fact, improvements on extant technology!

[obamanut2012]

52. lol

[Little Star]

54. Eventually all this newer technology will become much cheaper....

everything does. Too bad it'll be old technology by then.

[datasuspect]

56. smartphones are part of an overall plan to make us all increasingly more stupid

and it drives a few more nails in the idea of community.

[obamanut2012]

65. Odd, it helps me keep in touch with people better

Smartphones, social media, etc.

[datasuspect]

68. cat pictures

OMFG!

[Lurker Deluxe]

57. Rubbish

This is just another example of things that make people stay where they are.

I am a machinist, I have a really good job. Why?

I understand and know how to use current tech. I have friends that are just as capable as I am, yet make less than half what I make. Why? "I do not need to know how to use a computer" was their attitude in the late 90's. I had already purchased my first PC (C-64/128) in the late 80's. I kept up with that, and other, tech as it came out.

Today I can use ALL of the MS Office suite, including minor database creation in Access. I write all of the service reports that come out of the machine shop, pictures, measurement records, dates, customer contacts, all done on the PC. Need to know something that happened in the shop in the last decade? Ask me. Need to know about something that was before that? Not going to happen, the guy who ran this area before me "did not need to know how to use a computer". You can go dig through those boxes of hand written reports, good luck.

I use my I-Phone (company provided) to maintain e-mail, calender, contacts, and all sorts of other things. The tasks that it can accomplish grows all the time.

You go ahead and "step away" from the growing tech ... I'll keep up. I hope that guy on the next rung of this ladder thinks like you, don't bother looking back at me ... I am looking two steps ahead of you.

[ChazII]

60. Some folks need/want smart phones

and cable and others like me, can live without either. Now, the 'net is my must have.

[gollygee]

61. You don't have to pay that much to use a smart phone

http://www.virginmobileusa.com/cell-phone-plans/beyond-talk-plans/overview/

300 minutes of talk plus unlimited data is going for $35/month, though I've been with them a long time and they are still charging me $25/month. I imagine they'll raise my rates at some point. Even at $35 a month, I'll stick with the calendar I can update and access from multiple spots and set alarms on.

[shanti]

105. a question...

because i have an iphone (verizon) with a high monthly plan. it won't expire until september, but i'm looking for a new plan. it's just so confusing.

do you have an unlocked iphone with virginmobile? if you decided to go with another pay as you go plan with another carrier, can you take your virginmobile phone with you? i like the sound of that $35 a month plan, but still love my iphone.

[gollygee]

110. No, you have to use one of their phones

and they aren't great phones. So that would be a catch. But they are smart phones and they work for me.

[Prism]

62. Smart Phones save indescribable amounts of time

- Yes, GPS is important. As a new driver in the Bay Area, I could spend vast quantities of time consulting maps. Or I could type in the address and let the robot tell me where to go. When I'm in the city on foot, I could spend a lot of time squinting around trying to find streets, BART stations, and bus stops. I could wait around and wonder how long before the next bus comes, sometimes waiting up to 30 minutes (time I could've spent going to another stop or devising a more efficient route). I could do these things, but why would I?

- What's wrong with texting? I could call my partner, hope he answers, and then have a conversation with him or leave a voice mail. Or I could distill what I need to tell him in a five second text, send it, and understand he'll get the information he needs when he's available. I could make five separate phone calls to impart the same information to five different people, or I could keep them all in the loop in one text.

- When we're out and want to find a new restaurant, I could maybe spend time trying to hunt down a Yellow Pages, look up a list of restaurants, try to figure out which ones are close, then take a crap shoot on what might be good based on its name alone. Or I could find one instantly with menus and reviews.

- I could spend money on calendars to set reminders, make grocery lists, and write phone numbers on little scraps of paper. Or I could do all those things on that little device that's already in my pocket.

- I could call the bank, navigate the menu, enter a bunch of numbers. Or, I could spend ten seconds logging into my bank account and checking my balances.

- I could carry books and newspapers around with me all day in a bulky backpack, or I could read what I wanted in little moments of downtime during the day wherever I happen to be.

- I could write a dozen checks, make calls, enter in my information over the phone, and spend time at the post office. Or, I could pay all my bills with just a few flicks at a screen.

- I could wait six months between trips back East to see my niece and nephew, or maybe get a webcam and try the difficult task of scheduling times in different time zones to chat with them. Or, I could face time with them during those precious, impromptu moments when they're being adorable and their parents want to face time it so I can interact with them and share in the moment.

You mistake convenience for laziness. But convenience means efficiency. It means time saved. It means a lot of tedious little life tasks reduced and free time spent doing other things increased.

And I haven't even touched upon all the things a smart phone allows me to do at work.

Disdain for technology is no virtue. My time is important. A smart phone saves hours of it every single week.

[Lurker Deluxe]

64. One thing I really like

Your post reminded me of My Fitness Pal, a little app that runs on my I-Phone. Three years ago one of my goals was to cut down on "junk food". I'm not out of shape, but I am not getting any younger.

I looked around on the net for some help and ran across this program/web site. Installed MFP app on the I-Phone and it allows me to scan the food I eat and keep track of it any way I like. I had no idea how much sodium I was consuming because of little things here and there ... sugar as well.

Today I am a healthier person because of that little app. Could I have done that without the smart phone? Probably. Would I have done it? Doubtful.

Tech kicks ass.

[Prism]

67. I love MFP!

Last year I decided to trim down a bit and add muscle. This required a lot of balancing protein, fats, and carbs with my cardio and weight regimen. It would've been a nightmare trying to pencil that out, writing down everything I ate, calculating calories eaten and burned.

I credit that app with single-handedly getting my butt in gear to do it. I'm not sure I would have. There are definitely mornings when I get up at 5:30 for gym and don't much feel like it, but then I realize the app will remind me all day and week that I did not go. And I love looking down at it, seeing what I've managed all week, and realizing "Hell yeah, I can have some pizza!"

It's wonderful for so many people.

Just glancing at my phone, there are so many little apps that make my life easier. Coupon apps to save money and see what's on sale at the grocery store, a flashlight app so I'm never without one, a level app! (I hang art and photos as a side-job with a coworker, so we use that thing all the time).

I don't understand the hate for one device that improves quality of life in so many ways.

[dionysus]

99. +1

[Codeine]

69. If my wife decided to unilaterally cancel my smartphone

against my wishes there would be serious discussions regarding the future of our relationship, and the same would happen if I were to do something that disrespectful. I'm not a big fan of sanctimoniously bullying my family members in order to make myself feel superior.

Btw, my phone has an atlas. The difference is that it takes up no extra space, isn't accidentally left in the wrong car, and updates itself regularly. It's also a stack of books for reading when I find myself unoccupied, a stack of comics for the same purpose, a set of encyclopedias, a couple of boardgames, a handheld video game system, an appointment calendar, a watch, an alarm, a stopwatch, a scientific calculator, a memo pad, multiple shopping lists, a checkbook and bank ledger, a camera, a video camera, and a big-ass stack of Coltrane CDs.

Oh, and it's the entire friggin Internet. In my pocket.

[datasuspect]

72. but does anyone ever ask themselves

"WHY do i need the internet in my pocket?"

convenience? what do convenience do you really obtain?

snarky restaurant reviews on yelp?

[Codeine]

75. I don't "need" much of anything beyond

air, water, food, and shelter. I really like having the Internet in my pocket simply because I'm a constantly curious person.

I like being able to wander into a bookstore, find an interesting book, and then access a world of reviewers to make my buying decision that much more educated.

At the game store I've got boardgamegeek.com to aid my purchasing choices, and to resolve rules questions as we play.

I enjoy winning arguments by having access to facts on demand. Not my best character trait, but hey. . .

As a vegan having intarwebz in my pocket makes it easier to find restaurants while traveling.

[datasuspect]

76. i'm not much of a consumer

so i don't really get into those situations.

[sibelian]

73. And a petting zoo!

And a funeral parlour! And a one-man band! And a monopoly set! And a car towing a caravan! And a gyroscope! And a puppy called Scruff! And a set of hair-clippers! And a vaccuum cleaner! And some laminate flooring! And a picnic table! And a yucca plant! And a rail-gun! And a garlic press! And a garden hose! And an aquarium! And an extractor fan! And an ant farm! And a spinning wheel! And yer grandma on a rocking chair!

All on a teeeeeeny tiny little screen with buttons that you can't.... quite.... press....

[Codeine]

77. For your information

I deleted the grandmother on a rocking chair app, dammit!

[sibelian]

100. Usually the first to go, I hear...

[datasuspect]

70. delusions of importance

pod people living in bubbles.

if i'm "crazy busy" enough i won't have to confront the fundamental emptiness of modern life.

it's not like truly important people ever require these tools.

they make enough money to have staff members who act as organic smartphones.

that's why you'll never get a CEO or a president on the phone, much less send them a text.

OMFG!

[Lex]

78. President Obama and his beloved Blackberry.

I remember him not giving up his Blackberry when he took office.

[Lurker Deluxe]

80. truly important people

Who are truly important people? If an example of a "truly important person" is a CEO that is a shame. My company has a CEO for sure, he is not important to me.

My father has a smart phone, he is important to me.

I guess it's all depends on what you consider "important".

My phone allows me to be more social, I can look on FB and find out where my friends are shooting pool tonight, find out where we are watching the game at (Cotton Bowl last night at Doc's sports bar, Texans today at Joe's house). To think that if someone has a smart phone they are in a pod or have some fundamental emptiness of modern life makes me sad.

I'm at work, going to leave early so I can get north of town to the Woodlands to watch the game. I have already texted two people who did not have the address and responded to my friend that I would pick up some oranges. Blue Moon, YAY!!

Guess I should step back into my bubble and confront some emptiness.

LOL!

[datasuspect]

83. whoosh!

i have to figure out how to post here in coloring book format.

[Lurker Deluxe]

86. If your implying

If you are implying that I am uneducated and that went over my head ...

Sounds good to me.

Never did care to much for self righteous overeducated pod people.

[datasuspect]

88. you're = contraction of "you are"

and it's "too" not "to"

[Lurker Deluxe]

97. -chuckle-

Well ... I barely squeaked by high school, a scholar I have never claimed to be.

ROFLMAO!!!

Dude, really ... go find some friends and go watch a couple footballs games, chase some skirts around, have a beer or three.

[Codeine]

82. Your modern life may be pretty empty,

but mine is an awesome blend of good friends, loving family, growing children, and more knowledge and learning at my disposal than any generation has ever had. I'm watching my 8-year-old stepdaughter discover the worlds of Tolkein, Baum, and Moorcock for the first time, mostly via inexpensive ebooks -- that ain't fundamental emptiness, that's pure joy.

Sanctimonious Luddites can go frown at each other and talk about how satisfying it is to remain disconnected (when the aren't too busy posting on DU, of course.) I'll be over here enjoying myself.

[datasuspect]

87. i wasn't speaking about myself personally

when you speak about people rather than ideas, you demonstrate the crassness that comes from the lack of civility and community in our culture.

you made one of my unspoken points for me i guess.

[Codeine]

90. Whatever gets you through the fundamental emptiness, Tiger. nt

[datasuspect]

93. bless your heart

sugarbutt

[Lurker Deluxe]

98. .

[Lurker Deluxe]

95. E-books

E-books rock for sure.

But I have a collection of hardbacks that impresses to be sure. Including the Franklin leather bound 100 greatest books of all time, I have some other wonderful sets. I always encourage someone who has never read the classics to do so with a kick ass well printed hardback.

Nothing better.

[Starry Messenger]

79. My boyfriend and I got lost at night in New York last spring.

The only thing that got us back to our hosts house was the smartphone directions. We accidentally got on a subway train that was rerouted through the station and ended up going back to a station where we had to walk an hour through Brooklyn to get back to where we were staying. Phone saved our asses. Why would we be carrying an atlas of New York around?

[Codeine]

85. Because not carrying an atlas around

makes you stupid, if I'm reading the OP correctly. Fuckin DU, man.

[Starry Messenger]

96. Man, I wish I'd had all the things we have now when I was younger.

Just for research alone, being able to look up stuff when you're watching a documentary. We used to have to haul out the World Books to do that. And if it wasn't in there, too bad!

You should have seen us in New York, we would have made a great commercial for Google Maps. It was fucking raining when we got out in the dark. Our first time in New York. My boyfriend starts randomly walking off in some direction to just see where we are and I reached into my pocket and yelled "phone!"

[datasuspect]

91. let me get this straight

using the phone to get directions in the most populated city of the united states = social

so is asking another human being (stranger) face to face for directions = antisocial?

[Starry Messenger]

109. Um, it was the middle of the night at a deserted subway.

No one was around and did I mention it was raining, hard. Oh, yes, I did. We had an hour walk, and there was not one person around for around 45 minutes of it. We got back to our address at 1 am. So, you're all set now.

[rickford66]

94. my latest experience

My cell phone, which I can only talk on or text, finally bit the dust. I check with Verizon and I'm eligible for a free upgrade. There's 11 phones I can get for free and only two of them don't require internet service. So I can still get a "phone". You see where this is going. Competition was supposed to drive costs down but all it has done is come up with more bells and whistles.

[AcidBlack]

101. Good for you

if you can give up some technology and make things simpler for you and your family, and save some money.

For me, the iPhone has proved indispensable time and time again. I gladly tithe to the gods of AT&T once a month, lest they smite my precious.

[Neoma]

102. My phones can do so many things that it reduces my carbon footprint.

Just as I gladly buy cloth shopping bags and glass jars for bulk items, and pay people to recycle old computer parts, I'll pay for my phone.

I don't have to buy a shitload of plastic for music, and that's only 1 out of a lot of things.

[Evoman]

103. I'm so glad I got my smartphone. When I was in the hospital for a week, I had a way to

stay in touch. The wifi in my room was unusable, and if I didn't have my smartphone, I wouldn't have been able to connect to the net. 'Maybe someone would be nostalgic for the old days when you could stay in the hospital and get nothing but a tiny shitty tv or have the privilege to stare at the walls. Instead, I got to talk to my friends that weren't able to visit and visit websites to keep me from shooting myself out of boredom.

As to GPS. Like I want to buy an atlas for every city and every road that I'm going to. Screw that. And the way cities are growing, a five year atlas can be hopelessly outdated. Better to have google maps and gps.

Add weather apps, theater apps, and review sites for restaurants....man...I could never go back.

[geckosfeet]

106. I agree about the cable. But my hand held data device (smart phone) is a tremendous convenience.

[JI7]

107. i think there is a problem with idiots who always feel the need to check some stupid text

right away. even when it's nothing important , work related etc.

but the phones are very useful for many reasons .

[blueamy66]

108. To each his/ her own

You chose to have 4 kids, I chose to have a smartphone. I don't need the Internet anymore. It all comes out in the wash.

Ummmmm also.....do you ride the bus? The smartphone comes in way handy for a bus rider, like me.

Oh, and we still have a road map in the car.

[Jennicut]

111. I don't have one.

I have a Verizon Cosmos and it has a sliding keyboard for texting.
I am happy paying no data plans.
I survive. I had a Go Phone flip phone before so this is better.

[nessa]

113. "Just got into a wreck, car is totaled ..." I got that text from my son..

He tried to call but I wasn't near my phone. The actual text said "I got in accident, I'm fine and the other people are fine, but the van is gonna need towed"

[Captain Stern]

115. I get more use out of smart phone than I did my flip phone.

My smartphone is my calendar (work and home). It's my primary tool to send and receive emails. It's my music player. It's my gps unit. It's my calculator. It's my camera. And I can use it to make phone calls.

I'm going to keep my smartphone......that'll be ok too.