Do you still regularly use the phone?

[Mystes]

I just noticed that I rarely use it compared to 5 years ago. What "bout you?

[ainsoph9]

I use it, although I recently had to change my number.

[hobogunner]

What's a....phone...?

I have to keep in touch with relatives, so I'm on it almost every other day. For some people, that's very little though.

I just generally stay off it if I can, and keep it in the corner of my room where I can't find it on vibrate, so it is lost until I search for it.

[Mystes]

Do any of you guys prefer cellphone?

[ainsoph9]

It is not so much a matter of preference for me. It is more like, "The world demands that I have a cell phone." Ergo, it is almost a matter of necessity for jobs, family, friends, etc. Pretty sad, if you ask me.

[hobogunner]

Yeah, I have no home phone, so a cell phone is definitely the best (and only) alternative.

I just don't like texting or any of that. If you want to talk, call me or email me with a long message, not something like "Hey Jordan, what's up?" Save that for instant messages. I don't like texting.

[ainsoph9]

Yeah, I have found that texting and some other forms of communication are really just ways of actually communicating with them while "communicating" with them.

[Misogi]

I need a smartphone because my current phone is old and to avoid getting lost again in Paris. It's not a joke.

I don't need unlimited calls and 3Gb of Internet, my free subscription is more than enough.

But I'll think of it later. My computer is more important.

[ainsoph9]

Misogi's comment makes me wonder what constitutes a "need" for a smartphone for one. Secondly, I wonder when and how we will distinguish between a smartphone and a PC/laptop in a sense in the future. They are almost the same in terms of the function; it is just a matter of the size and some capability/features anymore.

[Misogi]

Misogi's comment makes me wonder what constitutes a "need" for a smartphone for one. Secondly, I wonder when and how we will distinguish between a smartphone and a PC/laptop in a sense in the future. They are almost the same in terms of the function; it is just a matter of the size and some capability/features anymore.

- If I'm bored, I have some interesting and nice games to kill time.
- If my computer is off, I have another way to connect to the Internet. An easy one, besides.
- If I'm lost, I have the GPS (better than a paper map, which I never had when needed).
- I need to change my old phone, its battery can't stand more than 2h in activity. And it has only English and Asian languages.

Typing and copy-pasting are slower with a smartphone than with a computer, and you can't play MMORPGs for a long time with a smartphone.
And Internet on a smartphone is quite limited, unless you have a wifi connection, unless you only spend 5Mb/month or unless you have 3Gb/month.

[ainsoph9]

Misogi, what you say has a certain truth to it. Yet, with the reasons you gave and without any judgment against you personally, I still must pause and question whether these things are needs or even necessary at all. Obviously, humans were able to get by without smartphones and the like for the past x number of millennia. So, why the "need" all of sudden within the past century? Sure, one could argue that the "need" has always existed, but surely the answer does not need to lie in the smartphone and technology in the form that it exists today. Is it not ironic that the more we try to communicate with each other, find ways to keep ourselves entertained, obtain access to information, etc. the more we become socially dysfunctional and enslaved to what we made to make our lives easier?

The convergence of technology seemingly will obliterate the barrier between phone and PC in the near future. The implications of this may be greater than we realize.

[hobogunner]

Ainsoph speaks truth. There are many who can become addicted to such conveniences. (Yes, I made convenience a drug.)

I can also agree that if your computer is off, or you get disconnected from the internet, having a backup isn't a bad idea. Though, nor is playing a game of Solitaire.

I certainly have a smartphone, but the most I do on it is look up sports scores, feel attached to my email too often, and talk with people (through gtalk, text, or calling). I will use the GPS function if needed, but I study streets / the area before I even arrive or go somewhere unknown. That's it for my phone aside from posting here occasionally, or browsing another forum, but that's at school. I use my phone for it's "smart" capabilities less often than most people I know use their iPod touch. Oh, I also use my phone to check my bank, but I could just sign up for texts. Basically, I do nothing on my phone worthy of having a smartphone.

[ainsoph9]

hocchan, you more or less just gave further evidence to my point. No insult intended here, but it seems that the "smart" phone makes people into bigger idiots than they ever were or could have been. How many traffic accidents have been caused by cell phone and smartphone users? Yeah...real smart, people, real smart...Such things cause me to wonder if we could and/or should be using our time in a "better" manner such as reading books, making productive things to help society, actually talking to people face-to-face , etc. Frankly, is it worth the $xxxx for the smartphone that I could spend $0 on for a fun time just hanging out with friends?

[hobogunner]

I was basically supporting your point, to some extent, more sharing my experience of using my phone.

People using their phone when driving is stupid. I'm not a fan of looking at the screen while driving. If you're talking to someone with bluetooth or even holding the phone to your ear, fine. But not texting going 70mph down I5. To me, it's not worth it. Though, many others use it as a necessity. Much like Misogi said, getting around the streets is difficult without navigation in Paris. Although, I will say smartphones give us a false sense of "smartness" because I can speak into my phone and it will read me the first paragraph on wikipedia about anything. Though, we are becoming a society that does that. I would rather have a smartphone than be stuck without if I am in a situation that might require referencing something I do not have. I agree, that paying 200 dollars for something that makes you stupider is...stupid. But, I got my phone free, and don't use it to try to boast like I know something I don't.

[ainsoph9]

The economists' saying: "There is no such thing as a free lunch."