My life...my phone...

It's coming up for two years since I replaced my Sony Ericsson P990i with an iPhone. What a difference! My wife used to take the mickey out of my usage, so I bought her an iPad. No problems at all now.

Tony

Dustysox

You are being ironic right?

Fun, covenient, impressive maybe but important?

You may miss connectivity/apps and the like but you surely don't need most of it.

I think we are suckered into assuming such devices are essential to modern life but they generally add clutter and complication. A spirit level app? Get hold of a pencil, or a marble if your eyes cannot tell you something is level. Time zones; surely you can work that out? We may use remotes and Playlists but we still loved music before we ever had HiFis that had them. Good heavens, we sometimes had to flip over a disc half-way through playing it!

Personally I can think of nothing worse than being able to check my email when I'm on holiday. I'm away from home, and uncontactable. I never use a mobile when I'm away (fairly rarely when I'm home too in fact). My life has not descended into chaos when I return. My wife has a mobile, but it is almost never switched on. I don't think I have the number.

The 'essentiality' of being always contactable and always connected is a modern con. Some people are almost addicted to it.

Here's a test if you like. Go away for the weekend and take none of your devices with you. I bet you have a great weekend as per usual, and can function perfectly well including getting the information you need by asking people and checking in the usual places. You also won't have your meal interrupted by being phoned, and you might just spend a bit more time interacting with your SO, or indeed other people as a result.

I'm being a bit messianic about this (and a bit harsh perhaps) but I think this apparently connected world is in many ways disconnecting us from human interaction. I watch folk wandering along the street in clusters, heads down, all individually texting different people but failing to actually talk to each other and oblivious to the world around them.

I'm not a luddite, just challenging the myth that these things are quite as essential as we all seem to feel, or indeed are told by the companies who market them.

Bruce

no its not essential but is damn useful! i constantly am amazed at just how much i use my iphone (having had a nokia 5800 before - chalk and cheese there!) it saves me lots of time and generally makes life easier/more convenient. and i listen to loads of music on it too.

don't knock it till you've tried it...

I do have an iPad, iPod classic and an iPod Touch. They are cool and thoroughly enjoyable to use, great kit for certain.

Time-saving or time wasting? Hard to be sure always.

Like having a Swiss Army knife. All these wonderful devices but when did you last actually need to take a stone out of a horses hoof?

I don't have an iPhone admittedly but then why have a fancy phone when you only make one or two calls a month and receive fewer than that? I cannot actually remember what my phone sounds like when it rings. Perhaps I should switch it on sometimes...



Bruce

who uses their phone for calls anyways? why speak to people when you can text/email them!

Walking round town the other day I had an "interaction" with an other individual, he walked into me whilst texting , "look where your going mate" was his response.
SWMBO prevented me from any further "interaction".

I think in future, avoiding will be avoided.

Like having a Swiss Army knife. All these wonderful devices but when did you last actually need to take a stone out of a horses hoof?

I did this morning, not with a SA knife or iphone though, used a hoof pick!