Hooray for dumbphones

[JPeters86]

Hello fellow GS members,

When the Apple iPhone 3G came to The Netherlands somewhere in the summer of 2008, I was very happy to own one. However, less than two years later, I gave the iPhone away to my sister and bought a simple $ 40 "dumbphone". The reason for doing this, was that the iPhone started to be the cause of some restlessness in my mind. I travel to work by train, and every day while waiting for the train, I was checking news websites, Facebook, e-mail etc. etc. If there was a beautiful sunset, I would not see it because I was reading what my Facebook friend was having for diner that night. When I realized this, and realized how I had been conditioned through the months and how this had happened largely unnoticed, it changed my views completely on smartphones.

Of course I think the iPhone (and any modern smartphone) is a great piece of technology, but it seems to me that the constant availability of large amounts of information can get obtrusive in the long run. Are there any other folks with a similar experience?

When I see the iPhone 4, it seems like a really great piece of technology, and I am sometimes tempted to buy one for myself. But what does owning an iPhone 4 really add to my experience of the world around me? This availability of global information sometimes even seems to displace you in a way from the very moment you're in. And with the speed of things these days it's difficult enough to experience the moment and not think ahead too far, I guess. I am 24 years old, by the way.

Sorry for the quasi rant

[woodhenge]

I still rock a Verizon freebie Moto flip phone, 'cause I don't want to be any more plugged in than I already am... the last thing I need is the internet in my pocket. thumbsup

Besides, I work as a field technician and when crawling through attics I tend to break phones occasionally...

[JPeters86]

Great, I'm glad I'm not alone. The only thing is that I still have this $ 35 contract for some months now while I only use about $ 15 for calling / texting and zero mobile data. Ah well, let's move on...

[timlloyd]

Originally Posted by JPeters86

Great, I'm glad I'm not alone.

You're not alone ... I'm even younger than you as well

are all those mics yours? ... wish they were mine

[JPeters86]

Originally Posted by timlloyd

are all those mics yours?

I wish they were...

[systematika]

Originally Posted by Sounds Great

thumbsup

When I want a computer, I like to sit down at my desk (home or office), and leave it when I'm done.

Yeah, that's the way it is for me too. I'm an internet addict as much as it is. It's bad enough being expected to have a phone of any kind tethered to you 24/7.

At least you could go out and do something and let your answering machine get important things in the days of past, but now people get ticked off when you're busy and let it go to voice mail not answering right that millisecond. Doesn't matter if you're at a gig, a date, out of town, or even a funeral. They want you and they want you NOW!

[GeorgeHayduke]

I hear ya!

A guy I work with and ride the bus with just got one of these ridiculous iPhone 4s which you can't use when its frosty outside without voiding the warranty and what happened is that every day when we leave work he now sits with his head inside that little screen before coming home to stick his head into the even bigger screen. He never looks up and outside the window anymore, instead he's fumbling around with one of the 500 apps which do everything and nothing.

No thanks, I'm doing just fine without it.

[DaveE]

It's quite handy but yeah it can suck you in if you let it. I seem to use the actual phone less than any of the other features like email/text/music/dropbox. It's pretty nice to have my entire music collection with me wherever I go. It's up to the human not to become an anti-social net hermit, can't really blame that on the phone.

[Daniel Rodrigues]

Well, i don't have an iphone or an mp3 player, so i have a phone that calls and texts (good enough for me), and i don't hammer my ears with headphones all day.

[jeremy.c.]

I feel the OP on this.

That said though, I'm never giving my smartphone up. I always have an excellent camera on me and I don't have to remember to bring an iPod or CD player with me for commutes and listening to my podcasts. The occasional map function and the ability to email on the rare instance I-need-it-now is worth the trade off. I did have to make a conscious effort to not be plugged in all of the time and I routinely send my calls to VM. But I generally don't let the internet or tv suck me in at home either, it's all about my relationship with the technology. Healthy or not it's on us. (stating the obvious I guess)

[Yago]

Originally Posted by jeremy.c.

I feel the OP on this.

I always have an excellent camera on me

Steady on that man !
An average P&S at best !

[jeremy.c.]

Originally Posted by Yago

Steady on that man !
An average P&S at best !

okay, that wasn't meant to be hyperbole, but it was expressing an opinion with an unstated caveat. It is not my Canon T2i with a good lens by any stretch of the imagination, but in the realm of consumer cameras it is better than average.

[Yago]

Originally Posted by jeremy.c.

It is not my Canon T2i with a good lens by any stretch of the imagination

Cool enough
Just replaced my 400d with a 550d !
Have to get the chance to use it in anger now .
What lens do you have ?

[jeremy.c.]

Originally Posted by Yago

Cool enough
Just replaced my 400d with a 550d !
Have to get the chance to use it in anger now .
What lens do you have ?

I have the stock 18-55 lens currently and was using my friend's Canon 18-135 which was really nice. I'm probably going to buy a 70-300 lens shortly. Great camera!!!

[LokiProducer]

I still rock an 'dumbphone'.
It allows me to get away from work, get away from things.

There has been times when I think it might be good to get one, so that i could update things on facebook/gearslutz real fast.. or email things over a stressful contract negotiation. But.. that's when I remind myself that its good for me not to have that stuff at my fingertips all the time..

[Yago]

Originally Posted by jeremy.c.

I have the stock 18-55 lens currently and was using my friend's Canon 18-135 which was really nice. I'm probably going to buy a 70-300 lens shortly. Great camera!!!

I am hoping to find out tomorrow , weather permitting .
Have my 70-200 F4 L on the front , sweet lens indeed

[Igotsoul4u]

My smart phone was my greatest legal asset. Monthly backups of every email in one place served as evidence in each of my court cases. Blackberry saved my ass. I recently switched to an iphone. I will never be bored again.

[Insain]

Originally Posted by DaveE

It's quite handy but yeah it can suck you in if you let it.

You just gotta' control it. Its a convience and a quick check, not a passtime.

[choukette]

phones are just tools like every piece of material,

you can do smart or dumb things with them, it depends only on you,

if you think you waste too much time on a smartphone, then yes go to a simpler phone,

if you can't control your internet slavery, yes stay away from them,

at a point, it's become even a test to know if you are enslave or not to those gears and technologies.

iphone4 is the best phone i ever own (compare to the nokia 3310 i kept during 6 years) but i can't react the way so many people react to the touch screen of their smart phone, they are mesmerised, over use them, waste all their time on it, promote them for free ....

it's a human issue, not a technological issue,

if you can't manage the way you use this tool stay away from it like OP said

[tribeofenki]

Smartphones are outdated!



Posted via the internet.

[timlloyd]

Originally Posted by choukette

if you can't manage the way you use this tool stay away from it like OP said

I can't afford one dude

[lukasbrooklyn]

12-year-old nokia 3310 here. never had any issues whatsoever-- apart from the fact i have to delete a person off the contact list whenever i want to squeeze in a new contact. which is usually a handy feature in fact. :] i like a streamlined solution, it appears smartphone users tend to spend hours on end to customize or even make their phones work, constantly discussing firmware updates, apps, issues caused by faulty update releases etc. i also can't stand sluggishness, and it seems to me all phones released after mine have a higher latency and i find myself constantly working ahead of the machine. having said that, i wouldn't mind an iphone as a secondary phone, the music apps are sweet ;]

[Michael E]

Total bullshit.
It's like cutting out own kidney because you just drink too much.

[audibell]

Originally Posted by DaveE

It's quite handy but...It's up to the human not to become an anti-social net hermit, can't really blame that on the phone.

I only use the RTA lite and SPL app on my friend's really old, 1 or 2G iPhone - still using a 5yr-old Verizon Motorola for everything else. Laptop for emails and racks for editing.
WalterT

[kafka]

I finally got my first smartphone a couple of weeks ago. I've found it to be a very useful tool. I held out as long as I could, but not being connected like everyone around me was just getting to be a hassle.

[Jay-]

I hate phones!

[rc99]

I'm still on my Casio G'zone Type-S for the 7th year. Just ordered a couple of new OEM batteries, in fact. It's a tough, reliable and brawny phone....just right for me.

I am looking into getting an iPad, though...but mostly for things like control surfaces and on-set control/vid feed.