What would the world be like without cell phones? I honestly don’t even want to know.
In just my twentysomething years on this planet, I have seen some major mobile technological advances.
I got my first cell phone when I was in middle school. I call this time period,”Razor’s Edge.” It seemed like every kid in my school had a Razor. It was a basic flip phone, but it was kind of sleek. I, however, did not have a Razor. I had a black flip phone. It was pretty standard, but I was excited about this camera-less phone.
During this time phones were super cheap. People did not really anticipate a new phone being released, they just waited until their mom said that it was time for a new phone. We would go to our service provider and I would just pick whatever I thought was cool at the time. Those were simpler times.
It wasn’t long before everyone upgraded. I got my first camera phone. The Rumor. It had a small screen and numbers on the front. The cool thing about this phone was that it had a slide-out keyboard. I (along with all the other cool eighth graders) would take horrible quality pictures of random items and then turn my phone to the side to text about it. It was great.
I thought that life couldn’t get any better. Then, I got the Rumor Touch. It was a purple phone that had a full touchscreen front, AND a slide-out keyboard. I was in heaven. This touchscreen was not like anything that we see today. You had to put some pressure on the screen to make anything happen but at the time, it was amazing. I like to refer back to this time as “please don’t look, it was a mistake.” This was also the time when all of my friends were making Facebook and MySpace pages, and flooding them with horrible mirror selfies (front cameras weren’t all that yet). I don’t have enough time in the world to go back and delete all those mirror selfies.
I thought that my life was complete. I was wrong. The next few years went by pretty quickly. The iPhone was released, but I didn’t ride that wave. I went through a series of cheap full touchscreen smartphones. They were extremely durable. I knew a lot of people with iPhones, but at the time I (my mom) could not imagine paying so much money for a phone when we had been surviving off of cheap phones for so long.
When I was a freshman in college, I got the iPhone 5. I did not know what I had just signed myself up for. No one told me that I was making a lifelong commitment. It’s like when you sign up for a free 30-day trial, and then the next thing you know, $29.99 is coming out of your account every month…except with this there is no cancelation.
I. was. hooked. I loved it. The picture quality. The sensitive screen. I did not have to download a video chat app because I could FaceTime with my friends. I had finally given in to the hype. Fast forward a few years later, and my iPhone (that is always being traded in for an upgraded version) never leaves my side. To be honest, it is the most committed relationship I have ever had.
What started as just something cool to have is now my lifeline. A few months ago, I broke my phone and had to go two days without it. Those were the hardest two days of my life. I was okay when I was inside and could check social media and respond to emails on my computer, but when I was outside of the house, it was like man vs. wild.
Think about how many times we use touch our phones per day. Business Insider posted an article that says, “The typical cellphone user touches his or her phone 2,617 time every day, according to a study by research firm Dscout. But that’s just the average user: The study found that extreme cellphone users — meaning the top 10% — touch their phones more than 5,400 times daily.”
As a millennial, I can say that our lifestyles can be pretty on the go. Between classes, jobs, and trying to see friends and family, you have to have some kind of mobile device to keep in contact with people.
Pew Research Center reports that 85% of adults 18 or older have a cell phone. By age 18, most people have gone through quite a few cell phones.
CNN reported on the approximate age that people get cell phones.
The article states,
jordynelstontv.com 
Jordyn, I totally remember the “Razors Edge”, and the “Please don’t look it’s a mistake,” eras. I also never had the privilege of owning a razor, and I also started the apple phase late (and that was also the best decision I ever made). I agree that we use our phones for everything, and I can’t imagine not having my phone. If I ever misplace my phone or feel like I lost it, my heart races, and I instantly get anxiety and go into panic mode. Our phones are more than just a way to converse with our family and friends, but it’s an imperative component in our work lives and our overall well-being. The statistics you provided in your post about the average cell phone user touching their phone more than 2,000 times, is pretty accurate. I know for a fact that I’m constantly using my phone for everything, so I probably fall into the 10 percent who touch their phones more than 5,000 times. However, reading further in your post when you discussed the negatives of using your cell phone, really gave me another perspective on my cell phone usage. Your post was very informative, and I have vowed to use my cell phone less, and do other activities more, (like watching my favorite shows on Netflix).
LikeLike
Jordyn, your post is so true! First, the “Razor’s Edge” – you are right, those were the good ole days. You really were cool when you finally got your hands on a razor, even if it was a hand me down when my dad’s phone got upgraded. Those really were a more simple time and stage of life. It seemed we did all have a phone eventually, but we could still leave the house without it glued to us, we could still sit and have conversations with our friends and family without having the screen right at our faces, not to mention at that time if you didn’t have the plan that included text messages, you better be dying before you send one, or else your parents would kill you (atleast I know mine would.) The most interesting thing on my first phone was that I got to sit and play snake, and try every single day to beat my score from the day before.
Today, it’s not such a simple life when it comes to our phones. It’s like trying to convince yourself that you can walk without your FitBit on. I now have children, and my oldest, who is 8, is begging me for a phone. I can’t even wrap my mind around it, and of course she is not getting one, but she doesn’t even go anywhere. I asked her why she needed one, and she rambled off three friends that already had them… WHAT? At 8 years old?? That would be a no.
I enjoyed your post and think you hit the nail right on the head. Good job!
LikeLike