I have a confession to make.
In the summer of 2014, around July, I got my first smart phone.
I know, I know. How did I live up to that point? I resisted the idea of a smart phone for the longest time, rationalizing that I wouldn't use any of the features offered by one.
But now that I do have one, it's baffling and frankly terrifying to think about how hard it'd be to go back to using a "dumb" phone. A smart phone has made so many aspects of my life easier, but I can't help but feel guilty about becoming too reliant on my phone or being too distracted by it. Don't get me wrong, the transition has been largely positive, although it did make me realize a few things.
The following are all revelations I should have had in 2007. Sorry.
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| Me, basically. |
The Good
1. Having a GPS is the Best. Thing. Ever.
I used to look up directions at home and then follow the step-by-steps on the road. It all works great as long as I have a single destination... but that's rarely how life works. This was especially bad when I had to play tour guide for friends from out of town, or when I took a wrong turn and needed to navigate back to the main route.
2. I don't need to carry a separate mp3 player for music
Ugh, I know. "Welcome to the 21st century, Sheldon."
3. Having the internet in your pocket is almost too convenient
I once ran out of wiper fluid while on the road and didn't know how to refill it, so I looked up a "how to" on my phone. It made me feel like Iron Man. I can't remember how many times the internet has bailed me out of situations like this since I've had my iPhone. I no longer have to go into things as prepared as I used to, which I feel ambivalent about.
The Bad
1. Mobile versions of websites are awful
I couldn't even access mobiles sites with my old phone, so I had no opinion of them. But now that I can see them, I think they're terrible. Go figure. The layouts for mobile sites are often so limited and slow to load, but I imagine that my phone's processing power has something to do with the latter.
2. Life feels so fast
Now that I can respond to emails from anywhere and look up directions for any place, it feels like I need to do all these things just because I can. I used to be able to get away from it all because I had no choice, but not anymore. Dang.
3. Losing your phone suddenly becomes an ordeal
I think this is where my main issue was before I finally got a smart phone. My phone is constantly logged into my emails and social media, and there's just so much personal information stored. Thinking about some stranger sending my friends and coworkers weird messages (nooooooooo!) makes my skin crawl. I'd rather lose a credit card at this point.
Bonus epiphany:
I can no longer drop my phone or throw it across the room.
I used to have a joke where I'd say that my dumb phone had a "feature" that smart phones didn't have, throw it across the room, and say "tada" when it didn't shatter. *sigh* Good times.
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| Wait for me! |
