Could you live without a mobile phone?

Eramen

Yes I certainly could live without it.

I actually preferred when mobile phones were a rarity and the only people owning them were well-to-do businessmen who used them for legitimate reasons. Communication was for the most part so much more spontaneous, free and uncomplicated then, as well as putting a human face on all social communication which leads to proper socialization and building of a living knowledge of human cultural & societal norms. I mean how many people actually need mobile phones today? I'd wager very few (I don't for definite) if we are honest and look at the big picture.

Today it seems that all social-communication responsibility has gone out the window, with people failing to find their place within a group structure or an inclusive social culture aka friendship/association based on reliance and shared values with colleagues, family, relatives and community. I think the adoption of new technologies has a real impact on the above.

Today it seems far too easy for a person to 'go in his own direction', to do whatever he 'feels like', without regard for the well-being of others or even himself. He is socially isolated in a world of his own technological making. We might say that we are all 'alone together', it's very sad. Look at how FB can be misused for example, this is real isolation when it is abused. There is no longer a common interest or point of origin to be found among people with no real investment within society itself. And without these things there is no common future either. One stems from the other.

Mobile phones aren't to blame for all this of course, but they can be observed to be a contributing factor to the overall social demise of modern society, along with the almost reasonless faith placed in technology to 'correct' our problems. Technological civilization simply becomes a mirage at this point, as thinker Julius Evola described. The problems it seemingly corrects are really just hidden, kicked down the road for others to solve or aggravated in some other fashion. The real question is, why do this problems exist in the first place, what is their cause, and how can we stop them in actuality?

I mean come on, if some people don't get a response to a text within 10 minutes, they are asking 'Are you dead or what?' in the next. Or going out somewhere with people you know, and having to compete with the phone for attention and communication. We've ALL been there.. Social responsibly is lacking, group norms are not being learned. The youth (which would be my peer group) are right now are a severe disadvantage compared to previous generations; the levels of disassociation and anti-social activity are indeed staggering.. do I even need to explain?

Fully fledged relationships with loved-ones and the opposite sex especially are in dire straits, nevermind a hugely over-bloated violence-based social culture (indeed Gandi said that all modern Western culture is violence based, because it ascribes material values only. This is also something peculiar to the technological era)- the very product of a lack of social belonging and cohesion. Anyway, these are just some of my thoughts, I'll end it before this gets too long!

cocoshovel

Yes. I only send about 1 or 2 texts a week. I bought 20 euro credit back in May and I still have 10 euro of it left. I only keep it for occasional work and the just-incase really.

frisbeeface

I definitely could live without it. Pretty much everything I use my phone for I could use the internet for instead.

christmas2012

Im a bit of a retro,i could live without my mobile there are other ways of communicating with people,like knocking on their door,i often do that to a few neighbours and friends..They dont mind it either as there of that 90's era,where mobile phones didnt really play a big part in socialising or face book or anything like that.So i could live without it,having said that though if i was stuck somewhere i would need it with credit,working and charged,as i got stuck in dublin one day without a working phone,so i immediately had to buy another functioning one fast!I have to admit i felt naked and vunerable without it..

DEFTLEFTHAND

Yes, it more than likely wouldn't be an issue.

nbar12

i went to the toilet today in work and forgot to bring my phone and lets just say i didn't last my usual 20mins

Cantona's Collars

christmas2012 wrote: »

Im a bit of a retro,i could live without my mobile there are other ways of communicating with people,like knocking on their door,i often do that to a few neighbours and friends..They dont mind it either as there of that 90's era,where mobile phones didnt really play a big part in socialising.

There's a trend now of ringing or texting neighbours to see if it's ok to call over plus I've seen it in threads here where people won't answer the door unless the person knocking has made an appointment.Personally I've seen people standing outside of houses phoning the person inside to get them to open their door.
I could live without my phone at times but when it comes to work it's essential.

Shryke

nbar12 wrote: »

i went to the toilet today in work and forgot to bring my phone and lets just say i didn't last my usual 20mins

Jesus Christ 20 minutes you should have a novel written sitting in there.

4zn76tysfajdxp

Jesus Nut wrote: »

Yea, but when a laptop is ontop of the lap of a 5-9 year old girl who has weak tissue then mabey the effect is higher!
The study said it does not effect grown women! Only young primary school girls and again, only about 15 out of 100! But still

Look on the bright side though: Less teenage pregnancies.

christmas2012

There's a trend now of ringing or texting neighbours to see if it's ok to call over plus I've seen it in threads here where people won't answer the door unless the person knocking has made an appointment.Personally I've seen people standing outside of houses phoning the person inside to get them to open their door.

Its nuts the way things have gone..People need to take a step back and look at their behaviour all it takes is a second of curtain peeking or peephole peeking to see whos at the feckin door..

humbert

Mostly just use it as an internet tablet. I couldn't live without having the internet with me.

People who stubbornly refuse to adopt technology should stay in the midlands and be forgotten.

krudler

frisbeeface wrote: »

I definitely could live without it. Pretty much everything I use my phone for I could use the internet for instead.

but the internet is on your phone, win win

unkel

Personally I could easily do without it

For work though, I couldn't afford an office and 3 full time secretaries manning the phone in shifts covering 8AM-10PM 7 days a week

carbon nanotube

bryaner wrote: »

Mobile phone yes, iphone no..;)

iphones have brain washed more people than all the massive cults ever in the world times ten.

THall04

You could ...if ye really had to.
Even ten years ago , before smart phones/facebook/twitter etc.. , most people would have said they couldn't live without a mobile.

About that time , I had to go work in America for a year , along with a big gang of other people I worked with.
The first week there I just had to , had to ,get a new phone .....but nobody else I knew there had a mobile....and owning a "cell" phone in the states then wasn't cheap.
So I didn't get one.....and all the people I worked and socialised with didn't get one.

So after work and on days off we had to use old fashioned methods of getting in touch....such as knocking on somebody's door.....or arranging certain times to make or expect a phone call (usually 6pm Saturday) to see what was goin on.

There was also some not so old fashioned ways available...e-mail and company pagers.....but after only a month nobody could remember what the big fuss was all about having a mobile.

Of course a year later when everybody went back home , we all got addicted again.

Jesus Nut

Might see how long I can go without a phone as a test! Its weird, but I think not having a phone is like been more free in an odd sense!

vyron_xvvx

i could live without one but it would be tough considering i use my cell phone quite a bit. i would rather have a cell phone than a home phone too.

books4sale

zerks wrote: »

Personally I've seen people standing outside of houses phoning the person inside to get them to open their door.
.

Stupid example.

Among any number of reasons, nobody wants the TV license man wandering round their house, leave them at the door with it firmly closed.

Capt'n Midnight

I know someone who doesn't use a mobile phone.

But they are inseparable from their base station.

At the moment I have no mobile phone, no television and no games consoles. Been like that for 5ish years now. Do not miss any of them.

Sam Kade

christmas2012 wrote: »

Its nuts the way things have gone..People need to take a step back and look at their behaviour all it takes is a second of curtain peeking or peephole peeking to see whos at the feckin door..

I know what you mean it's almost as bad as Irish people that use American slang words :rolleyes:

rarely use it to be honest and im 24 male dont need one only if im out incase ma rings aka milk bread cigerettes lol

Father Damo

bryaner wrote: »

Mobile phone yes, iphone no..;)

I would be opposite. Mobile, not a chance. Even when Im out and about I check every 20 mins to see did it go off and I didnt notice.

But I still cant fathom the importance of an iPhone, or any smartphone really (and iPads are fcuking awful). Most iPhone photos come out half sh1t- nobody relys on an iPhone for an important event they really need good photos of. Instead they are used for blurry, on a whim photos on the beer which usually come out looking sh1t and blurred. The best feature is the video camera which, generally, you only find yourself using at a gig a few times a year. Apart from Google Maps there are pretty much no apps out there that have any use.

Father Damo

THall04 wrote: »

About that time , I had to go work in America for a year , along with a big gang of other people I worked with.
The first week there I just had to , had to ,get a new phone .....but nobody else I knew there had a mobile....and owning a "cell" phone in the states then wasn't cheap.
So I didn't get one.....and all the people I worked and socialised with didn't get one.
.

Funny you should say, was watching the first series of The Sopranos again there (made mostly in 1999), quite funny to see them run around using public payphones because they coudnt trust their landlines and the mobile network was so rubbish!

bnt

Not only could I, I did for quite a few years during the 2000s. I almost never make voice calls, and I only really need to be contactable by phone when jobsearching. For everything else, there's email, Skype, IM, and more.

One thing about phones that annoys me is that the caller sets the timing of the call. The caller doesn't know or care whether the recipient is ready to receive the call. It's very rare, in my experience, that the caller has a question that has to be answered now, and can't be answered better by email. I'd rather not have the interruption of a call.

PhlegmyMoses

zerks wrote: »

There's a trend now of ringing or texting neighbours to see if it's ok to call over plus I've seen it in threads here where people won't answer the door unless the person knocking has made an appointment.Personally I've seen people standing outside of houses phoning the person inside to get them to open their door.
I could live without my phone at times but when it comes to work it's essential.

It's weird because I barely have my mobile phone turned on, don't use social networking etc. Have a house phone which can take messages.

At the same time, I would expect people to organise it with me before they are coming over so I may not answer the door otherwise. We get a lot of people selling **** at the door, twice a day usually, and I'm sick of having to put on a pair of trousers to go to the door to say no. :pac:

Defiler Of The Coffin

Deleted User wrote: »

At the moment I have no mobile phone, no television and no games consoles. Been like that for 5ish years now. Do not miss any of them.

Well, I assume you have a computer which has all of the above anyway!

Defiler Of The Coffin

Defiler Of The Coffin wrote: »

Well, I assume you have a computer which has all of the above anyway!

Pretty much yes though I do not do that much of any of it on it. I have a land line which does for phone calls. I play the occasional computer game but very rarely.

Usually I connect a beamer/projector up to the PC when theres some sport on I want to watch - but that is usually just international rugby or football. Not really into premier league or any of the rest. Same for movies. And occasionally.... very occasionally.... me and the girls will watch a series of a show like Big Bang Theory over a weekend. But thats about 3 or 4 weekends a year. We usually wait until a series is complete, download the whole season, and watch it in a marathon session.

So no - generally I live without phone, games or television with some small exceptions.

Defiler Of The Coffin

Deleted User wrote: »

Pretty much yes though I do not do that much of any of it on it. I have a land line which does for phone calls. I play the occasional computer game but very rarely.

Usually I connect a beamer/projector up to the PC when theres some sport on I want to watch - but that is usually just international rugby or football. Not really into premier league or any of the rest. Same for movies. And occasionally.... very occasionally.... me and the girls will watch a series of a show like Big Bang Theory over a weekend. But thats about 3 or 4 weekends a year. We usually wait until a series is complete, download the whole season, and watch it in a marathon session.

So no - generally I live without phone, games or television with some small exceptions.

Well you're right about the TV, we don't have any TV service in our house at all, any programmes I want to watch I just download or stream. All from a PC hooked up to a TV with a HDMI port. A lot of people seem to pay more attention to their laptops than they do to the TV anyway!

Still keep a land-line in the house. Mobile reception isn't always great. Sound quality is better too.

cruiser178

Iv'e got teenage kids so not a hope could i live without my phone, they wouldn't allow me, they need lifts everywhere you know. Although last night i left my phone at home when i went to work and i had to sneak off to go and get it first chance i got. So even from a personal point of view, no i couldn't live without my phone.

Jesus Nut

Someone mentioned it been a must to have a mobile phone for job searching! Interesting, because I have heard stories of people been in an interview and be asked "How come your not on Facebook or why dont you have a mobile phone?"
The interviewer views these people as been odd or something is not right with them mentally and these people generally always get tunred down at interviews!

Jesus Nut

Jesus Nut wrote: »

Someone mentioned it been a must to have a mobile phone for job searching! Interesting, because I have heard stories of people been in an interview and be asked "How come your not on Facebook or why dont you have a mobile phone?"
The interviewer views these people as been odd or something is not right with them mentally and these people generally always get tunred down at interviews!

Quite frankly, that's none of their business! :mad:

lifelongnoob

We are all digital slaves in a digital world!!!!!

Jesus Nut

A very appropiate song!:D

rogieop

sent mine off on monday for repair, quite liking it tbh

dont know what im going to do for an alrm clock tonight though :mad:

Jesus Nut

rogieop wrote: »

dont know what im going to do for an alrm clock tonight though :mad:

Get yourself one of those old wind up alarm clocks with the bells and put it into an empty roses tin the otherside of your room! The best alarm clock (in jeremy clarkson voice) In the world...

It would be silly to say I couldn't live without a mobile phone, of course I could, but I would be freaked out, and moreso the smartphone element than the telephone itself.

Finding places when you're lost, googling the nearest bank machine, getting a taxi number....I got my first smartphone (an iphone) 2 years ago this week and it's the best thing I ever bought (or was bought for me), I genuinely don't know how I ever lived without it! It makes life much easier.

Defiler Of The Coffin

Defiler Of The Coffin wrote: »

Well you're right about the TV, we don't have any TV service in our house at all, any programmes I want to watch I just download or stream. All from a PC hooked up to a TV with a HDMI port. A lot of people seem to pay more attention to their laptops than they do to the TV anyway!

Still keep a land-line in the house. Mobile reception isn't always great. Sound quality is better too.

There is not even that much TV worth watching any more anyway. Most of the series I ever got into have either ended or gotten bad.

I have nothing against television per se - if I like a series I like to download it and watch it. I think the danger of television however is that people will sit in front of it even when nothing is on and waste hours flicking from channel to channel - watching things that are not even interesting to them - and complaining that there is nothing on.

They watch it for the sake of watching it in other words. It is often the same with Mobile Phones. People often text for the sake of it - not because they actually have anything to do or say.

I dunno - I find without mobiles or television or computer games consoles we just have a LOT more time to do the things that actually interest us. The girlfriends have also not missed television and not having one has done wonders for their studies and freelance work since it left our house.

DylanII

I could do without the phone part of my phone. But I would need everything else, the apps, the internet etc.

Dude111

Jesus Nut wrote:

I honestly don't know many people who don't have a phone (except a few elderly people I guess).

Well now you do!!!

I dont have one AND DONT WANT ONE!!!!!

I value my privacy and dont wish to be tracked,etc...... (My life is MINE it isnt an open book for the elite)

Why make it easier for them to invade your privacy?

MrVestek

Considering that I just read and am now replying to this thread on my phone: no probably not...

MrVestek

Dude111 wrote: »

Jesus Nut wrote:

I honestly don't know many people who don't have a phone (except a few elderly people I guess).

Well now you do!!!

I dont have one AND DONT WANT ONE!!!!!

I value my privacy and dont wish to be tracked,etc...... (My life is MINE it isnt an open book for the elite)

Why make it easier for them to invade your privacy?

Conspiracy Theories is that way

---

>

Eramen

Achilles wrote: »

Conspiracy Theories is that way

---

>

Facebook sells people's 'Like' info to third parties, as well as ad clicks, and have come under scrutiny numerous times about their infomation dealing with other companies. People use FB on their phone.. Did you have read Google's terms and conditions for using their mobile apps?

Also hasn't the UK govt passed a bill making it legal for their departments to hold your private electronic information for up to a year, emails, texts, internet activity and the likes.

Conspiracy, uh-huh.

MrVestek

Eramen wrote: »

Facebook sells people's 'Like' info to third parties, as well as ad clicks, and have come under scrutiny numerous times about their infomation dealing with other companies. People use FB on their phone.. Did you have read Google's terms and conditions for using their mobile apps?

Also hasn't the UK govt passed a bill making it legal for their departments to hold your private electronic information for up to a year, emails, texts, internet activity and the likes.

Conspiracy, uh-huh.

I work in IT... I realise all of this. I also realise that I'm just a number and that I'm not that interesting as an individual to them as I'm just part of a statistic.

I'm ok with that... I don't really care. I initially made a joke as what you originally said has absolutely nothing to do with the original idea of the thread.

Madam_X

MrStuffins wrote: »

I hate all this "slave to X" bullsh*t!

Things are invented and make our lives amazingly easier. The modern mobile phone is the most perfect example. You can even watch TV on your phone now. People don't primarily use it as a phone anymore.

What's wrong with things that are awesome and make life better?

It just seems like a load of hipster sh1t to whine about smartphones. Reminds me of those "Oh wasn't life so much simpler before all this technology?" comments that get written... to Facebook.

Just saying it for the sake of it methinks. As for having a phone and not answering it for weeks: totally just being obnoxious.
And as for viewing smartphones as being a way for "them" (who? Friends? Family?) to invade your privacy - omg, so deep!

Yay for communications technology - life is better for it!

mickrock

Onixx wrote: »

Yay for communications technology - life is better for it!

The downside is that because of the technology, people are more restless and jittery than ever before.

stoneill

I certainly could.
I have an old nokia thing, just use it for keeping tabs on the kids.
(Where are you? - OUT, Who are you with? - MATES)
They are always slagging the phone, but it's on it's last legs now.
So - do I replace with a fancy schmancy jiggery pokery doo dah phone or just donate it to a museum and do without?

MrVestek

Onixx wrote: »

It just seems like a load of hipster sh1t to whine about smartphones. Reminds me of those "Oh wasn't life so much simpler before all this technology?" comments that get written... to Facebook.

Just saying it for the sake of it methinks. As for having a phone and not answering it for weeks: totally just being obnoxious.
And as for viewing smartphones as being a way for "them" (who? Friends? Family?) to invade your privacy - omg, so deep!

Yay for communications technology - life is better for it!

<off topic>
Absolutely this... hipster nonesense...
</off topic>
<p></p>
<on topic>
I FRAKING LOVE MAH SMARTPHONES! HI GOOGLE! HI FACEBOOK! WHAT YOU THINK OF MY PRIVATE STUFF?
</on topic>

homeless student

what I hate is people who video everything on their mobile phone, e.g a fight u see outside a chipper on a night out or some other waste of time, then you can hear them saying "im putting this up on youtube" ?? PATHETIC

Colmustard

Just got a text from work...

With that in mind fukcen yeah I could live without it.