Comments on: Why living without a smartphone isn’t really that bad

By: Leigh

Leigh — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 17:50:57 +0000

I’m with you. I have a regular old cell phone I rarely use. I feel like I’m on the computer enough everyday already so I’m reluctant to get anything else.
Except of course all the photography apps on the iphone sound really cool.

I’ll procrastinate a little longer …and save some money too.

By: Sam Clark

Sam Clark — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 15:21:42 +0000

I gave up my smartphone 3 months ago and when I saw gave up – I mean that in the drug sense coz I loved that little puppy…
Did I need it though? I will read anything if it is in front of me – cereal packet, letter box bumpf, whatever and a smartphone meant i had something to read in every spare minute.
Not having it forces me to engage with my kids (yes – I ignored them to read the Guardian App/blogs/twitter etc..) and think creatively or just day dream when on the bus or with a moment or two to spare.
Whats more I think I am a better business owner for forcing myself not to be available 24-7.
And my new (very old phone) has a battery life of almost 7 days!

By: Ahimsa

Ahimsa — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:19:43 +0000

I agree. My phone doesn’t even have net access; it just calls and texts. Like you said, I don’t need any more addictions. Also, it’s far cheaper (my prepaid phone is roughly 10 dollars a month), and I like being able to lost. I do wonder if at some point I’ll become a second-class citizen, though.

By: Andy Jarosz

Andy Jarosz — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 16:19:00 +0000

That’s exactly why I’m reluctant to trade in my crappy phone. I know I’ll be addicted too and I don’t really want to use up any more time each week playing with gadgets.

By: pam

pam — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 16:20:46 +0000

I went to SxSW three years ago (I think) and I stated, un-ironically, that I had the oldest phone there. Folks would laugh until I showed them my phone, a 90′s Nokia that I used for random texting and phone calls. No data plan, and get this, a prepaid card. I survived just fine until I was hired to work on an app. Then I realized that I was turning into a dinosaur and after a ridiculously long period of research, I settled on an iPhone.

Now, I’m totally addicted. I managed just fine without my iPhone, I really did. It’s not like I needed Angry Birds and Yelp and Instagram and and and. It wasn’t until 2009 that I had a smartphone, after all, and I’d traveled without getting lost, eaten perfectly good meals, got by on hotel wifi and lobby computers. I love my stupid phone, and I hate that I love it so much.