Hello, readers. I recently got a smartphone, a cheap android phone. It's my first smartphone. Here are some general thoughts upon the first time ever having a smartphone.
Going from never owning a smartphone to now owning a smartphone is like going from black and white television to colour television. It really is that much of a big difference. The ability to have a mini computer in my pocket on the go is much needed for the 21st century.
However, we must beware of the 21st century schizoid man [king crimson reference, from the first album, great album-In the Court of the Crimson King and song-21st Century Schizoid Man]. I've already noticed some good AND bad elements of owning a smartphone. First the good.
1) Mini-computer always on your person. If I need to go online to check literally anything from emails, Twitter, Facebook, and apps like Instagram, the smartphone is always there for you. The ability of WI-Fi literally changed the world and made life for the young modern person that much easier. Data too is like virtual energy, like a spell by Tesla.
2) I can use the Lyft app to call a ride in case of an emergency. If I'm ever super late at night at someone's house and end up without a ride, Lyft is always there for me.
3) I can use the transit app if I want to take the bus, anywhere, and know what time the bus will arrive.
4) I can go on social media and dating apps and potentially meet people.
Now for the bad!
1) Always having a mini-computer on your person is terrible. You'll be compelled to always be on your phone, literally at all times: upon wake up, at work, on work break, on the walk back home, late at night, before bed...It begins to take a bad toll upon you. It is very toxic and most people are like this.
2) Overusing apps is terrible. I started off on a bad start by calling 4 Lyft rides in one week. That's such a waste of money. There was a way I could've got home via transit, or even asked a friend.
3) It's a time waster. Get hooked to it and you'll forget about real life. You'll go on it on a date, you'll go on it while talking to your girlfriend, you'll go on while talking to your kids, you'll be on it while on the job at work, the time it will take away is virtually unlimited.
So yeah having a smartphone for the first time is quite the experience. But if anything, being connected online all the time doesn't feel good, it feels like people can get to me much easier because of it. These things have their uses but relying on them too much will lead to idiocy, the likes of which we see everyday when somebody's in public glued to their phone when the moment would be better off without it.
