To Blackberry or drop out?
Nearly a month ago, Sprint told me they would be changing my contract. I can no longer freely send or recieve international text messages in my text package. I will have to pay 15 cents per message. They said if I was unhappy, I had 30 days to quit with no penalty.
At first, I thought, I’d quit and get a Blackberry, which could be very useful. Now I’m wondering if it wouldn’t make sense to quit using a cell phone altogether.
Sure, my cell phone lets me keep in touch with people, but usually I make plans to meet someone. Cell phones are also the reason why people are now late to everything with impunity. They can just text a mea culpa. Cell phones are also expensive. I must pay an average of $60-$70 a month. That’s a lot of money to waste on a convenience. And then there’s the lack of privacy.
Actually, I’ve been trying to think of good reasons why I need a cell phone. Convenience? So that I can be late to meetings? Well, New York City still has public pay phones every where you look. I don’t know if $70 a month should be the price I pay for not having to carry a couple of quarters around with me wherever I go. Emergencies: this one is somewhat compelling, but when am I going to find myself alone and not surrounded by other people who have cell phones? I don’t take many drives down lonely Texas roads in cars prone to break down. (If I do plan to travel somewhere, I can easily buy a prepaid disposable cell phone.)
What do you think? American Madness gets about 250 unique visitors a day. Someone out there is reading this. Leave a comment with your suggestions/advice/analysis. What am I missing? Should I lose the cell phone?
20. August 2007 at :
OH, COME ON!
NO comments. You guys are so lame.
You don’t even have to give us your real info to post.
20. August 2007 at :
Does my opinion count on this one?
20. August 2007 at :
Of course
21. August 2007 at :
Yeah, I recommend sticking with a phone then. If you don’t want to feel tethered to it change your phone number and then set it to private (only those you give it to will have your number then).
While pay phones are fine when you are running late, what about the rest of your personal life? Talking to you family, girlfriend, friends, etc. will you only speak with them during working hours? Or will you leave your apartment to call them from the pay phone on your corner? Or making last minute plans- With cell phones it has become possible to call some on up on a Sunday morning and make last minute brunch plans. Now you would need all of your weekend plans set in stone by Friday at 5pm.
Also, just because you will no longer being running late, when you are meeting folks with cell phones and they are running late they will not be able to contact you to let you know.
21. August 2007 at :
Of course you could always get a home phone…
21. August 2007 at :
I agree with Cipy. While it’s an appealing idea to kill your phone, you just can’t go back. Getting rid of your cell phone won’t change your universe to the way it was before the things existed. It will just make you the one guy without a cell phone. What about dropping email altogether and resolving to only complete written correspondence through the US mail? I can see the appeal, but it won’t bring you back to 1950 (or 1990). More likely, it will alienate you from people who are living and communicating in the present.
It’s like someone who decides not to perform the music of today, but instead devote their time and energy towards emulating an aesthetic that reached it’s peak in the middle of the last century… waitaminute.
21. August 2007 at :
Good points. But what if i DID get a home phone.