There are many modern conveniences which we may not truly need but which remain quite useful. I would be lost without my computer, or the internet, or my television or a host of other gadgets and services. I value each of these things and use them every day, even though they may add a little bit of cost to my budget. I suspect you use such conveniences as well. Where I am sure we differ, however, is that I will not use a cell phone and you probably cannot be separated from yours!
In general, and with one exception that I shall explain later, I believe that there is no legitimate reason to use a cell phone. If you use a cell phone in my presence you will immediately drop a few rungs on the ladder of my esteem. If you call me on a cell phone, you can be assured that you will not get either my business or a return call. If you employ me and tell me to carry a cell phone, I shall politely decline, regardless of the risk to my job.
You probably have a cell phone plan and, I assure you, you are wasting your money and jeopardizing your health. You are also very likely rude, whether or not you realize it. If you are reasonable, I hope that you will consider all of the reasons there are not to own a cell phone and get rid of yours as soon as your carrier allows you to do so!
There is No Need for 24/7 Access
Growing up, we had one land line in my home. There were four of us and we got on quite well without the need for a personal telephone number for everyone in the house. For that matter, we did not have call waiting or voicemail. If the phone were busy, the caller would call back later. The world did not end just because one of us could not be reached the first time a caller tried to reach us. If it were a true emergency, an operator (an actual human being) could break into the call anyway.
Why then, must everyone in a household now have their own cell phones that they carry with them wherever they go? There is no reason for it. Instead of a single phone line, which might cost $50 per month, the telephone industry has persuaded people the world over that every house needs to have phones and phone numbers for everyone old enough to press the buttons on a keypad. With add ons like internet and texting, people everywhere may be paying hundreds of dollars per month just so that they can take phone calls when they wander about outside the home or office. Give up the cell phone and put that money back in your pocket and you will really find that no one had anything to say to you anyway!
Cell Phones May Cause Health Problems
The incidence of certain brain cancers is on the rise. Studies have recently suggested that cell phones may be at least in part to blame for the increase. Indeed, when a friend was admitted to the hospital after being diagnosed with a tumor, doctors asked him if he used a cell phone a lot and if he generally used the cell phone on the same side of his head that developed the tumor. For that matter the head of a hospital in Pittsburgh recently sent a memo to all staff members urging them not to use cell phones unless absolutely necessary. And it is not just the brain that is at risk, another recent study suggests that men who keep a cell phone in their front trouser pockets may be increasing the risk of having damaged sperm.
Decades ago, the tobacco industry concealed risks from tobacco from unsuspecting consumers. The phone industry is also large and has a vested interest in preserving its cell phone user base. Think what studies might definitively demonstrate over the coming years of the dangers of cell phone use. Give up your cell phone and avoid unnecessary medical problems and the costs that come with them!
Cell Phones Make Driving Dangerous
A quick search of the internet reveals numerous legitimate studies which conclude that cell phone use – even cell phone use up to 10 minutes before an accident – significantly increases a driver’s risk of being involved in an accident resulting in injury. Apart from the risk of serious injury, use of cell phones while driving can greatly increase your risk of incurring costs through accidents. This has been demonstrated both with traditional cell phones and with hands free models. Give up your cell phone and avoid unnecessary motor vehicle accidents and the costs that come with them!
The Hidden Charges of Cell Phones
If you own a cell phone, chances are you also have a case for your cell phone and perhaps other gadgets that go along with your cell phone. Cell phone accessories cost money that you do not really need to spend. Your land line does not require accessories. Give up your cell phone and never spend another penny on accessories for a phone!
The Opportunity Costs of Cell Phones
If you carry a cell phone, you probably only need access to it when you are doing something out of your office or home. If you are doing something outside of your office during business hours, you should be doing something meaningful. Whether that means you are with a client or recharging your own batteries at lunch, you should be focused on the task at hand. Cell phones only allow you to introduce distraction where you need focus. Address the matter at hand and leave phone calls to a later time when you can check voice mail messages at work. Unless you are a doctor waiting to perform crucial surgery or you have some significant role in national security, chances are you are just not important enough to need to be available all the time.
If you are doing something outside of your home during your own time, you have even less justification for needing a cell phone. I have yet to encounter a person having a meaningful conversation on a cell phone. If you cannot go to a grocery store and decide what to buy when you get to the produce aisle, you should not be grocery shopping. If your child is old enough to be left home unattended, you should be able to trust that your child is old enough to handle any problem that comes along or you should not be leaving your child at home.
Regardless of where you are using your cell phone, you are distracting yourself from whatever it is that you are doing. Give up your cell phone and attend to matters at hand!
The Exception that Proves the Rule
I agree that there is one occasion when it does not hurt to have a cell phone, and that is during an emergency. If you are going to be driving until 3am and you do not have On-Star in your car, having a pre-paid cell phone can be a true safety net. Similarly, if your kids are venturing out on their own and you really worry about their safety because of where they will be (and assuming you cannot prevent them from being there), it is not a bad idea to give them a pre-paid cell phone so that they can reach you. That said, those pre-paid phones should only be used in the event of a true emergency and not for any other reason.
Can you give up your cell phone to save hundreds of dollars per year or more?
Rather extreme point of view! Yes, I have a cell phone. It’s $23 per month with one hour of anywhere minutes. You generally have to ask for a plan like that as it is rarely offered. The phone is free with a two year plan, and when it dies promptly at two years they send me a new model with a one year renewal. I have it for emergencies and it is rarely used. If I want to make a long distance call there it is, without adding to my land-line bill. I use dial-up still for my computer which means my land-line is tied up all night. Anybody that knows me either emails or knows to call my cell to get me off-line. You can have the tv. I just got a used junker last month after going without for three years. I watch videos and I watched the debates, otherwise it’s off. The cell phone also has an “off” button for times when you don’t want to be disturbed! I thought about getting a pre-paid phone but you have to pay for the phone and the models I’ve seen and heard about seem to have issues with quality and or coverage. Yes, I agree people get totally carried away with their cell phones but I live alone, have no family around and drive a junker. It gives me peace of mind that is invaluable.
toooo funny justme! and bah humbug said what I REALLY thought!
LOL love this !
I have to point out that I do not have a cell phone,I once did but I hated getting calls while I was in the car or at the store;-)
I am a business owner, full time employed married with children and have no need for a cell phone
but I am sure everyone else does in fact need a cell phone LOL
I have a prepaid cell phone. I put a couple hundred minutes on it every four months or so. I have it so that my husband can call me if I’m not at home. And we have it for roadside emergencies. We thought, briefly, about getting a plan, but when we saw how much it cost, we thought of several other things we’d rather do with the money.
I’m with you!
I have a prepaid that I use for emergency calls only (and I must say the 2 times I’ve had to use it were well worth the cost)- no one has the number so I can’t get any annoying incoming calls.
I can’t believe the number of people that seem to think the rest of us are interested in their personal details that they yell to each other on the cell phones. And why DO people speak so loudly on them?
I have a prepaid cell phone. The last couple of years, I just add minutes once a year, and have some left from the previous year. I have it for emergencies. Fortunately, there haven’t been any emergencies, but it does offer peace of mind. I do use the cell phone some, and family and friends have the number, but it is still seldom used.
BAH HUMBUG!
You, sir, are a luddite. While you make a case for saving money, there are other options that can make the cost of a cell phone less than the cost of a land line (like prepaid phones, basic services without all the bells and whistles, etc). If you then don’t have a land line, you are actually saving money.
Not only that, but to say that if the rest of the world – who has moved on from the tether of a land line and can now be mobile and still be productive – has to cowtow to your whims in order to do business with you, or that you look down on people with cell phones… makes you seem like a complete ass.
While I don’t care if you choose to own a cellphone or not, to look down on those of us who use them only shows your ignorance and pompousness. You certainly wouldn’t get my business if I couldn’t get in touch with you when I needed to.
You are not considering the possibility that a cell phone can completely replace a land line. People who live alone are better off to pay for a cell phone and skip the land line. I pay $45 a month for my phone. I always have more minutes than I can use and I make all the long-distance calls I want to. A hundred times better than when I had a land line.
Hmmm…I always find it interesting that people think the cell phone users are rude for having a conversation in front of them but think nothing of two people having an even louder conversation in front of them. Maybe you are just upset that you can’t hear both sides of the conversation?
I would have no use for a landline, I am never home. Most of my family and friends are out of state so a landline would probably cost as much while being useless.
If you aren’t going to bother with voicemail, you really should just cancel your landline and stick to email since no one can get ahold of you (unless you are permanently a homebody).
I have never had a cell phone and have no desire to have one. It annoys me too, to see everyone walking around talking on a cell phone, especially when they are in a car or a restaurant.
My husband does have one, but it is only so that he can order building materials without having to drive 20 miles to the building supply place. I will not let him use it when he is driving at all.
#7 if you are NEVER home keep your cell phone save money by giving up your house instead 😉
I once had a cell phone and realized that I didn’t like people being able to find me 24/7.. I do own a prepaid but it stays in the off position and in the glove box of the car- which I hardly drive– trying to be green.. I find them very annoying and not needed as well and most likely if I do break down the person stopping has a cell phone I can use…
I used to only have one phone, and my husband would borrow cell phones to call and let me know when he would be late, saved me quite a bit of worry (he was rear ended three times in one year!)
Now we each have a phone and we loan it to folk to call spouses (recent trip son was expected and X time two hours later mom called dad to hunt up adult contact, mixed signals on time, kid was fine) Again saved some worry.
So I like our phones, but…I don’t carry it in my pocket, I hardly ever know where it is during the day (playing/working with my kids) and I see no need to answer it when out (it is usually in my backpack so I can’t hear the buzz anyway) So do I need it? No, but I like it for the worry instances. I do not like to abuse it though.
I have to agree with Carolina; most people have replaced their cell phones with their landlines. I agree with you to an extent, only because I don’t use my cell too much, but I feel like a lot of jobs would be hard to do without one, and you’re basically expected to have one. I’m sure similar arguments can be made about laptops vs desktops or something, but I don’t think bashing a technology that we’ve all gotten accustomed to is the way to save any money.
I disagree.
My landline at my home (which I have to have for internet-we homeschool & have to have internet) with no frills on it except for basic dialup cost us $44.00 a month.
My cell phone is 9.99 a month, with free long distance, and after 7pm all calls are free.
What is a person to do when they are out and need a phone? Our small town has no payphone. There used to be one the next town over at the grocery store, but the removed it due to lack of use.
I’d say I probably even save money by using my phone–being out in the country I’d rather have a family member call me to pick something up while I am in town than to come home and have to go back again wasting fuel.
In fact I even MAKE money using my cell phone as I sub teach. The schools go down the list and the first they call and accept gets the job–they don’t leave messages. To have my cell with me ensures I can get that call regardless of where I am at.
I fall somewhere between you and the Bah Humbug commenter.
My husband and I have the least expensive plan available from our carrier. I very rarely call anyone other than my husband, and the calls we make to each other are free on our plan. We talk to each other daily when he is on his way home from work, which may be anywhere in the city. Knowing where he is and that he is on his way saves me a lot of worry.
It often saves us money and time, too. He asks daily if there is anything he needs to do or buy on the way home so that I don’t have to get our other vehicle out on the road.
My elderly parents have cell phones strictly for emergencies that may happen while they are on the road. This eases my mind tremendously. I use my phone to call them weekly, which has turned out to be much less expensive than even prepaid landline phone cards.
But like you, I absolutely hate seeing and hearing people talking on their cell phones in stores, in cars, at restaurants, at their children’s activities, etc. I wish they would just leave their phones turned off, or at least not take/make calls in these situations.
Also, if I leave home and forget my phone, I don’t rush back to get it…I do without it for the day and don’t miss it. Except for the clock; I find I use the cell phone as a substitute for a watch.
Actually #10 you are right on the money. That is why I will never spend a fortune on a house because it doesn’t make a lot of sense for me. Its just somewhere to sleep and occasionally hide when I don’t want to see people (now you know why I don’t have a landline, if I am home, there is a reason and I ain’t answering). 😀
I do have a cellphone, but I only use it when I have some free minutes available. Other than that I phone from work which cost the same as normal landline.
Cellphones can be useful in emergencies and I don’t think I will be able to do without it completely.
I carry a cell phone and will continue to carry one I have seven people in my home they range from my 81 year old mother to my 4 year old grandson, with only two cars and two drivers, yes my husband and I need to remain in constant contact, we have had many trips to the er. And if you don’t like me talking on my cell don’t easedrop!
David, I’m with you. I’ve got a prepaid cell phone I got strictly for when I babysit with the grandnephews at their home; would otherwise get rid of it. Nothing more aggravating than getting behind some loudmouth gal with a cart in the grocery store who’s hollering at somebody at the other end of the phone. You wonder can these people even go to the john without taking their phone with them. Sign of the times, people isolating themselves in their homes or driving all over the place with cell phone in hand, eating fast food as they go, faster and faster to nowhere, really. My 6-year-old grandnephew can’t wait to have one. What in the world do they all have to talk about?
I’d suggest a go phone type deal where one does not sign a contract if they rarely use a cell phone. I actually have done away with my home phone 30 dollars month Vonage. But, I am a rare case I think as I rarely use a phone at all. This is a recent and onging exp. since I only recently stopped my home phone.
I think people need to post their age when they reply to these posts. Seriously, how many of you anti-cell phone people are under the age of 50?? You sound like I do when I complain about the need for MP3 players everywhere??? My mom complains about needing an email address!! There were people who used to say we didn’t need cars, a good reliable horse and buggy is all they needed!
Now apply your frugalness to saving money on your cell phone bill instead of bashing new technology… You wouldn’t be posting on the interenet if you didn’t accept something new… unless you wrote a letter and they posted it for you?
In Haiti they have all pre-paid cell phones and the land lines never work; you pay only for outgoing calls, can transfer minutes and even ask someone to send you minutes (free) or to call you (free). If our cell phone companies were more like Digicel in Haiti and if people learned they can turn them off? they are a good thing with a headset.
I have been enjoying the comments to my article and, contrary to the allegations of some of my readers, I am neither a Luddite nor a an aged Ebeneezer Scrooge. I am about 40 and I have embraced most new technologies as they have emerged. The reason that I am so opposed to cell phones is because I do believe that they are more expensive than landlines (especially if you are a parent with multiple children) and because they diminish our quality of life. I am also serious about my concerns related to the health risks that cell phones may cause. That said, I do respect diverging views so please keep your comments coming!
EXCELLENT! Finally, an article that tells it like it is regarding cell phones. I( and my family) have been cell phone users for years. It has cost us thousands of dollars. We have lost our house to foreclosure, we have lost a car…but always maintained those cell phones, so that we could be like “THE JONES”.
We have a huge SUV, in which we talk on our cell phones. Recently, due to our economic struggles…I have pulled the plug on all the cell phones, extra tv channels, and made major adjustments to our food budget…just so that we can survive, and heat our home this winter. If I could only go back in time, I would never have bought the line of materialism in the first place. We have risked our childrens health as well as our own, not knowing if the cell phones were causing physical damage. Not only this, but we found out that our teenage daughter was spending HOURS on the phone late at night, because those were the “free minute” hours.
It just does not make sense. Now we have a landline and internet for
$ 65.00 per month. The extra money saved from the $ 275.00 monthly family plan is going towards paying off our debt, and being more responsible people. While the children were not happy with the cell phone loss, they are going to be better people for it. Time now is spent reading, sleeping, or best of all…STUDYING! And when they make friends, it is because of who they are…not because of what they have. An excellent lesson learned. And to all of you that are die hard fans of cell phones, and the ability to be reached at all hours, more power to you. It is actually more stressful having that phone around all the time. Never knowing who is calling, and the guilt of not answering the phone, as well as being inconvienced by having to always check your messages. It is stressful, compared to being in control and having a budgeted expense each month, where you(and others) have to think twice before making those non-needed calls. Oh, just a hint…IM’ing and email is free, and seems to me a more personal and caring way to communicate. Take care, all!
I have mixed feelings about cell phones. I like the convenience, but the cost is prohibitive. I cannot imagine paying $275 per month like the previous poster, we pay $95 per month and it feels like a lot. I like being able to be in touch with my daughter, now that she goes to a high school on the other side of town. It is in kind of a rough area, and if she ever missed bus or had to stay late I would be worried with no cell. I prefer my landline for general conversation though; I’ve never been one to have these intimate conversations in public.
Post #25 is missing something big in their logic. The cell phone is not the cause of the problems they are listing. In fact, it sounds a lot like self control issues for using the cell phones. You could replace any technology in the post and it would be the same. For Example: We spend too much on Cable, we watch TV for hours, everyone has their own TV, etc.
The cell phone is a tool. Like a credit card, internet, cable TV, automobile, etc. It needs to be controlled and used in MODERATION. You can’t blame the technology for a personal inability to say no.
I’m not judging the poster, in fact, if you substitute ‘Eating Fast Food’ into their post, you have my weakness.
I could do like most people and blame the fast food industry and media, or I could ‘own up’ and admit I have a self-control issue when it comes to spending money on crap that makes me fat.
This is the problem with the original article, aside from the health issues, everything else is a matter of moderation. I could even argue that if you practiced moderation, the health issues would be mitigated as well.
Don’t paint the technology with the flaws of the users. The people who interrupt a personal conversation to take a phone call are rude. THE PEOPLE ARE RUDE. Not the cell phone. They have no self control.
Excellent response ThiNg! You have what I greatly envy…clarity of thought (logic).
Those of you who have no cell phone, I take it you either make no long distance calls or you make them on someone elses (work?) bill? There is no way I could make all my long distance calls for less than $9.99 a month, which I pay for my cell which has free long distance. Everywhere I call is long distance in this little town–even my doctor (this town has no doctor, dentist, pharmacy or any of that-population is only 2000). I only know of 2 other people who thought it was too expensive to have a cell, and one of those got fired for calling long distance on her work phone.
LOL Thanks Catmom!
I’ll trade some logic skills for some willpower any day!
LOL someone had to acuse the cell phone-less of being unethical 😉
I don’t have a cell phone. Most people do but I found it’s not worth it. Sure it’s convenient but for the time you use it it’s not worth it.
ThiNg…if I had some I would share! 🙂
Hmm. Well, I agree with your arguments but not with your conclusion. I have a cell phone instead of a landline. I find that with the least expensive plan, it’s cheaper, especially since I spend a few hours on the phone with my (out of state) mom every week. She’s really the only person I have actual phone conversations with; the rest of my calls (and texts, even better!) are short ones and usually revolve around coordinating plans or finding directions.
I don’t use the phone while driving, and disapprove, as you do, of people who insist on subjecting others to their conversations. Nor am I averse to just switching the phone off, leaving it at home, or not answering it if I don’t feel like being available! The trick is just to realize that just because you have it doesn’t mean it has to have you. 🙂 The phone is for my convenience, not everyone else’s.
#5 obviously needs his cell phone but he does NOT, CANNOT comprehend living without a cell phone; likely has it stuck to his ear like most of the BORG I see out there. My wife has a cell phone for HER convenience and it is NOT that convenient but IT IS more costly than my landline BY FAR!!! (#5) so geographical differences can be involved.
As the writer said; it
just want to add: like many things in life that are not predominately needed; it can be better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it!
You have a bus system; do YOU need it; likely not but it
What is this “prepaid” business?
I own a cell phone but only have it
for an emergency. I do not give out my number to anyone except spouse. Can you tell me who issues these phones and what the charge would be??
Thanks!
You’ve articulated a rational case for a position that may be hovering toward the backs of more minds than you realize.
However, I suggest that you’ve disregarded the over-riding significance of the cell phone’s social aspect and the role it has come to play vis-vis class and social status in contemporary society.
As any number of case studies from the early era of Anthropology indicate, the wasteful expense of a social utility that represents one’s status in the community (or society) is not one that can be argued down by appealing to any rational sense of economy (not unlike the fashion system itself).
Your position is sensible and one that many people who remember a pre cell phone era probably share, but it would be a tough case to make to those born into this era, no matter how well articulated.
Now, if you could tie this cause to the necessity of giving up one’s facebook account and actually make some headway, you might have the beginnings of an unprecedented movement. I can only imagine this happening by means of a significant portion of parents succesfully inculcating alternative values on a fresh generation. Possible, but unlikely.
Alas, the tide is against you. The possesion of a cell phone and a popular facebook profile at an ever earier age are now all but essential rites-of-passage in mass culture.
To shun either might one day be the privilege and prerogative of a cultural elite, but to all else the practice will likely represent too great a threat of being beset with a stigmatizing social disability.
OMG, why do Americans like conspiracies? Oh right, we can’t take responsibility for our own actions: it’s the phone industry, or the govt., or the other guy/gal…not me. Get a life, and use the cell when you need to.
Kudos David. Wiser words were never uttered. People have become slaves to technology to the point that they have forgotten how to simply live life without their conveniences. Too many people see themselves as “self important”, thus being completely accessible 24/7 feeds that fire. They gain little and lose much, including remembering common courtesy towards people around them that don’t want to hear their idle chatterings. I’ve used a cell phone now for 1.5 years, but when a call comes in, I don’t run and answer it. If it’s someone I need to speak with later, maybe I’ll call back. If not, what did I miss? Same with texting. Use it when you need it. Don’t sew it to your body. Thanks!
I can’t tell you the number of times that a cell phone call has saved me a ton of money, damaged relationships (both business and personal), and wasted time. A typical example is getting a last-minute call while I’m enroute to a meeting, informing me that the other party will be seriously late or needs to reschedule (or my placing a call to an important someone informing them of the same delays regarding ME). With today’s traffic nightmares (and the cost of wasted fuel) it inconceivable to me how anyone could seriously suggest that instant mobile communication is a frivolous expense.
I have two, i talk on the phone for hours a day. This is my Job as a locksmith. How would you feel not knowing if i am coming… It is part of progress. Get a life
Hey,
So I guess I’m smack dab in the middle: I HAD a cell. My kids all HAVE one…but y’know, I REALLY love NOT having one…I must prepare to go “out”. I know that when I am out, I must 1.) call before showing up, or 2.) show up either with or without an “appointment” at which time I must be a HUMAN and take my place in LINE!! and I MIGHT maybe pay ATTENTION to the ones I am physically with!! in line!!
All joking aside, really, I do see that the cells are good in case of emergency, but unfortuantely, sometimes that happens where there isn’t any coverage (been there) and then we’re stuck with the kindness of passers-by, anyway… And really, I did find it really wearing to be “up” (available) 24/7…plus the cost was pretty much, really considering the amount we (my husband and I) used it.
Well, to each his/her own..
This guy assumes that people have pure landlines. I dont know a person under 30 that has one– unless they have it a legacy, ie using their parents phone, or kept the shared landline from a roomate..
Baseline is that a cellphone is on par with a landline for price. So why choose to keep a landline.
Assuming you dont spend your daylight hours in the home, how do you manage a spontaneous lunch with friends. Phone booths are GONE, and being unavailable to your friends would be unfair, and deprive you of quite a few “lunches with friends”
This author assumes that people are inside workers with access to a phone regardless.. Beyond naive.
The solo video store adventure.. When the movie you want is out there is only one way to find out if she wants to see movie x.
And the author assumes that people stay at home for any reasonable chunk of time.. Sure there are people who have settled down, but for someone with a decent social life, its a rarity to be home at any sort of appropriate calling time.
So the author is right for a household of homebodys, that dont care about spontaneous plans.
Oh, yea.. and if a prospective employer sees that you dont carry one, expect a lower chance of getting a job. They like to know that you are reachable.
Does anyone else find it somewhat ironic that ads for cellphones are posted right beside the anti-cellphone article? I suppose it’s just a keyword-connection, but I thought it was amusing.
Someone asked how many ‘anti cellphone types’ are under age 50. I am. I’m 24, do not own a cellphone and never plan to. And yes, I have family responsibilities, so before anyone lectures me about how I’ll change my mind when I have children to look after, be assured that I already do. And a husband, and elderly relatives, and dreadful winter weather, and all the other “potential emergency” reasons to own one.
How many people here have read Farenheit 451? Not to posit a conspiracy, but I bet the author would have been pretty scared if he’d seen our technology situation.
I have noticed that ALL the young ladies walking around the city during the daytime or at night CONSTANTLY have the cellphone on one of their ears as they are walking along.
It occured to me it was their safety and anti-rape handykit a while ago. They weren’t just trying to be cool, or look cool or with it or able to afford an extravagant device. It actually is their safety net and threat to all ne’er do wells that they are 3 key presses away from 911….
Yes, that’s why cellhpones are so darned popular for the young ladies, not just because nearly none of them can tear themselves from their phone – but because it’s their personal bodyguard and security blanket.
Explain to me what Fahrenheit 451, about censorship, has to do with cell phones…. And, by the way, the author, Ray Bradbury, is still alive.
A cell phone, especially in place of a land line, is an often more affordable (free long distance) and convenient (I don’t have st switch my phone number and switch my service every time I move) choice. As for driving while talking, taking calls at inappropriate times, and, OMG, talking on them in public, well, that reflects more on the person than on the phone, now, doesn’t it?
thank you, my wife doesnt have a cellular phone. I do. she wants 1 one, but tell her not to get 1, because of the all the charges, I pay $65. a month. But this is what I will do for you: I will give my cellular phone to my wife for a month. I see that i can live without my cellular phone i will and might be saving $65/00 a month thanks to you.
Juan Rivas
In Denver CO..
They also save lives. At one time in my life I was a paramedic and my DH moonlites as an EMT. Most auto accident calls come in on cell phones.
Also, many home fire calls come in over a cell phone as you can’t stay behind to call 911 in a burning structure.
If someone wants to drop a phone line to save money, you’d be better off in my opinion to drop your land line, or drop something else such as your cable TV or dish.
Mr Mitchell’s argument is based almost entirely on anecdote and his own personal experience. He says he will not conduct business with people using cell phones and that using one in front of him immediately drops the user a few rungs on his ladder. He sounds like a crank!
You’re welcome to your lonely ladder, Mr Mitchell…or is it a pedestal? I’ll climb a different one, thank you very much, one that didn’t top off when rotary-dial phones were the pinnacle of interconnectedness.
I was one of the holdouts that didn’t get a cell phone until about a year and a half ago. I didn’t like the idea of people being able to get ahold of me whenever and whereever. But I finally caved when I moved and decided to not get a new land line and get a cell phone instead. The main reason was price. I don’t talk on the phone very much, but most of the calls I did make were long distance. Landlines are not cheap and with the long distance calls, I usually ended up paying $70-80 a month! So I switched to a cell phone with a minimum number of minutes and free long distance and evenings / weekends, and free voicemail. I now pay $47 per month, period. Its definitely worth it for me. Plus when I’m traveling, I don’t have to search for a (usually nasty) pay phone to make a call. In the past 1.5 years I have gotten 2 wrong number calls and no solicitations. With my former landline, I used to get up to 20 wrong number/sales calls/etc. a day, so I never answered the damn thing without screening the call on my answering machine. Overall, my phoning patterns haven’t changed much since I switched to a cell phone. I still don’t talk on the phone very much, I keep the ringer on vibrate, I turn the phone off when I don’t want to receive calls, and I ignore calls I don’t want to take. I find that its actually easier to not take a call with my cell phone than it was with my landline. Nope, I won’t be going back to a landline if I can help it.
I like how – according to the author – cell phones are a waste of money but OnStar is acceptable.
No, for me, my cell has been nothing but beneficial. I have enough self-determination to turn it off or silence it when I don’t want to be reached. I don’t have a case, or a car charger, or a holster. It replaced my land line – it is in fact, cheaper for me when long distance is considered. I use it as an alarm clock when travelling or if I want to take nap on my lunch break. It has replaced any need for an address book. If in an accident, the camera feature will then come in handy. I’ve used it to get football scores when away from my team. It was an absolute dream when I was in Iraq – before all the chat rooms and phone banks were there. (Although that wasn’t this specific phone – I’ve replaced in the last 5 years!) So yeah, for me, it’s been great.
I think his purpose was accomplished. He caused a RUCKUS!
I couldn’t live without my cell phone either. I can’t get calls at work and if anything happened to family I need to be in contact with them. I have a very sick grandfather and have gotten some calls already that he had to be rushed to the hospital. Luckily he’s always pulled through, but I would be devestated if something really did happen one day I wasn’t there.
I also do save a bundle, but using the cell phone for all our long distance. Plus it’s saved me countless trips to the store. Instead of getting home and having my wife send me back out for milk or something I can pick it up on the way home.
It’s also much easier if I have to pick up food some place. I can order and have it ready when I get there instead of ordering there and waiting 20-30 minutes for them to cook it.
I think my cell phone pays for itself. My time is valuable.
I’m 23 and I want to know why everyone is more concerned with how much money they will spend or save than with how much their brain/ sperm count/ etc is damaged!! idiots
May I suggest that Mr. Mitchell take his reasoning one step further, and also get rid of his computer. Think of the money he’ll save! And we won’t have to read such inane commentaries. To select one of the many modern gadgets to rant about is very selective. I have a cure – delete the link to this blog!!
ah #57! the answer to overpopulation…
all i can say is BLAH! BLAH! BLAH!
HAVING CELL PHONES SAVES US ON ALL THE TIME WE COULD BE SPENDING DRIVING BACK TO THE STORE TO GET SOMETHING THAT YOUR HUSBAND FORGOT TO TELL YOU TO GET. CELL PHONES HELP WHEN IT’S SNOWING AND YOUR CAR RUN’S OFF THE ROAD DURING THE FIRST SNOW AND THE POLICE AND TOW TRUCK DRIVERS ARE ALL TO BUSY TO COME AND GET YOU SO YOU CALL YOUR HUSBAND TO COME GET YOU. CELL PHONES SERVE EVERY PURPOSE THAT THEY WERE CREATED FOR, IT’S JUST SOME PEOPLE REFUSE TO EVOLVE. COMPLAIN ABOUT AN EVEN GREATER EVIL LIKE THE PRICE OF GAS!
20 years ago people coped with car accidents and emergencies without the aid of cellphones yet now for many people it is inconcievable to go without them. It depends on your lifestyle. We don’t have one, although 7-8 years ago I had one as I was often out of town on business, but I resented the fact that my coworkers would call me on my cell phone using up my minutes to talk about work–I wasn’t getting reimbursed for those minutes. The cell phone was for my use to keep in contact with my sons when I had to be out of town. I don’t know why people spend their own money on cell phones and expect to use them to be at the beck and call of their bosses with them! If boss wants you to be in constant touch, he/she whould be paying for your phone AND for your on call time.
Thankfully we have left that life behind. We rarely get calls and let the answering machine pick up on most of them and during the weeks preceeding the election, we let the answering machine pick up all calls as it was a nusance to answer the phone to only hear computer voices telling us who to vote for. We only answer phones during set times and family members know this and have been told that if there is an emergency to says so on the message and we will pick up the phone.
I too get creeped out seeing people walk around with those ear things as if they have to be in constant contact at all times with all people. These aren’t OB doctors who may have to dash off to deliver babies, but ordinary people who I doubt if they get more than one IMPORTANT call a day.
I’m glad the one poster has seen the error of his free spending ways, but too bad it wasn’t sooner to save him and his family from the financial mess they are now in. I wonder how many other posters in their love for their cell phones can actually afford the bill–maybe that bill is paid on time, but are all the other paid in full? I don’t understand how families can afford the cost of all these gadgets and that is what they are.
I well remember being limited to 10 minute talks on the phone with my boyfriend back when I was 15 and my sister would get her 10 minutes and we could actually keep the phone humming most of the evening. Of course we only had one phone in the house and it was in the living room so all conversations could be monitored by mom. How many kids would be better off if parents were actively monitoring their kids conversations and phone time?
I avoided owning a cell phone while I was in corporate. I was working VERY long hours and refused to have something just so my bosses could reach me during those few hours I wasn’t there! LOL
That being said, I now own a cell phone. Do I know what the number is? No. (I’d have to look it up. LOL) Is it ever turned on? Only for the short period of time it takes me to make a call. Why do I bother to have it? I live in the country and there are some mighty long stretches of lonely road and critters that like to run into the road. When I return to “civilization” for doctors’ appointments and to visit friends, I feel safer with it sitting in my purse beside me.
I think I’ve used it 5 times since I got it. Once, a tanker had overturned and getting past the resultant mess made me 2 hours late for a consulting job. I waited until I could pull off before I dug it out and dialed to let them know I’d be late and why. The other times were to let friends know that my appointment was completed and to meet me at the restaurant.
As for the guy who called you a luddite… if he’s not in some sort of a support position, I’d love to know when was the last time he got a call from a customer at 9pm or 1am and actually answered it. LOL If he calls a business outside of business hours for anything other than an emergency, I’d say that he’s a totally self-centered, mannerless pig.
Some people do find a cell phone cheaper than a landline and I applaud them for researching their options and finding the cheapest way to go, but to insist that all businesses have to be accesssible 24/7… I think not!
This discussion has reminded me that it’s been a couple of years since I researched all of my phone options based on my needs. Sigh. Another thing to add to my task list.
I have a cellphone just in case I get lost somewhere. If I didn’t have a cellphone I would have been stuck in an elevator for like 1 day!
Amazing how many people make comment to the fact we had no cell phones 20 years ago and we survived. I agree we did. However, there are a lot of items we have now that we didn’t have in the past. Therefore, does that make a cell phone non-essential?
I only have a cell phone, having done away with my landline service back in 1999. At that time, I was paying $60 for a landline and $45.00 for a cell phone.
The cell phone was more convenient, so the landline was canceled and I never looked back.
The costs associated with a cell phone,if kept over a two-year period, is not expensive.
I get a new cell phone every two years, and I have spent $30 more this last time to update to a better phone. DC car charge is $20 and that prevents having to purchase an extra battery. So, $50.00 for equipment for two-year period. Is that really that expensive?
I also use a blue tooth device to keep the phone away from my ear; thus there goes the health issue, and the blue tooth is over two-years old and still going strong.
Cell phones are not for everybody, as landlines are not for everybody.
This guy needs to get off his high horse and get a life and stop condemning people for no reason.
Very interesting article and comments!
I dislike a lot about cell phones
– the annoyance of having my train of thought during a client appointment interrupted by the client’s phone ringing,
– the poor sound quality when I am the recipient of a call from a cellphone, usually because the caller is calling from a moving car, a public street or other place with high ambient noise,
– being forced to listen in on lengthy, loud, inane conversations when I’m trying to have a quiet lunch in a restaurant or admire a sunset at the beach or pick out my produce at the grocery store (and yes, people do speak more loudly on cellphones than in a face-to-face!)
– the bad manners implicit in all of the above.
That being said, I have one. Of course, I have a prepaid (phone and 1100 minutes for $150) on which I’ve used 234 minutes in the last nine months, mostly when I’ve been on vacation road trips.
In three months, I’ll pay another $10 to get 100 more minutes and renew the ones that are left from this year which will probably be over 700. Assuming I can do that for one more year beyond that, my average monthly cost for cellphone and minutes will be less than $5. The emergency security and on-the-road convenience is definitely worth that amount.
i have a cell phone and completely gave up my landline.i gave up my landline years ago and the cost of using the cell comes to about the same amount as my landline did(per month).some of the comments here have been pretty sarcastic and rude.others have not.i don’t see the pint ion being rude as a person can easily comment here without getting all huffy and puffy.this is called maturity.after reading the article here,i actually understand where the the wrtiter is coming from.my situation differes from his but i don’t see getting all rude and smartass about it.and i actually ave read many times that cell phones are suspected of possibally causing brain tumors.that the reason there’s no proof one way or the other is that cell phones haven’t been in use long enough that there could be any productive study established as to whether or not they’re absolutely without a doubt dangerous.
the article had some valid points.
makes one tink a bit about whether not using a cell is necessary or even sensible to be using..food for thought.
i apalogise for the typos in my previous comment..totally shameful
I have Straight Talk on the Verizon network. Bought it at Walmart and it’s an amazing deal. The Samsung Finesse is a very cool smartphone and paying only $45 a month for unlimited everything is the best deal going!
I’ve just decided to try giving up my cell phone — in fact all phones — and just use Google Voice and/or Skype.
I love this article, I’m 18 years old and I had been thinking about turning my phone off for good. On April 1st, I went to prom on a party bus with 14 of my friends. People were texting on the way to prom but still having a good time, when we were on our way back the bus was dead silent. I looked around and every single face was light up from the screens of their phones. Nobody was doing anything, they were all checking Facebook and Twitter. It was a shame to realize that we all called each other friends and we didn’t even look at each other. I didn’t even stay around for the after party with them because I just wanted to get away. I went home and woke up my mom, I told her to cancel my phone service as soon as possible. She suspended my service for 3 months, hoping I would change my mind. I’ve been without my phone for 3 months now and my sleep has been better, my social skills have gotten better, and I realized who truly matters to me. I don’t plan on ever getting my phone back, I don’t want it, need it, or like it. I hate when you try to talk to somebody and their head is down and they can’t hear you because they are in an artificial conversation.