Earlier communication was difficult and cumbersome, but as society advanced people began discovering faster and quicker ways to communicate with one another. Today, we are living in a world driven by technology and every day a new invention is out which makes communication simpler and easier. The Intenet and the cell phones are such inventions that have changed the way people communicate. For a large section of people including me , the Internet and the cell phone have become an integral part of our very existence. What was once onsidered a luxury has now become a necessity.
Today mobile phones are not just used to make and receive calls. Unlike their predecessor the telephone, the compact nature of the mobile phone enables the user to carry it around and use it almost anywhere and everywhere. They have been so effective that people like my parents have stopped using their landlines altogether. Mobile phones are user friendly and can be operated by a 10-year-old child as well as as an 85-year-old man . Earlier , in times of emergency one had to look for a phone booth to make a call but with the coming in of the cell phone things have changed. For some it is an expensive accessory which they can flaunt around or make a fashion statement with , for others like me it ahs become a second skin without which life is unimaginable. Initially meant only for the elite class and considered as a device for the ' yuppies', mobile phones have now cut across economic barriers and are used by all income groups . Every day there is a new mobile phone entering the market offering novel and better features right from the basic calling facility to the more popular messaging, to the inbuilt camera , video, music player, alarm clock, ability to access the net using the GPRS facility and many more.
The Internet too has simplified life for people around. You can do almost anything and everything through the Intrnet right from chatting, mailing, online shopping and banking , you name it and you can do it on the Internet.On an average I spend almost three hours a day on the net mostly chatting, mailing , using social networking sites like orkut to keep in touch with friends , calling my parents and friends who live abroad ( as cell phone companies charge exorbitant rates for international calls ) and use search engines like Google Search which has assignment submissions easier and faster.
India is now going through a telecom revolution , where one can see that the mobile user base has surpassed the Internet user base. The reason for the popularity of the cell phone over the Internet are many some of which are reduced calling rates due to competition from private and public sector telecom companies like Vodafone , BSNL, and Airtel, cheaper handsets introduced by companies like Reliance and expansion and availability of network evn in the remotest corner. Today there is also a lot of discussion on the 4th screen:i.e. people accessing the Internet through their cell phones , not PC's and mobile TV's . In a country like India only a tiny percent of its massive population use the net and rural India does not come under this section due to lack of literacy to use the Internet. We see more farmers, rickshaw drivers, maids, being engrossed in a conversation over their cell phones than use the Internet, clearly indicating the popularity of the cell phone over the Internet.
Every invention has its positive and negative effects and we need to be mature enough to figure out what we want out of it and the same applies to cell phones. They have been created for our comfort and not our survival . For me the cell phone is definitely a boon inspite of its flaws and man is smart enough to find solutions to overcome the flaws.
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9 comments:
Hey Nikitha, I just wanted to leave a comment about your blog. I think it is amazing how we once viewed both of the items as something luxurious to own and now they are a necessity for our everyday lives. We need them for our profession, family, school and just about everything else.
I think that when the next new model comes out, whether it is a cell-phone or internet upgrade, that either company should advertise to their customers, “It is an integral part of your existence” since it is a fact. It is somewhat ridiculous about the new additives mobile phones carry such as the list you provided: the inbuilt camera, video, music player, alarm clock, ability to access the net using the GPRS facility and many more. Yet, don’t you think that maybe it is more convenient for phones to have that instead of society carrying around numerous other gadgets?
Cell-phones and the Internet have simplified our life. I agree with your statement about “we can do almost anything and everything through the Internet right from chatting, mailing, online shopping and banking.”
I furthermore agree with you about society needing to mature enough to figure out how to categorize new inventions, state their purpose/reason and how we can apply to our lives.
Matthew Bullock
"They have been so effective that people like my parents have stopped using their landlines altogether. Mobile phones are user friendly and can be operated by a 10-year-old child as well as as an 85-year-old man . Earlier , in times of emergency one had to look for a phone booth to make a call but with the coming in of the cell phone things have changed. For some it is an expensive accessory which they can flaunt around or make a fashion statement with , for others like me it has become a second skin without which life is unimaginable."
Nikitha, this quote parallels greatly to my cell phone situation. You rarely hear of people signing up for landline accounts anymore, unless it is for business or the like. You bring up a good point, in that cell phones have helped society by making it easier to contact a emergency room. I remember the first time I had a cell phone, I was in middle school and it was used to only call people, not receive calls. It helped out a lot in that communication between my friends and family was enhanced. I didn't have to run to a landline phone to make a call, it was as easy as reaching in my pocket and picking up the cell phone. So if the tennis match was running a little late, all I had to do was call to inform people of what was going on. A lot of people here in the States tend to flaunt their cell phones around like a fashion statement, hardly using the productivity tools which come with the phone.
Hello,
Yeah, I can’t even think about a day without my cell phone or internet. It seems like we rely them on more and more. There is a term called, “digital Alzheimer’s disease,” that younger generations suffer from forgetfulness because of their high dependence on digital devices. My best buddy is speed dial no7, and I can’t even remember his number at all.
Hope cell phones help to balance from the flood of information in India. I’m positive that it is the next generation of hardware that most people would have if $ goes down.
I hear you. I remember phone numbers from 20 years ago, when I had to push the buttons on my land-line phone. Today I can't remember (or in some cases don't even know) the phone number of half of the people entered into my cell phone.
I've got a question for you - what effect do you think cell phone texting is having on language in India? Some people speculate that text messaging is accelerating the development of a sort of simplified and phonetic English which may, in turn, accelerate its use as a global language. What do you think? How are Indian youth manipulating language through texting?
Wow, the cell phone! I totally agree that it is a necessity (at least in my world). Land lines are truly the thing of the past, I had a land line for a year and did not even know the number..how silly is that. The little device that is apart of our outfit for the day has made it possible for us to be a more productive society. I mean, we no longer have to sit at home and wait for a call, we can do what we have to do and they can call any time. There are a number of reasons why my cell phone is important, like you said, I can check my email, get directions and surf through news when I have free time. However, as much as I love my cell phone, there are some things that I hate about them. I for one am not big on text messaging (unless I'm bored out of my mind and can't talk). I hate that my friends will try to have a conversation with me over texts, I would much rather talk. I also don't like that as a community of cell phone users we talk for no reason, for example we are in the grocery store line making a purchase and instead of talking to the cashier we are rude and stay on the phone..cell phone etiquette should be a class.
Great post Nikitha, I recently hooked a land line up in my apartment because it was free for local calling. Within 3 days I had disconnected it and gave the phone to a friend. I found that my cell phone was more than useful for people to get into contact with me and that nothing else was needed. I find it fascinating to hear about the technology situation in your country and it sounds like your views and opinions on cell phones are similar to my own.
I agree with Chondra's views on cell phone etiquette and the fact that the average student cannot walk to class alone without a cell phone on their ear. Why can't we just appreciate the world around us sometimes?
I am always eager to hear about the effects the internet has on foreign countries and how it continues to connect everyone and everything in ways beneficial to most.
It was interesting to read in your blog that mobile users have surpassed Internet users in India. I rewcognize the rural regions of India not using the Internet due to literacy issues, does that hold true with rural cell phone users as well. Just like anywhere else competition will always drive down the costs. What do you think the results will be of Indian culture watching TV on their cell phones.
I agree with your assertion that cell phones are user freindly. My 93 year-old aunt has a cell phone and she thinks it's the gretaest thing since giant size Pepsi-Cola. And it is true that cell phones have crossed the barriers of just being for the elite class. And with the price wars for carrier service it has made it more than affordable for everyone to have a cell phone.
It's hard to imagine life without a cell phone. I remember for the first few years I had a cell phone I only used it to make calls, I thought text messaging as useless and now I feel that half of the time I use my cell phone , it is for text messaging. You see how far the reach of cell phones have become when your parents don't even use a landline anymore. And why not?By using cell phones we don't get calls from telemarketers and we don't have to wait to get home to check our messages or possibly miss an important call. I think its interesting that in India internet on the phone hasn't caught on , because here it defiently has, through i-phones or blackberrys. Using the internet on the phone is probably about equal to the amount of time some people talk on the phone. I wonder if as new generations become more internet savvy the internet on the cell phone will catch on more there.
Nikitha,
It sounds like cell phone use in India is very similar to that of the US.
It will be very interesting to see how the diffusion of cell phone technology and the 4th screen factor into the shape of society in India in the coming years, especially the uses in the rural areas.
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