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No, it's not, Speedy. If you like your devices, that's fine, but most of what you have is completely unnecessary, even for someone who heads a team of engineers.
Oh I'd agree, the only necessary tools I NEED are my smartphone and my work laptop. Smartphones have become almost necessary for any businessperson or politician nowadays, they are no longer a "luxury". A smartphone is basically my phone/PDA/computer/alarm clock all in one...it's something that has greatly improved my productivity in the workplace.
How important is any of this REALLY? Can I not wait to get home to check my email? Can I not plan in advance where I want to eat and know where I am going? Why can't I use mapquest and print out the directions or write them down? Why can't I play a damn CD? Why would I even need an MP3?
People have been sold a bill of goods called CONSUMERISM and, IMHO, the sheep follow.
From what I see and hear, it's not so much consumerism as lifestyle in general. Most of the younger people I know have iPhones or something similar. They use them to keep in contact with their families, friends around the country, local groups. My daughter uses hers a lot while she's feeding her new baby to keep in touch with various groups having to do with newborns. Her husband is on the road a lot, even though he stays in the city, and he can see the latest cute photos of what their baby is doing (and no, not while driving).
Both my offspring use smartphones to check in to Facebook frequently which pleases me because that's how I know they're okay and see the latest photos of whatever they've been doing. Quite a few of their friends on FB are also friends of mine, and I love seeing how they've grown up and what they are doing as adults. A couple are in the military and that's how they keep up with what's going on in their own families. My son doesn't have an actual physical address - if it wasn't for his iPhone, he'd be out of reach most of the year, and if he wanted to talk to someone, he'd have to carry a large bucket of quarters around and hope no one had pulled the only payphone out of the wall. Nor would he have music/movies available whenever he had time to watch or listen.
As for Mapquest, I can't even look up my own address on it, I get a location that's a couple blocks away. It used to be my favorite, but...
Lastly, the best reason I can think of for having one myself would be the simple fact that I constantly seem to be spilling things into keyboards. I've spent more than enough on replacement keyboards alone to pay for an iPhone. Unfortunately, I simply can't see well enough to use one, or I'd be using something like that, with my PC as a back up.
My husband's company gave him a "smart phone" allowance which we used to buy two refurbished iphones (one for me) and they pay $100 a month towards the bill so we wind up paying about $30 a month ourselves. Most of my neighbors have similar plans with their companies, or the company owns the phone and allows them to use it.
I don't like apple products or at&t however I recently had a big battle with myself over whether to get a smart phone. I thoguht it would be a nice luxury but not a necessity, was only paying $39 for a pretty good plan with us cell.
I decided to get a evo with sprint. I finagled the highest corp discount they have so my bill is only like $51 per month which isn't much more than what I was paying
I go to a lot of auctions and am into resale so being able to research prices will actually save and make me money in the long run.
There are also a barcode app where you can scan something see reviews, see online prices and where and see a map of local stores and prices. Since were in the frual section you can see how valuable that could be.
Obviously alot of it is convenience and fun but I justified it b/c I was able to figur out a way to get a large discount, and because I can make money and sav emoney with it.
As for iphone I think its a ripof I think most of my frioends are spending $100-$130 a month on their place plus the expensive phone which you cant buy insurance for plus apple makes you pay for most apps unlike android.
You can however find iphones for pretty cheap, you can also get them flashed or jailbroke so you can hook them up with other providers besides at&t
it's probably not an easy argument to make, but i think you hit a good point on the things like the barcode apps, and comparison shopping. i use the gasbuddy app (free app), and find the cheapest gas nearby when i need gas.
as for iphone apps vs android apps....apple store has basically all the same free apps android phones do. i have an android phone. i love it. but apple still has the edge as far as apps go.
How important is any of this REALLY? Can I not wait to get home to check my email? Can I not plan in advance where I want to eat and know where I am going? Why can't I use mapquest and print out the directions or write them down? Why can't I play a damn CD? Why would I even need an MP3?
People have been sold a bill of goods called CONSUMERISM and, IMHO, the sheep follow.
why buy a CD for $14 when i can buy the 3 good songs on that CD for $3? or better yet, i could likely get it for free (though that would be illegal).
as for mapquest...sure you could do that.
as for planning in advance where you're eating out...it's different when you live in a large metro-area where there are literally thousands of choices...but you're right, one could just plan in advance.
no one is saying it's a necessity, but if one wants a phone, mp3 player, and a gps....then a smart phone is kind of a no-brainer.
Whatever, a bunch of consumerist sheeple whose values are completely out of whack. You know, keeping up with the Joneses seems to NEVER go out of style.
Oh, and BTW, NJBest, why don't you try volunteering as a way to help people instead of buying crap you don't need? I work at a food bank once a week. Quantify that.
so you ONLY buy stuff you NEED? how are you accessing the internet right now? cmon.
Oh I'd agree, the only necessary tools I NEED are my smartphone and my work laptop. Smartphones have become almost necessary for any businessperson or politician nowadays, they are no longer a "luxury". A smartphone is basically my phone/PDA/computer/alarm clock all in one...it's something that has greatly improved my productivity in the workplace.
and seeing as though you said you lead engineers for a defense company, i assumed you might not be able to use your work phone and laptop for personal things. i know folks who do that sort of work, and they have to keep their work tech seperate from their personal tech. if they had the option, they'd just use the phone and computer their company supplied them.
my work laptop for instance is completely locked down. sure, i could use it at home, but then everything i browsed would be logged on my company's servers, and god forbid i want to hit facebook ever...everything like that is blocked. and parts of news sites are blocked (huge portions of ESPN are blocked as well).
so for some people, a work computer and a personal computer is just a fact...not really a choice. do i need a computer at home? no. but i want one.
A hundred bucks a month for a device that doubles as multiple devices, is really not any more than we paid in years past for a combination of comparatively crude devices, which approximated only the basic communications functions of today's smartphones.
Having said all of that, it is definitely possible to buy less expensive smartphones than an iPhone. The market is very competitive, as smartphones have gradually become a staple.
Exactly. I have a Droid (I'm just not an Apple fan in general) its worth it just to be able to have not only calls, but instant acceess to the web and to my personal and work e-mails all in one place, at all times. Add to that other features which I used on separate devices in the past (GPS, camera phone that is as good as my 5-year old digital camera, etc) all in one handy-dandy little package. I even have an app that stores all of my store, airline and hotel cards so I don't have to carry those around with me anymore.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mistygrl092
How important is any of this REALLY? Can I not wait to get home to check my email? Can I not plan in advance where I want to eat and know where I am going? Why can't I use mapquest and print out the directions or write them down? Why can't I play a damn CD? Why would I even need an MP3?.
It is less important than it is convenient. I travel a fair bit for work. I like to be able to check my personal and work e-mail while sitting around in an airport.
Planning in advance where to eat...sometimes yes, other times, you might be out and about and not have any idea. We were down in Savannah just last weekend on vacation. Around 2:00 we were trying to decide what to do for dinner. In just a few minutes, while hanging out at a bar, we were able to pull up a list of local restaurants, look at menus, decide on one, then open up the Open Table ap to make a reservation. Beats having to go back to the hotel to look it all up online or ask for recommendations, call for reservations, etc.
Printing out directions is fine, but if you need directions away from your home computer, then what. Plus having a voice give you directions is a lot easier (and possibly safer) than trying to read directions while driving.
As for MP3s well...I still keep a separate one rather than drain my phone battery, but having several hundred CDs in one little device makes it much easier to travel than when I would lug around a discman and a dozen CDs on business trips (that said, I still have a proper stereo at home because the sound quality is much better).
I resisted smart phones for a while - finally gave in and got one. I never thought I would get much use out of it, but have come to find it to be useful day-to-day tool.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mistygrl092
Whatever, a bunch of consumerist sheeple whose values are completely out of whack. You know, keeping up with the Joneses seems to NEVER go out of style.
Hm...so someone buys a technolgical piece of equipment that provides useful services and added convenience is just a "sheep"? I am sure some people probably once echoed your same comments about that newfangled horseless carriage.
That said, it is always nice to hear people belittle those who do not share their own viewpoint as being somehow intellectually inferior.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bradykp
so for some people, a work computer and a personal computer is just a fact...not really a choice. do i need a computer at home? no. but i want one.
I am truly surprised just how many people have one considering how expensive a device it is, especially the monthly service. Do you think this is just a reflection of our society living above their means?
And to answer the OPs question...for some people, maybe it is. But the truth is that there are also a lot of people who can afford such a device and have it be well within their budget.
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