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I need some opinions regarding cell phones

saugapepper

saugapepper

Today, I got the winter tires put on at Costco. The clerk asked me for my cell number and I replied that I don't have a cell phone and she was taken aback.

It's not that I can't afford one, I just don't want one. I'm in my early 30s and fairly tech savy, build my own computers, fix others, run Linux and OpenBSD as operating systems. But I really don't see the need. It pisses me off to no end when I see people texting while driving and especially talking on the phone while they are paying for items at a cash register with a cashier. Someone is serving you, get off the bloody phone and respect that worker who is paid a pittance to stand at a cash all day long.

Am I crazy?
 
No. Wish I had the balls to go without.

As a contractor, I literally can't afford to go without. But if I could, I would.
 
Are you crazy? Heck no. I am self-employed, and in the business I'm in, a cell is a necessity. But I refuse to get a "smart" phone. My phone does have the ability to get emails and web, but I won't go there. I'm on the computer most of the day, and so reachable by email, or my clients can text or *GASP* actually call me. Actually, most call me at least 50% of the time or more - I'm on the phone with them sometimes ALL day. So if I can't pick up emails while I'm not at my computer, so sad - no one should have 24/7 access to me besides my family.

That said, I have no TV, by choice. When the one I had died (several years ago now), I thought about it and decided against replacing it. Amazing how much I actually DO now. Most people give me that same shocked look you get when people find you don't have a cell, but trust me, life is much saner without.
 
I went many years without a cell phone. I have one now (a free flip phone) which I refuse to text on (unless I'm hunting and trying to be quiet) and seldomly use otherwise. And I just got an email account a couple years ago which I check maybe every 2 weeks. It's disturbing how much time people spend gazing at their smart phones. I went out to dinner a few nights ago, and more than half of the people in view were staring at their smart phones the entire time. Many of them were couples ignoring each other as they did whatever they do with their little gadgets. Not really my idea of a date night... :confused:
 
They got these new cool ones just out :P The answer is hell yea your crazy, seriously how do you tell the time or wakeup on time in the morning or even go outside in the dark to find things....

funny-touchscreen-thats-funny-76245c.jpg
 
The new nexus 4 looks the shizzles and is only 299 to 350 brand new without contract. Can't beat it for the price and is basically top of the line in almost all departments (except LTE network)
 
Don't get one if you don't have a need for it.

Hubby and I are also in the construction industry and sometimes cell is the only means of communication during the day while on a construction site. But, sometimes, where we live, in a remote rural area, sometimes the job sites don't have cell signal. Not all of the world is covered by the invisible web of communication yet.

Where our house is, we do not get cell at the house, and even though I go to town (aka...get within cell signal) almost every day, I sometimes do not get cell messages until 5-6 days later.

I know many people have eliminated their landline and only have a cell phone. If it works for their environment, that's great.


Just remember, just because someone calls or the telephone rings, doesn't mean you HAVE to answer it. It is OK to let it go to the answer machine and to have the business phone turned OFF.

Dinner time, family time, "special" time is more important than a solicitor's phone call....
 
I hate phones, and for that reason I could gladly go without one. But they do have their good points. Like when your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Or in cases of an emeregency. Honestly I use my phone more for surfing the internet then phone calls. I ended up getting a samsung galaxy S2, and so far I'm very happy with the phone. I'm in Australia and this phone was the was the best priced smart phone I could get. I see it as abit like having a very small note book or tablet, which hs saved me from having to buy one lol.

One thing you need to look at when getting a smart phone is data usage. Alot of the cheaper plans here in Australia give you a real small download limit, like only 200mb, the after that they charge by the megabyte and rip you off.
 
I'm lucky. I've had a cell for that long that I have unlimited data for fairly cheap. I've had the same cell number since before there was such a thing as text messaging, which were free when they were first introduced.
 
Have an iPhone and iPad. That should tell you all about me. I left the cell phone home on the charger , best day I had except couldn't get me email and no Facebook and oh boy noTHP!!! Those are my lifelines to the world! My son 's deployed and its one of my way of keeping in touch. But heck, I can live without the Phone. And lastly You Don't Have to ANSWER it,unless its me that's calling!:)

If you get a smart phone, remember this: Unlimited Data!!
 
I couldn't imagine life without one any more. Especially for work, I wouldn't be able to order concrete or get a hold of inspectors or talk to my wife during the day. That would just suck. Plus there is soooo much cool shit you can do with a smartphone. Just insane to me that people don't have cell phones.
 
I own a smart phone but to be honest I would love to go back to my chilhood where cell phones were non existent and our families phone was a party line. A party line I don't know a single other person personally who had one . Now that's old school and I'm not even that old!!
 
[background=rgb(255, 244, 228)]But I refuse to get a "smart" phone. My phone does have the ability to get emails and web, but I won't go there.[/background]
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I was a big proponent of this line of thinking until we upgraded at work several years ago and I was talked into getting a Blackberry. the rest is history. Email communication on the go is da bomb! So much easier than answering all of those annoying phone calls and gives me something productive to do in those boring meetings I attend every week. We have since upgraded to HTC thunderbolts 18 months or so ago and will likely get iPhone 5s on the next upgrade. Smart phones are just about mandatory in the commercial construction market.

For personal use, I wouldn't need the smart phone, but texting is sooooooo much easier than on a regular phone so I would probably get one anyway.
 
Thanks for all the opinions so far. My wife has a Pay-As-You-Go phone... ancient thing but we do bring that whenever we go on trips. I work exactly one mile from my home and we live in a huge city (700,000 people) so it's not like going to the grocery store means heading into a city from a rural setting.

I have a Nexus 7 which replaced my 2003 ThinkPad which died last spring. I saw the Nexus 4 and it looks interesting... again it's not like I can't afford one, I just don't get it... I can surf at home or on the computers at work. Anyway, I'm sure that I or my wife will get a smart phone in the next few years as our family expands but at the moment I guess I'm the strange minority that doesn't have a cell phone... even my mother who is in her late 60s has one!!!! :rofl:
 
I used to have the same attitude towards them.

Then I did the math & weighed the options - my home phone was constantly getting robo-dials from every cause, politician, association, telemarketing firm....no matter how many do not call lists I got on it just got worse. Plus I had to pay for voicemail, pay for long distance calls, pay for caller ID, etc

So I turned off my home phone and have only the cell. If I'm driving I wait to return calls or texts. If its urgent I pull over. If I'm in line I don't make or take calls.

If you're a polite and safe person having a cell doesn't turn you into a text-n-drive jerk automatically...I use the cell exclusively now and it makes sense for me. As a start-up business I can't afford to miss sales calls, or calls from my mfgr or distributor.

But no - if it makes sense for you in your situation I certainly would not judge you for it or call you a Luddite - each to their own.
:cheers:
 
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