Perspective: I have a cell now, and I might use it too

I got a cell phone this week. It's my first.

Technically, I didn't buy it for myself. I bought it for a nanny who worked for us this past summer. I got it at a tent inside Costco, next to a cardboard crate of tube socks.

When our nanny returned to Europe, I figured that I might as well consume the remaining prepaid minutes on the phone. I haven't decided if I'll add more minutes when I'm out. (Technically speaking, I don't think I've actually used it to make a call, but I have carried it around.)

Unlike many people who consider themselves early adopters, I've often been a late adopter. I don't usually buy a technological gizmo until it becomes a social embarrassment not to own one. Still, even then, I held out on cell phones because:

1. The shock value. I've loved watching people become slack-jawed and dazed when I told them I didn't have a cell number. It was like telling them I recently emigrated from the Little House on the Prairie. They couldn't believe it. In the next sentence I could tell them I had to start whittling toys for Christmas soon and they'd buy it.
2. I'm cheap. It's all in priorities. I probably blow thousands in restaurants a year, but a new bathing suit? These surfing shorts from the early 1990s still work. I always looked at it this way: cell phone bills come to around $50 a month. That's $600 a year, in after tax income. Pre-tax, that comes to over $1,000. Is there something I'd rather spend money on than a device that lets me know of things I screwed up at work? There are a few.
3. Few opportunities to call. I spend about 70 percent of my time in three places: work, home, or in meetings. I have regular phones and home and work and in meetings I turn all devices off to avoid interruptions. (CNET has a loaner I periodically use.) Thus, a cell phone provides no function there.
4. In other words, it doesn't bring radically new functions to my life. It's the same with Blu-ray players. Blu-ray players might provide a crisper picture or more storage capacity on their discs than DVD players, but that doesn't make the plot of Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector any more intriguing. By contrast, digital cameras changed how people take pictures.
5. You're tough to find. The other 30 percent of the time I'm commuting or goofing off. I don't really want people to be able to reach me. Without a phone, you don't have to lie about being tied up in traffic. No one can find you anyway.
6. A lot of calls are meaningless. Watching other people use cell phones, and being the recipient of lots of cell calls, it has become pretty obvious that a substantial percentage of cell phone calls are just ways to inflict your boredom on someone else. "I'm waiting to get into the parking lot at Trader Joe's. What are you up to? There's a guy driving into the Lucky Penny the wrong way." Just owning one tempts you into it.
7. Controls. Dear Samsung: The cancel button is by far and away the best thing you've ever made. Every time I get lost down the rathole of control menus, I just have to hit that button with the red phone on it a few times and I'm back. I tried an iPhone, but it's largely incompatible with my sweaty, tuber-like fingers. (You'll think twice about shaking my hands now, eh?)

But I can see some advantages to having a cell phone:

1. The battery lasts forever. If there's any true wonder in a cell phone, it's the battery. I haven't charged this thing in a week and I assume it's still on.

2. It has a clock. So much for guessing what time it is.
3. Social interaction. If you lived in Italy, Greece, or South Korea and didn't have a cell phone, you would have to sever your arm. People get calls at 11 at night on a regular basis. That does seem sort of fun. Now I just have to get over the reluctance of giving my number out.

Biography
Michael Kanellos is editor at large at CNET News.com, where he covers hardware, research and development, start-ups and the tech industry overseas. He has worked as an attorney, travel writer and sidewalk hawker for a time share resort, among other occupations.

More Perspectives

[CESSNA150SKYPILOT]

Late adopter

I thought I was late! I bought my first cell phone nearly 3 years ago when I couldn't stop myself. One thing useful: I cancelled land line long distance service. My provider lets me call anywhere in the US as part of the package. That makes up for some of the cost of the cell.

[sadchild]

need a land line

i get 1 bar of reception on my cell phone if i hold the phone up to the sky as high as i can, standing in one particular spot in my driveway. sometimes i can get a bar in the house but if i make a call it goes away. and i don't live "in the boonies", i live 10-20 minutes from two large cities. my land line is unlimited in-state calls (no "minutes plan for usage" from 6am-8pm or anything) for an unchanging $50/month cost. long-distance is done with a pre-paid AT&T card at 5 cents/minute. no contracts, no surprise fees, no hidden costs. and my call always gets through with perfect clarity. there's no "can you hear me now?"

[Miacol]

Amazing

What's amazing is that this guy is suppose to be writing about technology and yet he doesn't carry a cellphone.

There are other reasons to have a cellphone, do the research and report back....

[sadchild]

your homework

what's amazing is you are supposeD to spell "supposeD to" with a D at the end. what's also amazing is that there are a billion other forms of technology out there besides cell phones, and just because somebody does not own a cell phone doesn't mean that they aren't qualified to report on technology OR write an article about one piece of technology they are unfamiliar with and label the article appropriately with the "perspective" label on it.

as for the other forms of technology besides cell phones, do the research and report back....

[john55440]

T-Mobile Prepaid - Super Cheap

For low volume users, T-Mobile USA Prepaid is super cheap, with no daily/weekly/monthly charges, and minutes that roll over. Among other things, it's an excellent choice for people who just want an "emergency cell phone".

[sjkx]

T-Mobile prepaid rollover & roaming?

I see a 90-day expiration for normal T-Mobile prepaid plan
minutes and 1-year for Gold Reward minutes. Is that what you're
talking about or do you have some other plan that might not exist
anymore? Also, roaming appears to be limited to the T-Mobile USA
network.

[ecartman0]

Agree

Great article I agree completely with of your points. My favorite is not being able to be reached. What a blessing. I wouldn't carry one at all but my business requires it. It gets turned off as soon as I'm off the clock though. Funny though I am a geek and proud of it. I just hate cell phones, paying for being at everyones beck and call makes no sense to me. Nothing makes me madder than being interrupted when I am doing something I think is important.

Cart

[sadchild]

same reason i don't use chat software

that's the same reason i haven't used chat software since 2001. i was one of the original ICQ users back in the mid-90s (with a nice low 6-digit number and all) but every time i wanted to get something done on my computer.... BLOINK! "wassup?". me: "downloading an iso, burning a cd and updating my website, real busy". BLOINK! "that's cool" BLOINK! "i'm bored" BLOINK "so what are you doin?"

yeah, thanks but no thanks. UNINSTALL.

[birdtford]

Interrupted

How can you be interrupted when you can either turn the phone off and let your calls go to voice mail, like land lines or if you don't want to talk when the call comes in, you let it go to voice mail. I do that very often. Even with my wife and mother. They both know that if it's an emergency, to call right back and I'll pick up.

[johnny_automatic]

YES!!!!!

Oh man that was a great article. I am still a proud hold out. I
especially like points 5 & 6. Why would I want to carry a device
that let's people find me when it is convenient for them? And
pay for the privilege? These people either are type A workaholics
or have never worked for one. Given the chance these people
will suck you dry 24-7.

And how true about the pointless conversation. How did people
make it through a grocery store before them? I cannot believe
the constant parade of idiots standing in the aisles phoning
home to see if they buy low fat or non-fat milk. And everyone
feels they need to be in constant contact with someone, like they
all miss their mommies. These things are turning us into a
collective hive mind with an IQ of 50.

[flitcraft33]

On the plus side

I too, chatter in the grocery store, but I chatter with my grown daughter in grad school. We stay in touch much more thanks to cell phones. So there is a plus side.

[ben::zen]

... technical food questions ...

See, I need a cell phone to clarify cryptic
instructions on lists in order to get the right
things, in cases such as baking.

[kenjamd]

Don't want to give your number out?

I don't mean to issue a shameless plug, so please consider this one shameful. I am ashamed, but happy to use GrandCentral, so I don't have to give out my cell phone number!!

[digitanomad]

Grand Central

Grand Central is great, but the technology is not really anything new.

[digitanomad]

Late Adopter

How did you get a gig writing about technology? Unbelievable, and pretty amazing world we live in.

[sbwinn]

#6 is exactly right!

In my experience, #6 is right on the money. Most calls are not
necessary.

I conducted my own non-scientific research one day in the mall
whilst waiting for my wife to pick out clothes.

Everyone who was using a cell phone and walking around by
themselves stayed on the phone the entire time I could see
them.

With only one exception, everyone who who was with a group of
peers ended their call walking through the short stretch of mall
that I was observing.

My conclusion: when people are out by themselves, then can
use cell phones to let everyone else know that they have friends.

The above exception was an interesting case. It was a rather
large and very loud boy who was hanging out with a group of
friends. I think in that case the cell phone was a popularity
enhancer. He wasn't showing off for the general public. He was
showing his peers he was popular because he had friends
besides them he wanted to talk to.

Totally unscientific, as I said. Also potentially insulting to the
bazillion or so cell phone users out there. But see if your own
experience doesn't verify the conclusion.

[taphilo]

Digital Camera comment

"By contrast, digital cameras changed how people take pictures. " -- nope, they can just take bad pictures faster and see that they are bad faster - and try again- and again - and again.

They also now need to purchase a thousand dollars of computer gear - and a few hundred more in software - to print them at home - or have the computer, fast internet connection, online photo firm to upload and have mailed to them to get their print - or go manually to a kiosk to get them printed etc.

Nothing has really changed other than the ability to lose all your photos when your hard drive crashes. 90% never back up their photos. Would not be a problem if they immediately burn their images right to CD after putting them into their PC. I know many people who have taken thousands of images - and not a single backup on CD of any of them.

Course with digital they do take thousands - using statistical averages that they have to get at least 1 good one out of them all.

I went to a Civil War Re-enactment and I used film, my friend used digital. I had taken 28 pictures after 1/2 hour and he had taken 160 in the same time. He asked me why I had not taken more and I repied - I did not need to. The ones I took were right the first time. I work the same way with my digital camera - you don't waste time with quanity of photos - you go for the quality in each frame you take.

Tom Philo
http://www.taphilo.com/

[CBSTV]

Me, too.

I don't care for cell phones for several of the same reasons -- but
recently did get an inexpensive phone to keep inside my car's glove
compartment for emergencies. AT&T's pay-as-you-go service has
no monthly recurring charge.

[siriusproductions]

I don't have one, either

This is a reason for having a cell phone?

"It has a clock. So much for guessing what time it is."

Ever hear of a watch?

[Liz Dorland]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Ho Hum.

And I used to be proud of being a late adopter of the microwave and the dishwasher. It was a Berkeley thing. The cell phone is just another tool, cheap and handy to have at times. And it DOES have an On/Off switch. The weirdly proud late adopter folks seem to forget that detail. Boring. So last century. :-)

[ONEderer]

Yeah, I finally broke down, and got a cell phone.

However, I don't have a high monthly fee to pay at the end of the month. I use a pre-pay cell phone. Pay as I go is fine for me. And I rarely use the darn thing. It is mostly for emergency purposes if and when my car breaks down on the road.

Otherwise, for long distance phone calls at home, I use the $30.00 per year Skype-out service. That's cheap enough to call anywhere in the US and Canada, without paying long-distance fees.

I'm also cheap, but I love using the money that I'm saving, on other things that are more important to me.

[Heebee Jeebies]

Forced to do it...

I had to get a cell phone when my mom had to start dialysis otherwise I wouldn't touch one with someone else's hand.

I don't give my number out to many people and those that I do... gasp... I um don't really want to talk to. Certainly not in the car or on the pot.

And, what the hell is it with people getting their three years a cell phone? I mean really is it really so cool to call another 3 year to talk about diaper rash. Frankly, there parents... well I would just just slap their lips off.

Don't even get me started with twits on the phone while driving. Most of these people haven't mastered driving with both hands and a full attention span let alone one hand and one of their two brain cells being occupied about how cool the new Starbucks down the street is.

Cells phones do one thing really well. It makes unimportant, uninteresting people feel important and interesting. I wonder how many of the calls people take are actually wrong numbers. Really who want to talk with aunt Milly about the corns on her feet?

Robert

[markdoiron]

Me, Too!

Yep, you describe me almost to a tee. However, I did have a cell phone before retiring when I was running a business. Back then it cost $30/month for 25-minutes of time. I didn't use it much. But, it did seem like a status symbol of some sort.

After retiring, as everyone started getting cell phones, I realized that the real status symbol is to be free of the rat race. I dumped it and haven't looked back.

--mark d.

[sadchild]

got my first cell phone 7 weeks ago

i finally broke down and joined the 1990s, and got my first cell phone 7 weeks ago.

but it's not really the same as having a regular cell phone like these annoying SUV-driving, "burger-eating while talking on the cell and driving" jerks yakking about "i don't know, what do YOU want for dinner tonight". i'd like to strangle them all, but that's a different issue i won't get into now.

i bought a prepaid-minutes tracfone. after startup deals and bonus minutes and such i got 80 minutes (units) and the phone for $20. i still have 64 left. i calculated that my estimated annual cost of having this phone will be about $12/month.

and the only time it's on is when i'm not home or at work, which is not often. and only 2 people have the number so far. it's almost like still not having a cell phone, except that in a pinch, i can make a quick call. "my car broke down on main street, come get me, thanks bye." or "the movie ran late i'll be home at 11 o'clock. 'k bye."

best of both worlds.

[PPL1]

Cellphoneless in Milano...

Living in Milano (Italy).
#5 was the number one reason (also #2 and I now enjoy #1 as
an unintended side effect)
Last year, somebody actually had to *GIVE* me a second hand
StarTAC (built 1996 circa) so that he could reach me, so I can
still plausably claim that I don't own one... I took the trouble to
locate and buy new batteries, as well as a pre-paid card (credit
card size of course).
But guess what ? It's almost always off. Of course, I did not tell
any of my colleagues that I have a cellphone, either (#5 again).

BTW, extracting a neolihtic phone that actually works (well, when
its on...) from your pocket in front of hyper-fashion-conscious,
technology-savvy twentysome milanese can also be fun to
watch...

[alm49er]

AMEN, Brother!!

My wife and I have a Tracphone (prepaid). For $100 per year, we get all the wireless connectivity we desire! We mainly find the phone useful when on vacation with others ("Where are you now and where shall we meet?") Other than that, our VoIP "landline" and phones at work are more than sufficient for our communication needs. Totally agree with point #6.

[chash360]

Early adopter, but agreed.

I got a cell phone when it was first available in my area, and discontinued my home phone service. Granted its little more expensive, but I don't talk on the phone that much to begin with. The number has never belonged to anyone else, and has never been listed. I never get solicitors, and rarely get wrong numbers. The biggest advantage of it is that if I move (locally) I don't have to get service setup again, don't have to change numbers, but best of all, it has an off button. I hate phones, I hate the idea that anyone can interrupt you at anytime they feel like it. I do wish that you could get the service without voicemail, if you can't get me on the cell phone I am not available period, call back later if its important, otherwise don't call at all. I would rather a person come knocking on my door unannounced for idle chit chat, than bother me with a useless phone call.

[sargear]

Clock

yes, I agree completely, the clock IS the most useful function in a phone. I've even stopped wearing a watch.