The day that my parents decided it was appropriate for me to receive a cell phone, I was thirteen, entering the 7th grade, and was completely unworthy of the luxury. I can still remember the feeling I had as I walked into the Verizon store and wandered around wide-eyed at all of the phones I had the option of getting. Before I knew it my dad turned to me, handed me the phone, and said, “This is NOT a toy, this is a tool”.
What he said at that moment was (and still is) ultimately true. This gadget was a form of communication between my parents and me, now that I was going to middle school and was becoming more independent.
Even though my dad was right, it didn’t matter what he said; I was now the proud owner of a silver LG VX-5300 phone that included a front camera. I could now see my reflection while taking eventually-regrettable selfies, and that was all I needed in life.
Besides the fact that my dad never let me forget his words by constantly reminding me of them, they were far from lost on me. Eventually I came to realize that the trend of cell phones was shifting sharply from function to fashion in a very short period of time. Once introduced to the cell phone world, tweens always wanted more. Phone companies began catering to style and flash with the reveal of a wide variety of colored “razr” and “chocolate” phones that every twelve year old girl was dying to get their hands on. The flashy package, combined with the addition of games, and other features like touch screen, shifted phones from the importance of their use to the importance of their look.
The day I upgraded to my voyager, I was now able to use a QWERTY keyboard AND use touchscreens when I pleased. There were more games and attractive settings on the phone than my now-dull VX-5300 ever had. The front screen was now larger, and had a better quality camera, and I now began to have access to internet.
Eventually my upgrades lead me to the phone of all phones: the iPhone. Not only has it stepped up the physical features of the phone, but the addition of apps makes for the easiest of internet access. The access to internet creates for great amounts of entertainment; more than has ever been present before. With each additional feature comes greater technology beneficial for human function, and just as many features that provide for entertainment rather than function.With the dependency of iPhone on phone cases, they have become as important, if not more important than the phone itself. Accessories have become as flashy as the phone. The Otterbox company is constantly coming out with new and more aesthetically pleasing cases for it. Girls often say that getting a new case is like getting a new phone all together.
With each step in the evolution of phones, they have become further and further away from their main function: communication, and productive communication at that. Advanced applications and text messaging provides for more miscommunication and set backs than improvements.
With advancement there is always set backs. The evolution of the phone has provided for much improvement in our society and a shift in the way communication works in society, forever.
There is nothing like a beautiful and well-functioning phone in your hand. Embrace technology ladies!