21 April 2018

S for Smartphone



Welcome! 
We are with the 2018 April AtoZ Blogging challenge and its my fifth attempt. For those who missed it, here is the link to my Theme Reveal post. Do the alphabets still stand for the same things we learnt about in Nursery school? 

Its day nineteen and the alphabet is S.


S for Sun? Yes, I guess that will be relevant today considering global warming...

But I would opt for something closer and which has now become an inseparable part of our lives ... S for smartphone. 

Years ago, in India, having a telephone was a matter of pride, a symbol of having arrived. Sometimes, there was one phone in a building and it ended up being used by all families who lived there. The owner did not mind taking messages either ... I remember we had to wait a couple of years to get a land line connection and what a day of celebration it was!


With time and tech progress, the device underwent several changes and slowly the cell phone entered our lives. As before, it was a very expensive toy initially. Both incoming and outgoing calls were chargeable which created the 'missed call' phenomenon. After 2004, things changed rapidly, the device has now become as good as a computer and cell phone charges have become quite cheap. 


Smartphone, cell phone, device
A Motorola device from 2002 and one from 20010

All kinds of Apps offer entertainment, news, communication and what have you. Its wonderful for seniors to stay in touch - with family, friends and get info about what's happening in the world. My Mom was quite reluctant to learn how to use a PC but has taken to the smartphone like a fish to water! And she is not alone. There are so many seniors who can easily book a taxi on their smartphone, Skype (or similar video chat feature) with their children and grandkids, play Candy Crush, read news on Apps of their favourite daily... 

The devices have grown from being compact to large ones that barely fit in the palm. The price range is vast as well and there is something for every one... Buy a device and it becomes outdated before a year is over. The lucky ones are able to 'exchange' their old phone for a new one but others simply end up collecting the old ones year after year... there is now the option of disposing them as e-waste.

A walk down any street shows that almost everyone has a smartphone and most will be talking away.. So much so that I think it has become a safety issue as most are lost in their conversations... 

S is definitely for smartphone! This time I know you will agree!
:-)

10 comments:

Iain Kelly said...

In many ways it might be better if we all spent a little less time staring at our smartphones, but definitely a good shout for 'S'!
https://iainkellywriting.com/2018/04/21/s-is-for-siauliai-lithuania/

Melanie Crouse said...

Fun post!
http://melaniecrousesblog.blogspot.com/2018/04/s-is-for-sorry-not-sorry.html

Archana said...

Thank you Iain! :-)

Archana said...

Thanks a lot Melanie!

Penelope Potty Snooper said...

Even though I’m not commenting regularly I am enjoying your posts . And yes S is for smartphone for sure ! Especially since kids live it !!!!

Jui said...

I do remember that motorola model from 2002! Nice post.

Archana said...

@bellybytes Thanks Sunita! Your support means a lot. :-)

Archana said...

Thank you Jui!

Donna B. McNicol said...

Phones have come a LONG way since my childhood in the 1950's!

Donna B. McNicol|Author and Traveler
A to Z Flash Fiction Stories | A to Z of Goldendoodles

Archana said...

That's right Donna! Shape is just one of things that has changed! Thanks for stopping by :-)