QOTW: Could you easily give up your mobile phone for a week?

[shaithis]

Yes, as long as I had enough reading material for all the trips to the toilet

[virtuo]

I could (and have). But I wouldn't like to. Calls are cheaper than on my landline (which I only have for broadband and unsolicited sales calls). I don't use the "phone" facility of my phone as much as I do the media (MP3 and streaming radio), internet and the odd game to pass some time.

I can use my phone on the road to log in to servers in an emergency and do a bit of maintenance. I get my emails wherever I am, I have my calendar instantly accessible, I can work out where I am and how to get to where I want to be easily and can take reasonable quality photos and videos in a device that's smaller than anything that specialises in just one of those tasks.

I'd make do without a phone, but I wouldn't be happy about it.

[Lee H]

Well...

I've gone from Jan without a mobile. I still have a handset thats used for emails, wifi and music more than anything, but its not used for calls in anyway at the moment as the SIM cards not fitted.

Do I miss it - No - its liberating to say the least and I don't forsee me getting a SIM soon to be contactable 24/7. If people want me, they can get me on ye old land line lol

[Saracen]

Well...

I've gone from Jan without a mobile. I still have a handset thats used for emails, wifi and music more than anything, but its not used for calls in anyway at the moment as the SIM cards not fitted.

Do I miss it - No - its liberating to say the least and I don't forsee me getting a SIM soon to be contactable 24/7. If people want me, they can get me on ye old land line lol

Hail, and well met, soul brother. Our numbers are growing.

[MickyTek]

EEErrrrrrr do the words Jog On Mean anything to you :-)

[drone567]

I like being 'that guy'! I think if people used them like phones. But personally I think it's good for my mind to have free time in real world, without the mobile umbilical connection. So I only use my phones when I want to speak to someone. Also in light of surveillance capabilities, and tracking capabilities(is it three seconds to locate someone?), attitudes may change.

[ZaO]

Well...

I've gone from Jan without a mobile. I still have a handset thats used for emails, wifi and music more than anything, but its not used for calls in anyway at the moment as the SIM cards not fitted.

Do I miss it - No - its liberating to say the least and I don't forsee me getting a SIM soon to be contactable 24/7. If people want me, they can get me on ye old land line lol

Liberating is certainly the word! I had no phone for a couple of weeks, on purpose. I could just do stuff without any little stupid beeps annoying me. No people complaining that I hadn't replied, because I didn't have the phone to begin with. Then I remembered, THIS IS HOW LIFE USED TO BE. I REMEMBER THIS! It was lush! But, I hated loosing the convenience in the end. People are way less reliable when you're supposed to meet them somewhere these days, because they can usually just send a text saying they aren't gonna be there. So yeh, that got annoying, fast... I also didn't like the idea of family not being able to contact me in an emergency. I realised how important the phone could actually be. Still, I recommend people give it a shot. There is definitely a bliss about it. It's good to remind yourself, and don't always be tied to the thing if you can help it

[peterb]

EEErrrrrrr do the words Jog On Mean anything to you :-)

Not as such, but I suggest an explanation might be.... Er... Risky.

[Saracen]

Liberating is certainly the word! I had no phone for a couple of weeks, on purpose. I could just do stuff without any little stupid beeps annoying me. No people complaining that I hadn't replied, because I didn't have the phone to begin with. Then I remembered, THIS IS HOW LIFE USED TO BE. I REMEMBER THIS! It was lush! But, I hated loosing the convenience in the end. People are way less reliable when you're supposed to meet them somewhere these days, because they can usually just send a text saying they aren't gonna be there. So yeh, that got annoying, fast... I also didn't like the idea of family not being able to contact me in an emergency. I realised how important the phone could actually be. Still, I recommend people give it a shot. There is definitely a bliss about it. It's good to remind yourself, and don't always be tied to the thing if you can help it

It's a balance.

Of course, one way of having a degree of convenience, and being contactable by family in emergencies, is to have a phone but be very selective above who gets given the number. Also, of course, to be very clear to family (and any friends you give it to) not to give the number to ANYBODY, for any reason, without explicitly clearing it with you, FIRST.

I have two phones. One I use when, and ONLY when, work contacts need to be able to get me. That used to include standby, but these days, is just when actually on a job. The other, no work contacts have the number. That way, they can't give out the number. This is because last time I gave my 'personal' number to a work contact, they put it on an internal phone directory without asking my permission .... which would NOT have been given. So, one number change later

But there always is a trade-off between the benefits of being contactable, and the disadvantages of being contactable, because a phone is a double-edged sword. I have my balance calibrated where it suits me, which is not far short of not having a phone at all, and frankly, not having one wouldn't bother me much. But my calibration certainly wouldn't suit everyone.

[Saracen]

.... People are way less reliable when you're supposed to meet them somewhere these days, because they can usually just send a text saying they aren't gonna be there. So yeh, that got annoying, fast...

Yeah, well I share a few characteristics with elephants over that sort of thing - a long .... memory.

If people stand me up like that, they'd better have a damn good reason, like a medical or family emergency, or they won't get a chance to do it a second time. Or, at the very least, I'll return the compliment, possibly repeatedly, until they get the message.

[SineWave]

Yes, absolutely. It would be great if people would use their smartphones more sensibly. Like, use it when you need it, and don't use it when you don't need it. You don't need a phone all the time and you don't need to have it turned on all the time. That's my definition of sensible usage. For example, when I meet someone in a pub, I take my phone with me so we can SMS each other, but when I get there and meet with whom I intended to meet. I turn it off. I consider it rude to talk on your phone or send SMS messages when you meet someone in a pub or a restaurant. Unless it's utterly necessary, of course.

[Kovoet]

The way work is contacting me now on my days off,I could do without it for good. Personally I hate them but they do have there uses.

[ZaO]

Yeah, well I share a few characteristics with elephants over that sort of thing - a long .... memory.

If people stand me up like that, they'd better have a damn good reason, like a medical or family emergency, or they won't get a chance to do it a second time. Or, at the very least, I'll return the compliment, possibly repeatedly, until they get the message.

Haha... Good old fashioned revenge eh I think I'm similar to you with my number. I try to keep control of where it goes. But there's always that friend who says they thought you wouldn't mind if they dished your number out to someone! Good thing for me, is I'm on pay as you go, so I can swap out numbers pretty damn easy and start the cycle over again when it's reached too many people My main problem is when corps get hold of it. I try to really make sure they can't. That's what my landline phone is for, the one that has no messaging service and gets completely ignored

[shaithis]

It seems odd seeing people saying they are using their landlines.....I unplugged the phone from mine a while ago and haven't looked back.......the only person who was "put out" by the action was my mother.....although she now understands not to bother ringing it.

There are plenty of options and apps to block calls on mobile, geo-location based, contact group based, time based etc. You can set your mobile up so that it isn't an annoyance.

[Dooms]

There are plenty of options and apps to block calls on mobile, geo-location based, contact group based, time based etc. You can set your mobile up so that it isn't an annoyance.

That is a big point. My GF, who can't go 30 seconds without checking phone, gets into a right strop sometimes when the groups shes actively part of get busy when shes trying to do something else... sigh.

Quiet hours, blocking calls, muting groups/chats/notifications/<insert social media>, JUST TURNING OFF FOR A WHILE!

The problem I've found is she won't ignore text messages/whatsapp in case its important and here in lies the problem. Text messaging next used to be a reliable way of communication, if you wanted to get hold of someone urgently you called them.

[Millennium]

As someone of the Nokia 3210 generation, and I don't necessarily use my mob every day, I could easily handle this. I think part of the draw is perhaps this they are so expensive and multifunctional these days, you'll see a lot of commuters reading or gaming on a phone because they have it and there's nothing else to do.

The weird thing is though, most all of the time there is something more rewarding they could be seeing and doing with their time.

For email and texting close familty they are quite indispensable, as they can be for photo work, though that by no means means that everyone would benefit from one in their minds or needs an unlimited data contract and a £(20*24)480 contract. Gee, go spend that money on 10 expensive restaurant meals when it's busy, you're likely to get more from that kind of Experience.