Is your smart phone really making you smart?

By Zeeshan Khalid

We live in an age where technology and technological advancements are at their peak and this phenomenon is rampant across the globe. Almost every person living on the face of this planet has been affected by this technology either in a positive or negative way and sometimes even both. Technology has no doubt made many matters of life much easier and achievable which without these technological advancements would not have been possible. Every person may have a different experience and exposure to these technological advancements and so in light of their ‘experience’ they form a perception and a judgment about its importance.

In one recent week, the medical student sent 40 e-mails and 399 text messages, snapped 25 photos, bought two movie tickets, downloaded four songs, watched a full-length film, checked the weather forecast 15 times, shopped at Target, surfed the Web for 129 minutes and spent 5½ hours socializing with friends on Facebook — all from his iPhone 4S. (http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/05/tech/mobile/smartphoneaddicts/index.html?hpt=hp_bn5)

Now for some people, the above stated case may be something normal but for most it isn’t. there are many people who feel that there life has become way much more organized and efficient because of the way technology is being utilized for multiple purposes ranging from the  house hold chores to the things work related matters.

Whatever the case maybe, the picture has both the sides. There may be many negatives but the most evident and ‘epidemic’ problem is the communication catastrophe between human beings. Communication touches every sphere of our lives. Technological changes have indisputably led to faster communication but the point is that are we communicating more effectively? We are getting to the point of information over load, but are we communicating effectively? Is our social life improving because of this technology? When was the last time you had lunch or dinner together as a family on one table? When was the last time you had a long healthy talk with your family members? Is technology making us more humans or are we headed towards social destruction?

Summary: In defense of my Stupidphone

By Warda Khan

When we speak about the technological aspect from the cellular point of view, we find that the cell phone users have fallen into two distinct categories; those who have smartphones and those who don’t. As the numbers show that 55.5% of the cell phone users in USA have smartphones it can very well be observed that it comprises of more weightage. Yet the other 44.5% cannot be ignored as well. This 44.5% crowd either doesn’t own a smartphone or doesn’t even want to have one.

Mainly it has been observed that people who avoid purchasing smartphones, especially the iPhones from Apple are majorly of the view that they are better off without them. While most addictive smartphone lovers continue to pursue the upgrades and latest releases, there is an amount that also considers it foolish and stupid to go crazy for something like an iPhone. People have even responded saying that Apple is merely trying to invent a meaningful cell phone that actually is something amazing, and so far it has launched 5 models.

The sole purpose of a cell phone is to connect you to people through distances, however the smartphones are blamed to have been destroying your personal time. People are even of the view that they don’t want to receive mails regarding work or bank credit while they are enjoying a recreational time at the beach. Cellphones must remain within certain aspects and should not become such intruding elements in life. Yet we also observe extra-long queues outside stores for purchasing upcoming releases. Amazingly, one portion of the cell phone users thinks that it is stupid to purchase such technically advanced and expensive cell phones that you may easily break accidentally or loose it through any such incident, whereas the other portion seems to be crazily addictive to the smartphone tech and can’t resist replacing with the latest from time to time. In your opinion, what are the least features you would like to have in a cell phone?