Portable media devices are everywhere. Digital cameras, MP3 players, handheld gaming systems and cell phones, if they should even be called that anymore, are just a sampling from the crowd. In today’s world, cell phones are more like little computers you can call people with. That is the main topic of this week.
Communication has changed drastically over the years with the advent of things like texting, instant messengers, social networking sites such as Facebook and Myspace, and portable digital cameras. In fact, cell phones have all of these things and more now. Gone are the days of traditional communication. We are now in a time where communication and information is instant and nearly infinitely expandable.
The Apple iPhone and RIM BlackBerrys are the two major competitors at the moment. These devices are more aptly named smartphones rather than cell phones. A smartphone, by definition, provided by pcmag.com, is “A cellular telephone with information access. It provides digital voice service as well as any combination of e-mail, text messaging, pager, Web access, voice recognition, still and/or video camera, MP3, TV or video player and organizer.” Though the technology has existed for nearly a decade, it had not taken off until technology made it more practical to use, and of course the release of the iPhone.
The iPhone is very popular for good reason. It’s essentially a computer in your pocket. It’s a PDA, a GPS, an mp3 player, an internet browser, which already unlocks copious amounts of potential, and along with all this, the ability of users to create, distribute, and download various applications. These can range from video games to turning your phone into a level to measure a surface’s flatness. Though only 2 mega pixels, it’s also a camera, and even after all those features, I’m sure I’m still leaving something out. The BlackBerry isn’t far off either, however with less memory, mp3 functionality is low, but with an internet browser and YouTube, music isn’t far away. These devices seem like the epitome of convergence in technology. However, is this a good thing? Or are a lot of these things excessive?
To start thinking about this in a creative, humorous manner, have a look at these short iPhone parodies produced by CollegeHumor on YouTube:
Sure, while GPS can be handy, it isn’t much trouble to manage without one on a phone. Google maps and Mapquest work fine for me, as usually if I’m traveling to an unfamiliar location, I know a bit ahead of time. As for those directionally-challenged individuals who depend on GPS, they usually have one setup in their cars already. These GPS devices are a bit more thorough, with spoken directions, AI that adjusts the route to the destination based on things like missing a turn or going another way, without touching a button. While convenient on the iPhone as a free extra, Verizon wishes to charge extra for the service on the new BlackBerry bold.
A camera is convenient, but at only 2 mega pixels, there’s not much you can do with it. And sure, the internet is nice, but I personally would prefer to view it on a larger screen, such as the laptop I’m currently typing this on. As a PDA, I’ll admit it’s useful, but mainly only to those as busy as to not be able to stop and check e-mail on a computer, or those who need the constant contact for vital purposes. As for myself, sure I use the calendar feature on my phone sometimes, and frequently use the alarm, but these things can be replaced with an actual alarm clock, and a planner on your computer. The main things I need from a cell phone are calling and texting, and sometimes pictures, though only because I surprisingly don’t own a digital camera.
In the end, all the excessive features of these smartphones may be just that — excessive. They lack in quality in comparison to dedicated devices, like 30 to 60 GB iPods (or the iPod nano for exercise), 10+ mega pixel digital cameras, and regular computers. So for me, though all the features on smartphones seem fun and cool and convenient, the convergence is easily done without, at least until the quality of the converged devices increases without prices going through the roof.
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