So for about three hours, I could not locate my cellphone and I discovered that I was helpless and useless to myself. I tried calling it, and then I remembered I put the darn contraption on meeting mode. I felt my heart skip a beat. Did I leave it in the taxi or did I leave it at home. I started having some slight heart palpitations, then my hand brushed against my blackberry’s hard surface. Thank goodness! The truth is bitter but I am tied to my mobile phone…make that mobile devices
I tried to calm down. Calm down? How is that even possible? Since the rave of smart phones, I have relieved my brains and all my thinking faculties of their usual duties. Memorizing my bank account numbers, the password to my email account, my ATM pin number and other delicate information has become unnecessary, thanks to the password keeper application. Even birthdates and appointment dates are stored in there and at the appropriate time, I will be reminded by my worthy PA (my smartphone).
As a child I was extremely hyper. I could never stay in one spot quietly. I am sure I embarrassed my dad one too many times with my frequent outbursts and uncultured blabbing, but these phones are so smart that they have succeeded in keeping me confined to one spot. Extra-curricular activities like watching movies, playing Sudoku and other games, solving puzzles and even reading comics that have been time tested and proven to confine children can all be done on the little device. Oh! My dad should have lived to see this.
Gone are the days of memorizing the capital of Rwanda and the current UN president. Hell yeah! I have got the freaking Google app on my phone. I refuse to give myself stress. Even a fellow colleague from the learned profession has confessed to me how his smart phone came to the rescue when he had a case to defend in court. Yeah go ahead and draw your conclusion that smart people are going into extinction. I’ll even be generous enough to admit that it is true, after all why call it smartphones? We have transferred our brain work to a device that is handy at all times. Who doesn’t want a clear head? I know I want one!
Our elders say this attitude isn’t peculiar to me. It has befallen individuals around my age bracket. They call us generation Y. They also say there is no precise date as to when Generation Y ends or starts, but if you were born sometime between the 1970s up till the early 2000s, then you fall in this category.
But wait oh! Why refer to us as Generation Y?
Abeg forget Generation Y, call us Generation Smartphones, or better still Generation Mobile!
By the way, don’t forget to follow me on twitter. My handle is @toperants
Our Smart Phones have been a blessing and a curse at the same time. There is now a turn for that. It’s called Nomophobia. Like you, I panic if I can’t find mine. The good news is I have Cloud so I can locate it on my PC. Sigh! We are so tied to our tech stuff, aren’t we?
I Prefer Digital Generation, cheese smile
My smartphone died in the middle of last week and for a moment my life shut down. I have replaced the phone and order is somewhat restored – for now. Smartphones have quickly become another appendage. Crazy indeed!
It is ridiculous and I hate to admit to it, but I too get heart palpitations at the thought of losing my smartphone. No email or social media during the week whilst on the go – there goes my multitasking. No Instagram or camera on the weekend whilst out and about. I don’t like to think about it. Sad, very sad!
Same thing I was thinking
@Tope, nice piece but Generation Y starts from kids born from 1980 to early 2000 precisely! And really they are so different from generation X before them (my team) Some may generation may refuse to accept but truth is they are indeed very smart! Aided by technology they process quicker and faster and deliver in a jiffy…. However, they ONLY want and barely give…! The other name for them (your team) is “Generation give me more”… Dad I need a car, Mom I need a new MAC, I need to do an MBA etc etc! LOL!
@ Jimmiggs, Itotally agree, they should be called Digital Generation……!
Wikipedia tells me either late 1970s or early 1980s…either way, we are both right.
Yes I am aware that my generation is extremely smart. After we make use of technology to the fullest! The point is once we find a device can do all the hardwork, we make sure it does it WELL!!!
@ Tope, that’s fine, that’s delegation! But one thing your generation Y oh sorry Digital generation should learn is that NO ONE OWES you! That feeling is so rife amongst the Digi “kids”/Generation Gimme more!!! Lol!
True no one owes us, but I like to think some of the blames goes to our upbringing. Most parents of Gen Y were all about security…wanting to have a secure future for their offsprings, so they gave us all we wanted without much thought to discipline and we learned that for little or nothing at all, our parents at our beck and call! Who is to blame now?
my sentiments exactly…digital all the way…even love much around…
i vote for clear head too. hehehe.
Hello Smartphones, welcome clear heads (AND heart palpitations once in a while, but hey, nothing comes without side effects)… I dont care what they call us, Generation Y or Z, me and my phones are inseparable!
Oh btw, nice one PS!
Today’s kids are born digital — born into a media-rich, networked world of infinite possibilities. Their digital lifestyle is about more than just cool gadgets; it’s about engagement, self-directed learning, creativity, and empowerment. In This Digital Generation, kids learn, communicate, and socialize in very different ways than any previous generation since Cain founded the kung fu club and cancelled his brother.
You’re right, so many people have transferred their brain power to their smartphones. I didn’t get one until about a year ago; before my smartphone I didn’t get all the hype, but now that I have one I can certainly see why people get so addicted. I say, as long as you work your brain in some way on a regular basis (And who doesn’t?) it’s fine to let your phone do some heavy lifting!
Cool post
Hi Five, you are speaking my language!
What I am stuck on is the generation Y time frame. I. was born in 1969. What does that make me? But I am not a big fan of labels anyway. I do however like the idea of having a vast amount of resources available instantly.
1969…hmmm, then you are pre Gen Y!
So I can’t be a baby boomer can I?
Hmmmn…the jury is still out on that one
The only problem is the smart phones can’t help us think or teach us emotional intelligence. In fact, they are a hinderance to our emotional intelligence because we become used to not socializing – but instead staring at our phones when someone else is around. I’m learning more and more to dislike my smart phone the more I use it… even though I’m right at the beginning of Gen Y, I’m trying to pull myself away from it and think… but I haven’t had much luck yet
Emotional intelligence? I won’t even trust my emotions into them smartphones hands…yes we do the thinking, but the smart phones do a very good job when it comes to reminding…and I doubt you will have much luck!
True intelligence comes less from memorization, but more from cognitive reasoning. Knowing that x+Y= z is less important than knowing why this is true. When Albert Einstein was once asked if he knew his telephone number and he stated he had no clue he then had to explain: What is the point in tying up space in my brain with a fact I can learn from something as simple as a telephone book.
The tech that inundates our lives is a wonderful thing. It is still up to us to find the ways that the tech can be used to improve our lives.
We had everything available at a click, Gen Y aka Generation mobile, everything at a touch & maybe next generation Z at a wink
(Google glasses)