Smartphone was considered a luxury item which only a few could afford earlier but now it is a necessity. People view their smartphones as an extension of themselves, taking them everywhere they go?--?even the most unorthodox places?--?from shower to showbiz, from dinner table to high profile conference.
The world is different from it was ten years ago. In 2014, sales of smartphones worldwide touched the 1.2 billion mark, which is 28 per cent up from 2013. People are obsessed with avoiding so-called "misfortune" and obsessed with planning. Looking for a visit to a great restaurant in your area? Look it up on your smartphone.
A smartphone a cell phone with an advanced mobile operating system. Smartphones typically combine the features of a cell phone with those of other popular mobile devices, such as personal digital assistant (PDA), media player and GPS navigation unit. Most smartphones have a touchscreen user interface, can run third-party apps and are camera phones. Most Smartphones produced from 2012 onwards also have high-speed mobile broadband 4G LTE internet, motion sensors, and mobile payment mechanisms.
Unlike traditional cell phones, smartphones, with their big old memories, allow a individual to install, configure and run applications, or apps of his/her choice. A smartphone offers the ability to configure the device to your particular way of doing things. The software in the old-style flip phones offers only limited choices for reconfiguration, forcing you to adapt to the way they are set up. On a standard phone, whether you like or not the built-in calendar application, you're stuck with it except for a few minor tweaks. But if that phone were a smartphone, you could install any compatible calendar application you liked.
Here's a list of some of the additional capabilities smartphones have, from intuitive to perhaps less so:
l Manage your personal info including notes, calendar and 'to-do lists'
l Communicate with laptop or desktop computers
l Synchronise data with applications like Microsoft Outlook and Apple's iCal calendar programs
l Host applications such as word processing programs or video games
l Scan a receipt
l Cash a check
l Replace your wallet. A smartphone can store credit card information and discount or membership card info
l Pay bills by downloading apps such as PayPal and CardStar
l Allow you to create a WiFi network that can use multiple devices simultaneously. That means you can access the Internet from your iPad or laptop without a router or another peripheral device.
If you don't think smartphones have changed the world, you haven't been paying attention… probably because you were too busy flipping between apps on your smartphone. People are more "connected" now than they have ever been before thanks to smartphones and the mobile Internet, but is all that connectivity causing us to lose our connection with the people around us? People are living in their individual separate worlds simulating togetherness by physically being present but not actually being present with the people present with them in real life.
If you've ever used your phone as an excuse not to make eye contact with a stranger, you're not alone. Smartphones serve as a convenient way to waste time and steer clear of human contact for a majority of the population. An extremely lopsided majority of young adults are likely to use a smartphone to avoid boredom. A significant portion will also whip out their phone to avoid interacting with the people around them. Adults are nearly as bad. There are a lot of people who are addicted to their cellphones.
Smartphone users spend more time on Facebook than any other individual app. Its other uses:
Send or receive a text - 92%
Take a picture - 92%
Access the internet - 84%
Send a photo or video
to someone - 80%
Send or receive email - 76%
Download an app - 69%
Play a game - 64%
Play music - 64%
Record a video - 59%
Access a social networking
site - 59%
Watch a video - 54%
Post a photo or video online - 45%
Do online banking - 37%
Access Twitter - 15%
Participate in a video call - 13% -
Smartphones serve a valuable purpose when used within the right context. If you're constantly on the road, it makes perfect sense. If you're an app developer, it's probably a good idea to have an iPhone and spend the money for data. So, the smartness of smartphone depends on the user, rather than on the smartphone itself.
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