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Nobody needs a smartphone; a dumbphone would suffice for most people. We buy smartphones because we want them. For my personal use case I have an expensive pair

Nobody needs a smartphone; a dumbphone would suffice for most people. We buy smartphones because we want them. For my personal use case I have an expensive pair of headphones which I used to use (lasted over a decade so far) with my Nexus 6P and while using an amp/DAC is better; it's just more convenient to plug and play.

rcarr 3y ago
Hard disagree. Not having some kind of device (be that a smart phone, tablet or laptop) is going to make life very difficult, particularly if you have to access any kind of government service in the developed world. Might be different in the US but in the UK almost everything is digital or moving to digital. For example if you're claiming benefits because you're unemployed in the UK then you would be expected to both apply online and log in to an online portal and register all your jobseeking activities which your job advisor will then review to determine if you're putting in enough effort. Failure to do this would result in your unemployment benefits being withdrawn. If you don't own your own device, the only other option would be to go down to the local library where you normally have to pay fees if you're using the computer over 30/60 mins depending on the local authority. If you're having to do this on a regular basis then it's far more economical to own your own device. This is just one example of many.
- tmtvl 3y ago
  Of all the things which should be accessible without internet, government services should pretty much be number 1 on the list. Especially unemployment benefits, because how is someone without a job going to afford a device which can access the internet plus the corresponding internet access?
  - rcarr 3y ago
    Yeah I completely agree but this is the current reality of modern day UK and I highly doubt it will change. If you don't have a device they literally expect you to go to the library or to the job centre to log your activity data. They may have some kind of device loaning scheme but I have no idea. The sad reality is that the majority of jobs only accept online applications now as well. Hence why I think we're now at the point where a smart phone is no longer a luxury and pretty much a necessity to navigate life in a developed country or at least the UK.
deleted 3y ago
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askonomm 3y ago
Don't know about you, but without Maps I'd be completely lost. Also, all gov services in my country (Estonia) require Smart ID, which requires a smartphone. So if I want to log into my bank account, sign documents, look at my medical records, do tax declarations, manage my business information, manage car parking, and so on and so on, I will need a smartphone. I suppose I could use the oldschool physical ID card and a ID card reader for my computer, but then I'd not be able to do anything on the go, and I'm certainly not going to carry a computer with me to be able to pay for car parking. I'd say being able to live without a smartphone is only in third-world countries at this point, and less and less even there. In Argentina, everything from government services to booking a hair salon appointment to viewing restaurant menus is done via Whatsapp and QR codes, for example.
- prmoustache 3y ago
  You could all have those in a tablet at home with android or ios for anything that you do at home. I very much doubt you can't pay parking without a smartphone.
  - ywain 3y ago
    There are definitely some parkings where you can only pay with a smartphone. The worst is when they force you to download a shitty app. Super fun when the parking does not have good reception and you have to download an unnecessarily large app over 3G. I've also been to random parking lots in the middle of nowhere with a cardboard sign saying "Venmo $5/hour at X".
- chrysoprace 3y ago
  What you've described are conveniences, which in essence was what my comment was about. A headphone jack is a convenience. It is inconvenient to use a dongle to convert from USB-C to 3.5mm, just as it is inconvenient to go down to your local government branch to change your address. You could do it, but you'd probably much rather just use your phone. You could ask the restaurant staff for a physical menu, but it's probably more convenient to scan the QR code.

rcarr 3y ago

Hard disagree. Not having some kind of device (be that a smart phone, tablet or laptop) is going to make life very difficult, particularly if you have to access any kind of government service in the developed world. Might be different in the US but in the UK almost everything is digital or moving to digital. For example if you're claiming benefits because you're unemployed in the UK then you would be expected to both apply online and log in to an online portal and register all your jobseeking activities which your job advisor will then review to determine if you're putting in enough effort. Failure to do this would result in your unemployment benefits being withdrawn. If you don't own your own device, the only other option would be to go down to the local library where you normally have to pay fees if you're using the computer over 30/60 mins depending on the local authority. If you're having to do this on a regular basis then it's far more economical to own your own device. This is just one example of many.

tmtvl 3y ago
Of all the things which should be accessible without internet, government services should pretty much be number 1 on the list. Especially unemployment benefits, because how is someone without a job going to afford a device which can access the internet plus the corresponding internet access?
- rcarr 3y ago
  Yeah I completely agree but this is the current reality of modern day UK and I highly doubt it will change. If you don't have a device they literally expect you to go to the library or to the job centre to log your activity data. They may have some kind of device loaning scheme but I have no idea. The sad reality is that the majority of jobs only accept online applications now as well. Hence why I think we're now at the point where a smart phone is no longer a luxury and pretty much a necessity to navigate life in a developed country or at least the UK.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

askonomm 3y ago

Don't know about you, but without Maps I'd be completely lost. Also, all gov services in my country (Estonia) require Smart ID, which requires a smartphone. So if I want to log into my bank account, sign documents, look at my medical records, do tax declarations, manage my business information, manage car parking, and so on and so on, I will need a smartphone. I suppose I could use the oldschool physical ID card and a ID card reader for my computer, but then I'd not be able to do anything on the go, and I'm certainly not going to carry a computer with me to be able to pay for car parking. I'd say being able to live without a smartphone is only in third-world countries at this point, and less and less even there. In Argentina, everything from government services to booking a hair salon appointment to viewing restaurant menus is done via Whatsapp and QR codes, for example.

prmoustache 3y ago
You could all have those in a tablet at home with android or ios for anything that you do at home. I very much doubt you can't pay parking without a smartphone.
- ywain 3y ago
  There are definitely some parkings where you can only pay with a smartphone. The worst is when they force you to download a shitty app. Super fun when the parking does not have good reception and you have to download an unnecessarily large app over 3G. I've also been to random parking lots in the middle of nowhere with a cardboard sign saying "Venmo $5/hour at X".
chrysoprace 3y ago
What you've described are conveniences, which in essence was what my comment was about. A headphone jack is a convenience. It is inconvenient to use a dongle to convert from USB-C to 3.5mm, just as it is inconvenient to go down to your local government branch to change your address. You could do it, but you'd probably much rather just use your phone. You could ask the restaurant staff for a physical menu, but it's probably more convenient to scan the QR code.