The Smartphone Culture - “There’s An App For That”

When I think about the phrase “greatest impact” my mind automatically associates this statement with a positive connotation or outcome. After reading this week’s assignment for the discussion board (What wireless technology has had the greatest impact on today’s society and why), I automatically decided that the smartphone, hands down, has had the greatest impact on today’s society. As for the “why?” part, well that was easy…I asked myself, what DON’T smartphones do?! No, really, I challenge you to go an entire day without needing, reaching or grabbing for your smartphone.

Smartphones assist and support our ability to communicate with one another, entertain/educate ourselves and perform simple daily tasks. As I dug deeper into my thoughts, I started jotting things down that came to mind (I usually do this when trying to find a specific direction to go with an assignment or project) in order to organize and gather my thoughts. With one swift move of my pen, I paused for a second and quickly realized that all this positivity could just as easily be turned into negativity. The word that appeared in front of me was socialization and it quickly brought my mind elsewhere. Among all of the amazing things our smartphones help us to achieve, socialization is something that teeters on the edge of enhancement and reduction.

All of this brought me back to square one with the phrase “greatest impact” and I really started to think about what those words actually mean. Greatest impact doesn’t necessarily translate to a “great” or “positive” outcome or effect, instead greatest to me now meant significant importance or consequence. This excited me because I could now further state my case that the smartphone has indeed had the greatest impact on today’s society because it has positively and negatively impacted our society…therefore making it the “greatest”.

When you really think about it, it’s truly amazing that such a relatively small piece of hardware can be so powerful when it comes to utilization, society and culture. Smartphones have created a culture their own with all of the attractive bells and whistles they have to offer consumers:

Communication:(personal and professional)

            Voice, Video, Text, Audio and Email

Entertainment:

            Mobile Internet

            Gaming Console

            Photo/Video Albums

            Social Networking

            Book/Magazine downloads

            Photo/Video Editing

            News/Gossip

            Drawing/Painting

            Music Library

            Health & Fitness

            Sports Scores/Updates

Utility:

            Calculator

            Calendar/Schedule

            Weather Updates

            Travel (check-ins & e-ticket bar codes)

            QR Codes (instant information)

            Navigation/GPS

            Personal Hotspot

            Mobile Banking/Finance

            List/Note Storage

            Alarm Clock

            Reservations

Education:

            Language Translation          

            Flash Cards

            Interactive Games

The term “there’s an app for that” stands true, the smartphone culture thrives off of application downloads. Application markets have allowed us to do practically anything via our smartphones, virtually impacting each and every aspect of our daily lives; leading to my theory that smartphones have created a culture all their own that users find impossible to resist.

Technology is steering traditional etiquette towards a new set of modern manners, a totally different outlook on values, social behavior and interaction. Our obsession with the smartphone is changing and altering our social norms in many ways.

“Impatient” - Smartphones are driving us to be more and more impatient. Gone are the days pondering, thinking and waiting to reply to emails, text messages, phone calls, Facebook messages and/or tweets. Because of the accessibility and connectivity that come along with smartphones, we now expect immediate responses. If we do not receive this immediate response, we automatically assume the momentary lapse of time will bring bad news or no news at all, for that matter.

“Disrespect” – Smartphones have found a way to turn our everyday actions into disrespectful, withdrawn or offensive behaviors in the eyes of “our elders”. Smartphones are being used in places they would have never been accepted before: Museums/Art Galleries, at the dinner table, at social events and at formal gatherings or holiday parties, just to name a few.

“Face-to-Face Socialization” – Smartphones give us the ability to hide behind second screens as often as we would like. This has not only impacted the way in which we gain/make new friends but it also impacts how new generations display confidence, speak publically, confront one another and verbally manage situations in large groups. Having these devices in hand 24/7 allows us to ignore the “outside” world and concentrate solely on your personalized “digital world”. Less face-to-face interaction can have a significant impact on personal and professional relationships. Door to door sales are virtually dead and have been replaced with new media channels like mobile marketing campaigns. Employees now feel more comfortable talking to their clients on the phone or communicating via email, rather then address them in person.

“Creativity” – The notion of “free time” no longer exists with a smartphone in hand. Creativity thrives off of boredom, allowing individuals to explore their inner most thoughts wandering within their heads, leading us with the urge to read, paint, write, dance etc. all on our own time. When we add our cellphones to the mix, the content we come across dictates our thoughts, actions and creativity, leading us to a more conformed society without even realizing it. People no longer depend on their intellect or their minds ability to create or innovate from complete and total scratch. Now were “searching” for inspiration in order to create. Smartphones are slowly taking away our ability to be creatively independent. Look at Mozart and Monet, they took their internal creative abilities and morphed them into pieces of art that came from inspiration within their minds and souls, not through a wireless device.

Smartphones have effortlessly paved the way for users to be consumed with “The Smartphone Culture”. There are many useful and helpful benefits your smartphone provides like quick mathematics, reserving a table for dinner and getting you from point A to point B but all these benefits come at a price. Without a doubt, the smartphone culture has absolutely had a significant impact on today’s society.