I got my first Christmas present today. My contract with Verizon Wireless finally ended and I switched over to AT&T. Rather than making me buy a temporary phone to use for the next month, my parents bought me the iPhone and gave it to me on the day that I switched providers. I could honestly say that activating this phone was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. The iPhone is one of the most advanced pieces of technology out there today; consequently, it is also one of the most confusing. It took me three hours to complete the activation process, which is a do-it-yourself process that you go through online.Having this phone made me realize how far we’ve come in terms of technology. We have advanced to a point where one single contraption acts as a phone and as a computer simultaneously. At the same time, it is scary to ponder how dependant we have become on technological innovations that we previously lived without. After my phone had been activated for a couple of hours, my friend called and asked me whether I had received her text message. I had not received any text messages, and I immediately assumed that my phone was not working properly. My sister sent me a text message which I did not receive either. I can’t explain in words how fast I rushed over to the nearest AT&T store to figure out why I wasn’t receiving any text messages, and to ask how soon they would be able to fix my problem.
I literally dropped everything I was doing as soon as I found out that I was cut off from this particular form of communication. When did text messages become so important? I’m not sure, but considering the fact that I’ve been exposed to “texting”, I can’t imagine my life functioning properly without it. The same idea can be applied to other technological aspects. This past summer when we had a power outage that lasted a couple hours too long, I went into a state of depression. I couldn’t take it because everything I wanted to do required electricity, which hasn’t always been available to human beings.
It’s dangerous and ignorant to rely on technology as heavily as I do, but it’s easy to get used to certain inventions, like the iPhone, that are capable of making your life much more comfortable.
Picture Credit: http://www.letsgodigital.org/images/artikelen/64/apple_iphone_zoom2.jpg
