No smartphone...yet

Jess and I do not own smartphones. We just use your run of the mill old-school Nokia phones. On prepaid. I've had mine since Feb/Mar 2008.

I'm not against smartphones. They're great devices: I'd enjoy having a camera phone and being able to share images from my day. They're handy and fun. I'm sure one day, I'll get around to owning one. If someone gave me a smartphone, or if I found a suitable plan, I'd probably jump ship immediately. However, I'm not getting one for the time being, and here are the reasons why.

• Cost: it's hard to find a smartphone on a good value plan. Call rates will always be more expensive than my cheap, cheap prepaid rate. That's all I essentially need my phone to do: make and receive calls and texts. Anything else is a bonus. Also, plans package the illusion of giving you lots of calls, but the call rates are inevitably significantly more expensive. This mobile and data phone plan looks good though, I just need a smartphone to go with it.

• Commitment: I really dislike the idea of being locked into a two year contract, because two years is a long time for technology and over that time, prices will drop and even better deals will come out. I dislike the idea of being tied to a carrier at a paticular price rate. I want the freedom to move to a better service provider. I know if you take that argument to the nth degree, it'd mean you'd never buy technology, but I just feel at this point in time, it's not worth making the switch. Even worse if they lock the handset to the network. My other option is buying a handset outright, which is $460+ if you're looking to buy a Samsung or iPhone, and I don't want to pay that much right now.

• Fragility: I have seen so many cracked smartphone screens. Every time I've dropped my Nokia, I've been able to put it back together again, no problems.

• Time: this one is related to the cost one. Doing your research (e.g. finding a good value plan, picking a model etc) is time and energy consuming and I can't be bothered. 

• Charging time: I only charge my phone once or twice a week. People at work charge their phones everyday at work because it otherwise wouldn't last the day. That would be a small annoyance, having to carry a charger with you everywhere you go, charging whenever you get the chance.

• Engagment: knowing what I'm like, I reckon I would spend too much time on my phone surfing the net and checking social media. Instead of engaging with the world I'm presently in, I would just spend time playing with my phone. One of my biggest pet peeves is seeing people over-engage with their phone, rather than with people around them.

• Smart phones are big. I know, I know, I know by nature they have to be, due to their functionality, but hey, they're still big. 

• iPod touch: I have an iPod touch and it fills in the smartphone gaps, somewhat. Nowhere near as convenient or as advanced as an iPhone, but it fills in the gaps.

• And the final reason, to show you the extent of my paranoia: no-one's ever gonna mug me for my Nokia :)