The Iphone And Other Smartphones

In her article “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?”, Jean M. Twinge discusses the effects on “generation i” through rising smartphone and social media usage. In the article, she provides many statistics to support her claims on what’s happening with the “i generation” and generations past through social media use. She concludes that while smartphones have some positive social impact on the generation (like lower teen pregnancy rates), there has been real damage to the generation as well. I have concluded that, our generation has been more negatively impacted through smartphone usage than positively impacted. This is a strong point to make but through my own experiences and after reading Twinge’s article I find myself truly thinking about what smartphones have done to us as a growing generation. I have witnessed firsthand many downsides to having a smartphone that Twinge reports on.

Four years ago, the first iPhone was released and it still remains as a popular aspect of our technological culture today. Though it is in its fourth iteration with more to come, the iPhone continues to be one of the best selling smartphones. In a fast paced world with new technology constantly being released, the iPhone is still remarkable although some might argue that it is outdated and overhyped. This device is more than just a phone to consumers, but another way to connect with the world. There’s just something about this device that has Americans camping outside Apple stores and enduring long lines to get their hands on one. Although the iPhone may seem like just another smartphone, it is a cultural phenomenon because of the way it

When Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone at the Macworld convention in January of 2007, a tidal change in the way users communicate with one another was unleashed. The phone, which combined the already popular attributes of an iPod with the traditional cell phone, was an instant success, selling millions of units even at the initially haughty price of $599 each (Vogelstein, 2008). The theory behind the creation of the phone was deceptively simple: combine an MP3 player with a Blackberry, camera, and regular cell phone operating on a sleek touch-screen controlled software system. Consumers were finally freed from carrying separate devices to perform all they tasks they now wanted to away from home. In one simple hand-held device they could take pictures, listen to music, play games, communicate with friends and family, and even surf the Internet. This one device changed the way that people began sharing information, allowing them to instantly access information anywhere in the world while also transmitting it just as quickly. The iPhone is now universally recognized and has become a cultural artifact in our times.

In her article “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?”, Jean M. Twenge discusses the effects on “generation i” with rising smartphone and social media usage. In the article, she provides multiple statistics to support her claims on what’s happening with the “i generation”, and generations past through social media use. She concludes that while smartphones have some positive social impact on the generation (like lower teen pregnancy rates), there has been real damage to the generation as well. I have concluded that, our generation has been more negatively impacted through smartphone usage than positively impacted. This is a strong point to make but, through my own experiences and, after reading Twenge’s article I find myself thinking about what smartphones have done to us as a growing generation. I have witnessed firsthand numerous downsides to having a smartphone that Twenge reports on.

Like Solnit, I believe society, especially the younger generation, has suffered greatly with the expansion of the Digital Revolution that we are now living in. One of the main perpetrators in my opinion is the emergence of the smartphone. Considering that presently there are over four billion mobile phone users in the world right now, and that 3.5 billion people with access to the internet in 2016, a 900% increase since the year 2000, it is no wonder that our society has changed drastically in these past few years. Thanks to smartphones, the vast population of the world now have easy access to the internet from their back pocket. In recent years smartphones have become the most popular way to surf the web, so with that in mind I have chosen the smartphone as an object which will signify how our culture has changed in recent history.

“More than three billion people worldwide now use the internet (Time), and 80 percent of them access if from their smartphones” (Smart Insights). A smartphone is a mobile phone that performs many of the functions of a computer, typically having a touchscreen interface, and much more. There is an abundant amount of smartphone brands out there in the world and while they all cost different prices, they all perform the same job. Each person uses their smartphone for various reasons, whether it’s for work or to make calls or texts. Smartphones have changed society in various ways, both good and bad. Although countless individuals think that smartphones have ruined American society, smartphones have actually benefited society because of more safety precautions, information on hand, and entertainment.

There is no debate that our generation is the most technologically advanced generation to ever inhabit the Earth. In the last few decades we have literally changed almost every aspect of our way of life. What took people days or months to do can be done now in seconds. There are many new advancement that have had major effects on our society, and (probably) one of the most popular of these advancements is the iPhone. A smart phone that is seemingly capable of almost anything. From instantly messaging and calling people, browsing the internet, playing games, taking pictures/video, buying apps that make life easier, etc. The list goes on and on. This critique will look at current sociology research to see exactly how this

In his article “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?” Jean Twenge discusses the negative impact smartphones have had on post-millennials. He begins by describing the differences between this generation and the previous generation. Post-millennials have grown up with technology and handheld devices, they are less independent, they are working less, and their period of adolescence is increasing as they take longer to accept the responsibilities of being an adult. Because of these differences, Twenge contests that smartphones have had the largest impact on the post-millennial generation. Their obsession with phones changed the way they interact with the real world. Alarmingly, Twenge believes post-millennials are on the verge of a major mental

With 87 percent of American adults owning a cell phone (Jerpi, 2013), it becomes obvious that cell phones have become a staple device in today’s society. Although cell phones offer convenience, they arguably come with negative affects. Cell Phones have become one of the fastest emerging technologies (Campbell, 2006). With 87 percent of American adults and teenagers owning a cell phone (Jerpi, 2013), it becomes obvious that cell phones have become a staple device in today’s society. Since the release of the first cell phone, they have immensely evolved and some would say, have become an essential to everyday life. Although cell phones offer convenience, they arguably come with negative and impactful effects on our social

“Your new phone, like your old one, will become your constant companion and trusty factotum.” In “How Smartphones Hijack Our Minds”, Nicholas Carr convinces readers that smartphones have taken over the way we think. By including various studies, proven facts and insightful word choice. Carr uses statistics, evidence and detail to persuade his readers that smartphones are taking over our mind, “the smartphone has become a repository of the self.” Carr uses statistics by mentioning multiple studies, such as a 2015 Gallup survey, “more than half of iPhone owners said that they couldn’t imagine life without the device,” similar to imagining life without a brain.

Sherry Turkle, a professor at MIT, current director of the MIT initiative on Technology and Self, in her 2007 “Can You Hear Me Now?” for Forbes Magazine, she addresses the topic of technology and discusses society’s growing attachment and alienation caused by it. Turkle wrote the article for an educated, older and business interested audience, there are references and terms that need clarification for most people. She discusses the Blackberry throughout the article, which is not concretely defined. In this paper, I will clarify Turkle’s references and terms for better understanding.

Over the past decade, advancements in communication technology have rapidly surpassed our wildest dreams. A particular branch of communication technology known as smartphones, more specifically the iPhone, has encompassed all social demographics with its amazing capabilities. However, through the iPhone’s technical abilities merging with social dynamics creating a socio-technical ensemble; its portrayal in four different forms in the media, as well as becoming naturalized in society and its affects on human anxiety, it is evident that the iPhone has many helpful intended capabilities, but also un-conceived repercussions.

At first, I was going to analyze and write about smartphones, however I found it more efficient to write also about a particular smartphone to narrow it down from such a broad technological artifact, such as answering who designed it, what for, what their position and the impact they want to have on society was, and their future visions. Therefore, I chose the iPhone as the centerpiece of smartphones I will be analyzing and an emphasis on applications. However, some of this information is relevant and interchangeable to all other smartphones. IPhones and smartphones allow us to access constant information and offer it the way we want it, as it is completely customizable now to fit our learning style. They keep us organized, send information to us in different ways, even shape and offer solutions such as for politics, economies, problems whether individual ones or globally. Smartphones capitalize on shared knowledge and has opened the door to inventors and those who have the knowledge to make our world a more connected place and lives easier by sharing it with us to use. We are able to communicate with other people far off, through space-time compression or shrinking-space to gather news and information.

Pew (2017) examined the change in ownership of smartphones over time in the United States, the relationship to owning other mobile devices, and the prevalence of smartphone dependency. American are increasingly connected to the “digital” world via smartphones and other mobile devices. According to Pew research surveys in 2017 over 95% of Americans own a cellphone of some kind while 77% own and operate a smartphone. The percentage of smartphone ownership has increased tremendously compared to the first survey conducted in 2011, where only 35% of Americans had a smartphone. Smartphone ownership also exhibits a wide variation based on age, household income and educational attainment while maintaining a correlation with ownership of other mobile devices.

Afterwards, I graduated middle school; my father took us to a smartphone shop in San Jose. He wanted to purchase a phone for surpassing another chapter of my life, and I turned ecstatic, to say the least. Throughout the store, there were smartphones that I had no idea existed, making myself crave for each and every one of them. One smartphone though caught my eye more than the rest: the iPhone 4. Not surprisingly, I requested my father to purchase that specific smartphone due to believing that it would set myself apart from the crowd. I was ecstatic, anticipating a unique and fresh introduction to a High School career, however, I became to realize smartphones can transform individuals through our usage during my first year of High School.