Mobile Phones Options

[WeeJ]

I've recently acquired a new mobile (Nokia 6280. I'd love to know what the random numbers represent) and I've bought a bigger memory card for it so I can listen to MP3's on the train. So far, this card has crashed my phone numerous times and it won't recognise an mp3, one of the planet's most universally used file formats...go figure. All worked fine with the old card so I've taken it out and whined to the manufacturer.

Sorry, not having much luck with customer services these days....

Anyway, i've heard a few times that us British depend on mobile phones much more than you American peeps.

Do we?

Do we all have mobiles? If so, just out of interest, what model phone do you have and what do you use it for?

[I_am_the_best]

Once upon a time I had a mobile phone (a Nokia 3200). It broke and I haven't bought a new one since. Without a phone I think that life is so much more relaxed. If you're going out for a walk you don't have to be plagued with phone calls or texts from other people. Of course, it's a pain when you need to tell the parents where you are, what you're doing and all that malarky but I've managed to get along without it. Everyone seems to think I should have one though and I'm constantly nagged to buy one but I quite enjoy not having one any longer.

[Moosh]

I have a Nokia 3310i, that's about 2 or 3 years old. I hardly ever use it, in fact it's got to the point where if I don't use £5 worth every 3 months then I get charged 75p. This happens a lot.

So yeah, I occasionally use my phone for calls or texts, the rest of the time it lives in my coat pocket on silent.

[Mata]

After a bit of thinking I've managed to remember that I have an NEC phone. It looks like an iPod. It has a camera which I've probably used ten times as much as the phone itself, and the quality of the pictures is so low that I haven't used that a lot either.

I really hate mobile phones, but they can be massively useful at times. I treat them as a vaguely necessary evil of modern life.

[Phyllis]

Anyway, i've heard a few times that us British depend on mobile phones much more than you American peeps.

Do we?

Oh, most definitely. Which is slightly odd. You'd think people would depend on them more here, since our towns and cities are so much more spread out.

[WeeJ]

I understand that silence can be golden, but you can turn phones off people
In all honesty, I feel naked if I don't have my phone with me when I'm out. I think it's a safety thing for me...

[Kitty]

For my family we almost _need_ to carry cell phones. My dad is a bit protective over me (for a reason) so I call him every day when I get off my bus, I also need to call people to make sure I have rides to and from work and such.... Overall, very useful.

Plus it also gives me alot more freedom as far as going places, I'm allowed to hang around with people alot more than I used to be able to because my parents can always check in on me....

Overall I use my cell phone a fair amount. THough I do know that alot of kids text message eachother from class to class during school, and sometimes cheat on tests using it.... And run up huge bills for sending all the messages.... I'm leaning twards Americans being more dependant on their phones

[markslut]

I currently have a Sony Ericsson K750 and T610

Currently the K750 is on contract but as I'm coming off that I have my old T610 with a pay as you go chip, next month the two will be swapped and I'll have my number transfered.

I use the K750 camera a lot - at 2MP it's better then my dad's 5 year old Fugi 1.3MP Digicam

[Phyllis]

THough I do know that alot of kids text message eachother from class to class during school, and sometimes cheat on tests using it.... And run up huge bills for sending all the messages.... I'm leaning twards Americans being more dependant on their phones

Maybe it's just the people I know in either country (and the fact that they were still expensive and not very common when I was in high school), but it seemed like everyone I knew in the UK was a whole lot more dependant on their mobile (except Mata, who told me in Crawley how much he hates the things ). Including me. I borrowed one of moop's old mobiles, and after awhile I also felt like I was naked if I went out without it.

It's still fairly normal where I live now to not have one. People don't look at you as if you've suddenly sprouted a second head if you say "No, I don't have a cell phone."

[WeeJ]

It's still fairly normal where I live now to not have one. People don't look at you as if you've suddenly sprouted a second head if you say "No, I don't have a cell phone."

Yup, I can't say i've ever come across someone in the UK who hasn't owned a mobile phone. I've come across plenty that hate the things, but none that don't actually own one.

I drive my dad up the wall with my phone. It's constantly beeping reminders at me. I can be quite forgetful at times so being beeped at is the norm for me

[snooodlysnoosnoo...]

I have a Sony Ericsson w550i which doubles as an MP3 player. It's only got a small memory card but I get about 40 or so songs on it and that's loads for me so it's all good!
I probably use it more for music than as a phone but I like to have it with me all the time so I can be contacted if I need to be. Generally when I have it in my pocket I'm concious of it but if I put it in my bag I don't really think about it. I'm on contract, it's probably not really worth it at the moment but when I was calling Dan a lot it was good because I get 1000 free mins a month and 100 free texts for £20 and a free MP3 player! Whoo!

[elphaba2]

Generalizing here, and with only New York high school students to compare, but I think British cell phone users tend to go for the multi-phones with mP3s and cameras and all. Around where I am, that tends to be a trend among the folks who like rap and very expensive shoes--because those phones cost so much more, people consider them a little silly, like CZ earrings--a sign of wealth that may or may not be actually present. Cell phones are in use all the time, and in a lower-income area like high school, it is strange to whip out a Razr. Or however it's (mis)spelled. It's much more common to have a music player and cell phone than to have a combination, I think.

An interesting question is which side is aping which in terms of culture? Usually there's a bit of a lag between the UK and the US, especially in little trivial things like cell phone use--is the UK going through a phase of mobile use that the US has already passed through or are we on the cusp of a chavvish revolution over here?

Oh, and I have a cell phone. I use it to get rides and call others from secluded spots (my house is large and echoey, so sounds carry through every conceivable wall). It's a Samsung, I think--very simple, small and plastic-y. I tend to lose it in coat pockets or inside of shoes.

[WeeJ]

I think it's worth mentioning for American peeps that in the UK, you have two types of phone billing. 'Pay as you go' which does exactly as it says on the tin...and there's also contract where you pay monthly. When you're on a monthly contract, they give you a swanky phone and let you upgrade that phone whenever your contract comes up for renewal.

There's absolutely no way I could ever afford the phone I'm using now if I were going to buy it. 02 only let me upgrade to keep me sweet and an their tarrif

[Phyllis]

An interesting question is which side is aping which in terms of culture? Usually there's a bit of a lag between the UK and the US, especially in little trivial things like cell phone use--is the UK going through a phase of mobile use that the US has already passed through or are we on the cusp of a chavvish revolution over here?

I think it's the latter. I have noticed we've been getting a few of those GODAWFUL ringtone commercials here recently. I'd never seen them before I went to the UK. They seem to be on nearly every commercial break over there. Either that or the ones to get games, or wallpapers, or other such things.

Oh please don't let the Crazy Frog hop across the pond....(at least not until after I move, anyway )

[gothictheysay]

I used to need a cell phone, when I stayed after school and needed rides. Now I really don't, and I only use it occasionally and have people borrow it. I'm not really dependent on it at all, it's just useful and convenient. It's just a Verizon Wireless phone, nothing special.

[Usurper MrTeapot]

I have a phone, I'm not sure what its called but it has a camera and can play mp3s. Which is silly because I use mp3 player constantly, just for back up really. I rarely use my phone for anything other than a pocket watch. Though I have recently been texting a bit more, but its only the one person so it doesn't count.

[Daria]

I have a Nokia 3210- which is about seven years old. It calls, it texts, it will let me make it go to silent or just a beep when I want it to. It is all I need.
I use my phone mainly to text people, as sometimes you really don't need a call to get across a little bit of information- and they are cheaper. I also use it for when I am working at gigs and when I need a lift. I usualy manage to use about £5 in two weeks.
Having said that, a friend of mine has a Razr, and her mother pays for the monthly contract- which is £80. Sometimes, said friend even uses up all her minutes and texts, and has to pay more than that. OVER £80 on a phone?! Ludicrous.

[markslut]

£80!?!

I thought £20 per month was high

Don't usually go near my allowances so thats why I'm going to pay as you go

[voices_in_my_hea...]

I recently got a phone and it's a Nokia 3100. I don't really even bother to turn the thing on unless I need to get a rides to/from somewhere or make sure that my parents don't forget to pick me up after school.

[monkey_called_na...]

I have an lp phone... Not sure of the actual number thing to it.

I have been known to loose my phone for mounths on end without bothering to look for it, and just randomly leaving a "hi, this is the number you have dialed. unforunatly my owner lost me so your just going to have to deal with it." message on the voice mail.

When it is in my grasp, im quite addicted to my tetris game.

[Ashbless]

I've a little of a love/hate relationship with my telus-comes-with-three-year -contract cell phone. If I'm at work or sleeping I generally don't have it or have it on silent. However I do find it handy that I have one phone number that stays the same. I've moved about 5 times in the last two years so my landline number can be hard to remember. Truth is the only way I know the landline number is to look it up on the phone list of my cell.
I still have it set for the original Calgary number which really cuts down on the casual chats here in Fort Mac. It's long distance to call me so people make it short and sweet.