Mobile phones

I was born in the early '80s so I was lucky enough to witness all the major advances in todays technology first-hand. While I don't really qualify as a gadget-freak, I do believe I am very technology-literate. I love the stuff.

While I was growing up, people still had walkmans with cassettes (ah, the good-old mixed tape; the best way to tell a girl you like her), rented VHS tapes from the video store and had computers with floppy drives (yes, I have used both the 5 1/4- and the 3 1/2-inch versions). We connected to the Internet using modems (ah, the sound of a modem... my first one was a 28.8k one) and browsed using the Navigator. (R.I.P.). Oh, and google-ing stuff was not an option back then, as it did not even exist, so one had to use Lycos, for example.

As I said, I was lucky to witness all the major changes that have taken place since the late '80s: Intel introducing the Pentium CPUs, Windows OS booting automatically (in case you didn't know, before Win95 you had to boot from MS DOS with the infamous <win> + <ENTER> combination), CDs coming out, CD-RWs coming out, DVDs coming out, DVD-RWs coming out, BlueRays coming out, USBs introduced as THE standard port (PS/2 cables, anyone?), ISDN Internet connections, (A)DSL Internet connections, fibre optics Internet connections and of course (dramatic drum roll)... mobile phones.

Given all the above and my relation to technology, people are very often surprised that my mobile phone is a Nokia 6020, which I have had for 9 years now. There is but one question asked, every single time: Why?

Well, let's see. I can make phone calls and I can receive phone calls. I can send text messages and I can receive text messages. And that, my young padwans, is exactly the PURPOSE of a mobile PHONE.

Apparently, this is not enough to convince people and there's always a string of follow-up questions and "arguments".:

1) "But you can't check the Internet."

Well, I have another device for that. It's called a laptop. And it actually does a better job.

2) "But you can't have a Facebook/Twitter/blah-blah App."

Just read this.

3) "But you can't check your email all the time."

You know what? I DON'T want to check my email all the time. I like to be inaccessible for at least a few hours every day.

4) "But you don't have all these fancy games that we do."

The 6020 comes with backgammon. I'm Greek. Do the math and read this.

5) "But with a modern mobile you have so many options and can pass your time so easily on a long journey."

On long journeys I tend to pass my time with another brilliant invention of mankind. It's called a book.

Feel free to submit more arguments against having an "old" mobile.

Oh, by the way. I charge my phone's battery every week or so. How often do you do it?