General Discussion

Warpy

(114,617 posts)

53. It's been wonderful for the phone company

Fri Aug 12, 2016, 10:41 AM

Aug 2016

that no longer has to maintain pay phones anywhere. That makes it tough when you have to call a tow truck because your car just died.

But hey, all those people paying through the nose for the stupid phones and wireless service that doesn't work half the time have saved the phone company millions!

End public services! That's the ticket!

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If you don't have, or don't want, and/or cannot use a smartphone, you need professional care! [View all] FrodosPet Aug 2016 OP

God forbid things become more convenient Egnever Aug 2016 #1

Maybe "God" should! FrodosPet Aug 2016 #6

And think of all the lost jobs! brooklynite Aug 2016 #30

And it was GP6971 Aug 2016 #55

I find your opinions interesting and compelling and would like to subscribe to your newsletter (nt) TacoD Aug 2016 #59

... Chiyo-chichi Aug 2016 #70

Was going from memory; next time I'll just post the clip. Thanks! (nt) TacoD Aug 2016 #109

convenient for people with money.. Unless you support a massive annabanana Aug 2016 #22

There is such a program. SafeLink wireless. whatthehey Aug 2016 #24

No smartphones with SafeLink TexasBushwhacker Aug 2016 #137

Actually cell phone service is as cheap as a landline .. cannabis_flower Aug 2016 #29

But "cell phone service" does not equal Internet access Wednesdays Aug 2016 #77

Hey cannabis_flower Aug 2016 #83

Lifeline Phone Program MicaelS Aug 2016 #95

Free minutes and texting is the opposite of a smart phone TransitJohn Aug 2016 #115

Convenient is good. Igel Aug 2016 #50

I am sure they said the same about cars Egnever Aug 2016 #96

It's not really more convenient, just more locked in to certain corporations to ensure their profits TransitJohn Aug 2016 #114

Now you are complaining because you can't use a digital service on any device you want Egnever Aug 2016 #116

It's not confusing or overwhelming TransitJohn Aug 2016 #132

Or if you can't afford it or live somewhere LisaM Aug 2016 #2

+100 Photographer Aug 2016 #3

Creeping Ludditeism? FrodosPet Aug 2016 #4

My rather eccentric brother has no answering machine let alone cell phone. Peregrine Took Aug 2016 #61

Does the name Chuck McGill True Dough Aug 2016 #80

I have a brother like that... and maybe I'm *that* brother too. hunter Aug 2016 #89

Many areas still have very limited service spinbaby Aug 2016 #84

Yes - I live less than fifteen miles from the state capitol building and get no cell service csziggy Aug 2016 #108

You will be assimilated. Rex Aug 2016 #5

we already have been. nt Javaman Aug 2016 #19

Used to be many people were illiterate. MirrorAshes Aug 2016 #7

It is a complete love-hate relationship FrodosPet Aug 2016 #71

phone? Why should I "need" a phone at all? Warren DeMontague Aug 2016 #8

UberPalanquin? FrodosPet Aug 2016 #73

You are very wise SheriffBob Aug 2016 #128

Hmmm. PoindexterOglethorpe Aug 2016 #9

At this point though, smartphones are hardly the 'latest' technology. Lancero Aug 2016 #10

So what exactly has superseded smart phones? PoindexterOglethorpe Aug 2016 #11

Oculus Rift Recursion Aug 2016 #14

Oddly enough, I've never heard of Oculus Rift. PoindexterOglethorpe Aug 2016 #15

They're not obsolete, they're just not exactly new. Warren DeMontague Aug 2016 #16

Discrimination is in the eye of the perceiver. Igel Aug 2016 #60

ok but this is a problem rampant throughout the school system Egnever Aug 2016 #110

In much of the world cell phones are default. Igel Aug 2016 #54

cortex implants. nt Javaman Aug 2016 #20

Still flip phone tracfone here elfin Aug 2016 #12

I work in IT and I do not own a smart phone. Zing Zing Zingbah Aug 2016 #25

I have a PC, PatSeg Aug 2016 #34

I feel the same way. n/t Zing Zing Zingbah Aug 2016 #37

Same here, although I don't have a tablet. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #85

I suppose if I had more money PatSeg Aug 2016 #93

I have noticed the same things. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #112

Oh yes PatSeg Aug 2016 #120

The eyesight thing is another reason I am in no rush to get a smart phone. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #124

I have a landline PatSeg Aug 2016 #138

They switched my landlinde to digital last year, which I am not happy about. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #144

Yes, that is a big down side to Internet phone service PatSeg Aug 2016 #146

That makes sense but OnionPatch Aug 2016 #90

Oh, I understand all the advantages PatSeg Aug 2016 #94

I do need my regular computer when I type documents. OnionPatch Aug 2016 #99

I think the problem is PatSeg Aug 2016 #102

Same here. Buckeye_Democrat Aug 2016 #113

I was just discussing PatSeg Aug 2016 #122

LOL! Yeah, that might work! Co-workers let me use their smartphones a few... Buckeye_Democrat Aug 2016 #123

Yep, PatSeg Aug 2016 #125

Can't afford smart phone. Have 2 flip phones. trof Aug 2016 #100

I have a flip phone, too lillypaddle Aug 2016 #141

And, nobody is going to steal a flip phone. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #145

True lillypaddle Aug 2016 #147

My parents don't have smart phones. ileus Aug 2016 #13

Hell yes! Verizon and ATT need your hard earned cash. retread Aug 2016 #17

The world advances- you can get a basic smartphone for under $50 and use it just on wifi for free Lee-Lee Aug 2016 #18

For many of us, $50 is a lot of money. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #87

Then a smart phone is only one of many things you can't have Egnever Aug 2016 #98

I have a 25 year old CRT set and a converter box. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #106

Two things- service isn't needed as I described above and you may qualify for free service and phone Lee-Lee Aug 2016 #142

A lot of pre-paid companies won't activate a smart phone unless you have a data plan. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #143

Can I use my beeper as a trade-in? panader0 Aug 2016 #21

Somebody send this person a free smart phone (eom) Shankapotomus Aug 2016 #23

Me, too. And, a free or very cheap service plan to operate it. GoCubsGo Aug 2016 #88

The Lifeline Phone Program MicaelS Aug 2016 #26

I think a digital package should be part of the Citizen's Pack that every US citizen gets. CrispyQ Aug 2016 #27

Black Magic. A-Schwarzenegger Aug 2016 #28

why in the hell do I need a smart phone..... chillfactor Aug 2016 #31

You don't need one Egnever Aug 2016 #111

According to Pew, only 68% of US adults had smartphones in 2015. drm604 Aug 2016 #32

No. Just like anything else you lack, you simply cannot take advantage of its functionality whatthehey Aug 2016 #33

I still use my $40.00 per month flip go phone. B Calm Aug 2016 #35

I kept my flipfone for a long time marybourg Aug 2016 #63

You have unlimited talk and texts? I did away with my landline, do B Calm Aug 2016 #72

No, I don't need unlimited talk and texts. marybourg Aug 2016 #101

I can beat that trixie Aug 2016 #127

That's great. Where I live, AT&T is the only company that provides any coverage. Cross B Calm Aug 2016 #140

S/he said, on the internet. Brickbat Aug 2016 #36

The irony blows me away! FrodosPet Aug 2016 #74

All this new technology is making us anti-social. Just sitting there reading on little screens... Glassunion Aug 2016 #38

That was the reading car. A-Schwarzenegger Aug 2016 #39

lol Glassunion Aug 2016 #43

Did you ever commute in a bar car? Now THERE were some discussions! Squinch Aug 2016 #78

I commuted in a stagecoach. A-Schwarzenegger Aug 2016 #103

And very bumpy. With marauders. Squinch Aug 2016 #130

When I was in HS in NJ we would cut school and take the train to NYC independentpiney Aug 2016 #105

I was a young commuter in the last days of the bar car. Slobber was common. Also the smoking car. Squinch Aug 2016 #131

On the other hand ... Straw Man Aug 2016 #97

I think I've finally figured out if you are old enough to complain about new technology snooper2 Aug 2016 #40

I'm still complaining about old technology. A-Schwarzenegger Aug 2016 #42

I use my catapult all the time. Glassunion Aug 2016 #46

I use the ancient time-tested method. A-Schwarzenegger Aug 2016 #52

Isolation and despair! Hell freezing! No Ubering for you! JanMichael Aug 2016 #41

Spent years carrying multiple devices. duncang Aug 2016 #44

Are they even "smartphones" anymore? Mine's just my phone. Iggo Aug 2016 #45

But that's what Uber is. Uber would be just another cab company without the app. kcr Aug 2016 #47

Tracfone sells a $20 smartphone blogslut Aug 2016 #48

That's what I'm getting when I replace my decade-plus-old Virgin K9. SusanCalvin Aug 2016 #57

It works fine for what I need. blogslut Aug 2016 #65

Thanks for the tips! SusanCalvin Aug 2016 #66

I got more! blogslut Aug 2016 #68

. SusanCalvin Aug 2016 #86

I make no apologies for being some kind of Luddite. hunter Aug 2016 #49

I'm with you. SusanCalvin Aug 2016 #67

I'm a proud Luddite. Throd Aug 2016 #79

Ok Egnever Aug 2016 #117

Not strange at all. Throd Aug 2016 #148

Agreed. I resist the "LAGS" lure Wednesdays Aug 2016 #82

The last computer I bought was a shopworn 386 running Windows 3. hunter Aug 2016 #91

Technology - embrace it liberal N proud Aug 2016 #51

It's been wonderful for the phone company Warpy Aug 2016 #53

I think too many people take this stuff a little too seriously. LanternWaste Aug 2016 #56

I don't have one because I just don't need it. femmocrat Aug 2016 #58

cellular phone jodymarie aimee Aug 2016 #62

People are always beeping and swerving around the burro I ride to work. Bonx Aug 2016 #64

Submit or perish, I get that. What I don't get is why, if you've submitted... cherokeeprogressive Aug 2016 #69

I care about a lot of people and things that I am not supposed to FrodosPet Aug 2016 #76

I don't. Warren DeMontague Aug 2016 #104

Hey. I still have my copy of "Real Men Use DOS (and Real Women Know Why)" and an OEM copy cherokeeprogressive Aug 2016 #129

I stuck with XP as long as possible, too. Warren DeMontague Aug 2016 #139

+1 sarcasmo Aug 2016 #107

In related news... Act_of_Reparation Aug 2016 #75

I don't have a smartphone (yet), because my existing old cell phone still works fine. kestrel91316 Aug 2016 #81

Exactly! essme Aug 2016 #118

Oh thank you. You should message me about your kitty. I might be able to offer insight. kestrel91316 Aug 2016 #119

I like having my computer in my handbag and in my hand. I'm a busy person and I travel a lot, and I underahedgerow Aug 2016 #92

I don't even have a cellphone. Vattel Aug 2016 #121

Chip implant SheriffBob Aug 2016 #126

Screw the gotta-have-the-latest-or-be-a-loser vibe! struggle4progress Aug 2016 #133

Get the FUCK!............. A HERETIC I AM Aug 2016 #134

LOL!!! Texasgal Aug 2016 #135

The irony is hilarious. MicaelS Aug 2016 #136

Trust, I get the irony of it FrodosPet Aug 2016 #149