Free English Language Dissertations - We Would All Be Better Off Without Mobile Phones It Seems Everywhere One
WE WOULD ALL BE BETTER OFF
WITHOUT MOBILE PHONES
It seems everywhere one looks these days someone is chatting on his or her mobile phone. People of all ages, even youngsters, cannot be without their phones. Whilst the cellular phone has increased convenience and even provided some safety measures to its users, however, the annoyance, cost, changes in lifestyle and privacy issues posed by mobile phones more than outweigh the benefits. We would all be much better off without them.
Much initial opposition to mobile phones was based on health concerns. Some studies had indicated that the phones posed an increased cancer risk to those who used them often, but were largely discredited, by report such as that by the UK government (Cameron 2000). The potential health risks caused by base stations and transmitting towers is still contested, with an 2003 Italian study finding the waves from such may encourage growth in cancerous tumours (Anon 2003b).
Mobile phones are also expensive, causing resources to be used for them that might be spent on other things. According to the Wireless World Forum's annual research mobileYouth 2005 report released in late March, $1in every $10 that children and young people now spend is related to their cell phone (Gwinn 2005). This is money that might have been spent on other items such as trips to a sporting or music event, books or even comics, or hobbies. Additionally, many young people now take jobs to pay for things such as their mobile phones, leaving them less time for participation in school and extracurricular activities. In the US, for example, Fifty million cell phone owners are younger than twenty-five and will collectively spend US $20 billion this year on their cell phones (Gwinn 2005). Some families who cannot afford mobile phones feel pressured to have them for work or safety reasons, although the expense puts a strain on the family budget. In addition, each new feature further increases mobile phones’ costs. Carriers in Europe typically charge thirty-five to forth pence to send a picture message, and more features mean more fees (Anon 2002).
Having a mobile phone makes a person always available, making it difficult to have leisure time, devote attention to family, or in general maintain a balance of life and work. With a mobile, people expect to be able to reach the phone owner at all hours and have the phone owner respond. This makes it difficult to have personal time, or invest undivided attention into relationships. Peter Panos, an owner of three restaurants in the US, states "I'm convinced that everybody would be better off if not for these cell phones, because they can't separate any kind of leisure from work" (Romell 2005). He no longer has a mobile phone, and reports a great improvement in his family relations and reduction in stress as a result.
