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| Sunday, 22 January 2006 |
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Do you really need a mobile phone? by Ranga Chandrarathne Is the mobile phone becoming a nuisance or is it a very necessary piece of equipment that could be used not only to phone but also to send SMS (Short messages) that could even go to the extent of choosing the Executive President of a Country? Another problem with mobile phones is it has become a nuisance when it starts to ring in lecture halls, temples, cinemas, in buses and in public places.
Has anyone of you given serious thought as to whether you really needed a mobile phone or whether it only served the purpose of imitating a neighbour who had one. We met some youth at popular shopping malls and art galleries in Colombo, who were willing to spare some moments with us and tell us about what they feel about mobile phones and its uses. We met Nilani at Bare Foot Gallery while she was sipping a cup of warm coffee. She was wearing a 'T' shirt and a pair of denim trousers and this was what she had to say. "For me, my mobile phone is a part of my life, so much so that I could never part with it. It helps me most of all to be in touch with my parents. I have lot of friends overseas and the cheapest and quickest way to contact them is sending them SMSs and SMS groups are now becoming popular. Because I am contactable, my parents know where I am and I could contact them at any time. With an inbuilt digital camera, I could even take photographs and I quite enjoy listening to the radio, which could be done with the mobile. But sometimes the mobile becomes a nuisance, when it suddenly rings while I am following a class or while travelling. At such times, I put it on to vibration mode and then I am happy. I of course bought a mobile phone out of necessity", said Nilani Senarathne (17). However, Malintha Fernando whom we met at Majestic City had a different opinion about the use of mobile phones. "I was compelled to buy a mobile phone because of my friends. As for me, a mobile is not a must but it is a useful piece of equipment which enables me to send SMSs. It will certainly be useful for my clients to contact me. As I am working in an insurance company, my clients need to contact me on different matters and they can easily contact me on my mobile phone. But my thinking is that a mobile phone is not an absolute necessity. Sometimes it becomes a real nuisance when it begins to ring while I am in the middle of a meeting. Then switch off. Research has now found that the mobile has health hazards and that is why we use hand free kits to prevent direct contact with the mobile. However, another reason for having a mobile is because my elders and my boy friend could then contact me at any time during the day. If I am quite busy they could even send me an SMS. SMSs have become quite popular to the extent that SMS polls were conducted during the presidential election campaign," she said. Naflana Ahmad is a young banking executive whom I met at a hotel lobby. She was waiting for a friend who came to Sri Lanka from Australia to spend her holidays." As a busy executive, a mobile is a must and I usually send a lot of SMSs and if my boss is not in office and was also quite busy SMSing is very useful because not only does the message get conveyed it is also a cheap method of conveying a message. With my mobile phone I often surf the Internet and I am able to listen to the Radio and get cricket information, and news updates via SMS. My friends abroad send me SMSs and I also reply through SMS. In Europe a fee is not levied for SMSing but I am not quite sure of it. However, there are instances when SMSing becomes a nuisance because of nasty elements who keep sending false SMSs and making nuisance calls. But it is, certainly, not the fault of the phone, but the people who misuse it", she said. Amal Maddumaarachchi is a young Marketing Executive, he is quite in agreement with what the others had to say about the use of mobile phones but did not cease to mention that the very expensive mobiles that people used were not of utility value but most people who use these phones use it as a status symbol. "It has now become a fashion to buy expensive mobiles with lot of additional facilities which are sometimes not as useful as advertised by mobile phone makers. I have an old fashioned mobile phone, which serves the purpose. What is
most important is not the radio or digital camera which comes inbuilt with
mobile phones but the ability of the phone to capture signals and the
coverage, which allows continuous connectivity. However, SMS is a very
useful facility that allows us contact with the head office or even with
our immediate boss. I received quite a number of SMSs from my friends
abroad," said Amal. |
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