After having a quick dinner with Mitch, we decided to call it night. 8:30 pm and he took me home. Both of us knew it would take a lot of preparation and relaxation to face January 4, the D-Day, back-to-work reality. Good thing is that we get to start the year right. We could correct our mistakes, revisit our goals and be more motivated. Bad thing is we're going back to the challenging reality, very far from the festive and cozy holiday season of Christmas. That's life. We have to roll.
Anyways, as we were having dinner, Mitch couldn't hide his excitement and fascination about his newly acquired toy. He now has this updated version of iPhone complete with GPRS and other useful apps where he could upload pictures and update his blog effortlessly. He is a techie-guy and he cannot be easily swayed by mere features. But his happiness awhile ago said it all. iPhone has completely replaced other smart phones in his heart.
Ironically he has me for a girlfriend. A non-techie, close-minded type of user who sees cellular phones as how they should be used, just as cellular phones. To text with. To call with and to put reminders and contact lists in. Internet application helps, but not too much since I also prefer a chance to seclude myself from the virtual world from time to time. Cameras and music players are useful too, but frankly things I could live without. I primarily use cellular phones to get connected, to text and call, which means I'm very particular with the overall text-call friendliness factor. Other matters, fall behind the priority list.
Choosing a phone for me is simple. I can simply eliminate models by feeling the keypads. If I don't like the keypads or if it somehow inconveniences me, I don't care if the phone is a million-dollar creation. I ignore it. I also prefer a wide screen. I'm not into colorful stuff. I just want it to be wide. The call-text commands should also be very efficient. Operating system should be friendly and uncomplicated. I'm also the type who doesn't tinker with her phone, so it would take me years or practically another techie-person to point out that I'm sitting on special features such as this and that.
Opposites as we are, we both know that technology should be able to work for us and not against us. We have different needs and preferences that's why we just have to respect each other's decision. He might need tons of applications in his phone, complete with camera, MP3 and GPRS with all specific resolutions and security codes. But I don't. I just need a durable texting and calling device that can store notes, connect online from time to time and be user-friendly. He's more advanced and tech-savvy, whereas I'm more conservative. He might want the newest version out there, but I work perfectly well with 4-5 year old models.
During our conversation, he says that I need a new phone. I looked at him perplexed and thought that I don't need one. My current phone is a Nokia E61 with QWERTY keypads, a soap-bar of a size with a helpful operating system built in for internet surfing, but without players or cameras. I've had it since 2006 and he has already bought the two modern versions of it in a span of 3 years, model names of which I couldn't remember (naturally). I think it was E61i and the other one. My second phone for SUN mobile is a surviving P9 of Ericsson, which he passed on to me since 2006. It's still surviving, but the alerts are jammed and I wouldn't be surprised if it would self-destruct any minute now. Though the texting, calling, storage are still a-okay.
He badly encourages me to get a new phone because he says I need to upgrade somehow. He offered me the iPhone, which I declined since the keypads and touch screen thing don't work well with me. I said that I don't need much apps because I won't maximize it anyways. He prefers I buy this and that, but I could say tons of reasons why I shouldn't. The two phones, no matter how old and ancient, perfectly work fine for me. They're not giving me any unusual headaches. They're loyal to me even if at times I accidentally drop them in concrete, they're still alive. Take note that I'm not sentimental. I'm just being practical. Since I'm not looking for any specific feature right now, there's no need for me to get a new phone for the sake of upgrading. I don't check my mails on the road, log in at Facebook or need GPRS 24/7. Until that crucial time comes wherein I badly need a new feature or the phones completely died on me, I don't think I'll ever change. And the insecurity argument in using old phones is very irrelevant to me.
Some friends think how the boyfriend and I survive when we're complete opposites especially in terms of technology. I say we may be opposites, but we don't complicate each other. We don't pressure each other and make individual decisions that would harass the other. Technology preferences are individual preferences, it doesn't have to be conjugal. I have opinions while he has his own and I think that's what makes us interestingly balanced. We complement. He teaches me to be open-minded and be tech-savvy, while I teach him to be conservative and be more practical. We may have different perspectives and preferences when it comes to technology, but what all forms of technology bring are convenience and connection. And as long as we could effortless connect with one another using our respective tools that are so convenient for our own needs, we don't need any further gadgets to sync.
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