We now only need one device to book travel arrangements, complete our grocery shopping, map out a route to an unfamiliar location, catch up with our fix of news, take photographs, listen to music and translate text into foreign languages – and that’s just a small portion of what the modern smartphone can do. The typical adult is so enthralled by this handheld piece of electronic equipment that he/she will use it for 4 hours a day, with many of us becoming so dependent on our smartphones that we would struggle to execute several straightforward yet practical (and sometimes essential) tasks without the device’s help.
When you come across a situation where you’re unsure how to proceed next, or if the answer to a piece of trivia has your stumped, your response is quite likely to constitute taking out your phone to find the solution. It is tremendous to think that one device can solve so many everyday dilemmas, but sometimes the smartphone can be too convenient and we end up being transfixed on a screen of roughly six square inches, oblivious to the physical environment around us.
This infographic from Neon SMS (http://www.neonsms.ie/web-bulk-text.php) examines just how dependent we have become on our smartphones and suggests ways in which we can keep that dependency in check. The smartphone’s status as a powerful, multi-purpose communications device is undisputed. It’s our behaviour in using one that requires a rethink. Let’s see what the infographic has to say.
