Kids and technology

Why Steve Jobs Didn't Let His Kids Use iPads

Go read that.

It's a common theme these days and this article, amongst others, are blowing up around the internet and in the real world.

I've got parents saying they think they've got it right because their kids have basic cell phones, shared computer, and limits on their game system.  I've got another parent who takes my kid's cell phone away when she goes to play at her friend's house and, by the way, has never given me her phone number, doesn't have a land line and therefore isn't listed in the phone directory.  I've got someone else near me who says she doesn't mind having no cell phone or cable tv because it makes her kids be more creative, but when someone bought her a tablet, she immediately started a share plan so her kids could use it and be out of her hair.

THEY ARE ALL WRONG!

I want those parents who think they are superior for keeping "technology" from their kids to ask themselves whether or not their kids are ever going to drive a car or if you'll expect them to ride a horse and then ask themselves if they are really as superior as they think.

Look, if someone doesn't want a smart phone, that's their choice.  I feel like in modern society, it's okay to accept use of a cell phone.  After all, the pay phones all over town have been taken out and many places have policies specifically against using their business phone.  (Don't believe me?  Start asking at every business you go into.  Several of them have a specific company policy regarding this.)  Cell phones are expensive, but the alternatives we had in the past are gone.  Previous to phones, the worst thing that happened was a run away horse so our family had less worry about us dying if we disappeared for two hours.

The fact is, kids need to learn to balance technology with life.  Why do we use that word anyway?  The assembly line designed by the 'great and powerful' Ford is a type of technology.  It's our little portable devices we're discussing here and just like the assembly line, they will change everything we do from now until the apocalypse so best we get on board with understanding that it is more than an outlet to play Candy Crush.

It's sort of like teaching manners to a three year old.  Lots of people choose not to do it because "a kid is a kid!" but in reality, you are doing them a disservice.  How do you think they will learn manners if you don't teach it to them?  Teach them the importance of these devices, but also teach them when to put it away.  They will be much better adults if they don't think it's an all or nothing deal.  You're trying to control their every movement and frankly, kids who are overly controlled don't learn how to manage anything and are crippled adults.  These new adults aren't computer addicts because their parents let them be on the computer all the time.  They are addicts because no one taught them to set goals, limits, leave the games until the work is done.

Parents of the most recent generation were very busy and just wanted their kids out of their hair.

Look at my kid, okay?  At thirteen, I don't push the limits of her electronic use very much.  Why?  Because when she was younger, I made her earn her computer time. I waited to get her a cell phone until she was old enough to be running off with friends on her own (not play dates or babysitting where I'm there or there is a babysitter who can make emergency calls) and we waited to get her a cell phone until she had proved herself to be trusted and responsible.

Don't get me wrong.  When we sit down to dinner as a family, I sometimes have to remind her to put her phone away, but she does it immediately and we usually sit around talking after the meal.  She gets on the computer and we lose her for a few hours, but that happens about once a month.  Other than that, she plays lacrosse, goes outside to practice, plays her guitar, and hangs out with friends.

Yeah, she listens to music a lot on her iPod.  I listened to it a ton in my room on a tape deck.  I watched too much TV because I didn't have friends... not the other way around.  She has lots of friends so she has little interest in playing video games all night.  She actually has access to the Wii by herself, but she never plays it.  We have a PS3, too and she plays it for about 40 minutes when we are out for a walk, then turns it off for family time when we get home.

She has no siblings, you see, so it's a little harder to say "Hey, go entertain yourself."  Kids with siblings aren't entertaining themselves.  They are entertaining each other.  IMO, this will make them extra dependent on another for their happiness when they are older.  It's why some people jump into bad marriages.

We have used the iPhone to download study aides and reminders for a kid who has trouble remembering stuff and who does lots of research for school classes.  She's independent in her work, but we're always here to help.  Instead of doing things for her, we give her the tools to do it herself.

It's cool if you want to keep your kids from these devices.  Just stop thinking you've done something "right".  No, not "right", just "different".

Have a cell phone? You're getting ripped off.

Do you have a cell phone?  So does, it seems, everyone.  I know I do and I love the convenience of certain features, but the fact is, we're getting ripped off.

And we're about to get ripped off even more.

I am so frustrated with technology and, currently, the entire wireless takeover, that I am having trouble organizing all my thoughts, so I will begin with:

Creating an expectation
And this really is just the beginning.

Granted, not many people can say they have seen one of these in a functioning capacity for a while:




 But my mom still has one of these on her wall which works just fine:

Meanwhile, these are being turned into kitchen timers and alternate household gadgets, apparently:

But the best I can hope for this:

...is about 3 years.  

We learned early on when we first got our cell phones (even in 2002, we were a little behind the times) that if you tried to make it last any longer, the wireless companies would screw you by no longer providing service to your style of phone.  They are coded with certain receivers and those codes are slowly phased out over time so that, eventually, it is a paperweight whether you made it last or not.  Those television jokes about people using the old brick-sized Motorolla is just that - a joke - because no company will provide service to that phone unless you are more technically savvy than I and have found some way of tweaking it internally to trick them into thinking it is currently recognized.

Those old phones lasted forever and even when cordless came along, you paid about $80 for a decent one that would last 5-7 years and at the very least, it lasted until the phone itself broke.  The companies had not, at that point, figured out how to make your phone obsolete even if you are a frugal, careful person.  Why take care of my phone?  I'm going to have to replace it anyway no matter how much I like it and how much I DISLIKE the replacement.

Of course, that's not much of an issue considering they are made of cheap plastic parts and flimsy frames so that it breaks easily no matter how careful you are.  Women have had to carry junk around in their purse for years so they know how things have to hold together and be made well in order to last.  Normally, men wouldn't carry something as delicate as a glass doll in their pockets, but now they do it every day.  We all toss them around casually as though the screens won't break from a sideways glance and the cases won't fall apart from a 2 foot fall, but the fact is, these are the two main complaints about phones broken within the first couple months of use.  A matchbox car is more durable than a cell phone!

Our phones are basically plastic toys with expensive maintenance plans.  How much did you pay for your last phone?  Was it worth more than a matchbox car?

But it has all these cool things!

Right.  Like a calculator you could buy for $1?  And cameras.  Even the best cameras on a cell phone (which will run you at least $300) are like the low end, $70-$80 cameras in quality.  If you want the best quality for pictures, you have to get a real camera.  Yeah, your phone pics look great on the screen and sometimes even on Facebook at 300 square pixels, but you can't blow it up unto an 8x10 or larger photograph like you can with any cheap camera that costs half as much as your new 'camera' phone.  Additionally, doesn't require data plans nor will it expire or stop working for YEARS.  Granted, these things are handy, but they are handy in the way that free gifts with purchase are sometimes handy.  A calculator and stopwatch aren't exactly expensive high-end technology.  They're just nifty.

Moving up in technology, of course, are things that are more useful, like GPS, but those don't come on stupid phones.  Those are smart phone only features and are often apps which cost money just to add to your phone and again you're looking at $200+ to get a phone like that.  (Even most deals with commitment are at least $100, but don't forget your upgrade fees, taxes, etc so $200 is about what you need to have in expendable cash at any given time).  Once you have a smart phone, you can't get the free-phone deals anymore and you're generally committed to a data plan (unless you are going to go rogue and use wifi, but most companies will make you pay for the data plan to initiate the phone.)

False Discounts

So they get you to sign new contracts every couple of years by offering "discounts" on phones... which means the same as in any other retail endeavor, mark it up so you can mark it down.  The problem is when I go to the grocery store, they've marked up a product approximately 100% (double their cost) so that they can mark it down 10% and still pay overhead.

I don't have a smartphone currently (I'm not against getting one, but I am trying to avoid it...) so let's say I go in to sign a new 2 year contract and get another stupidphone.  I'm now committed to paying about $50 a month for 24 months ($1200, but let's say that's all for services - still, they are pretty much guaranteed to collect that amount from anyone who pays their bill) but I get a phone for $1.  Score?  Sure.  Let's call it that.  Landline service was $24 a month before we got rid of it, but it didn't have fancy features like text and portability.  It did, however, give you the option to cancel at any time.  

But wait!  No more contracts!

Did we really think it would be that simple?  I said immediately when the first company started airing their adverts that they would charge more for the phones in the end to make up for lack of contracts.  Forget rewards for loyalty.  Of course, since it worked for that company, the others are falling in line.  Look at the payments and do some quick math.  By the time you're done, you've paid full price for the phone you used to get at a discount if you just signed the contract.  Since I really, really like my provider, I don't mind signing contracts.  I do mind their "new math", though.  A LOT.

Providers offer "new math" and reps can't fathom reality or choices...
Now, follow along.  This is tricky to explain without the piece of paper the rep used to show us how we are "saving money" with the new deals.

Old plan = you sign a contract and get a discount on your phone.
New plan = you have no contracts, no need to be loyal, no rewards for giving their company your hard earned money, and in exchange, you make payments on your phone, but you can get a new one every 12 months.

Old plan - let's just say for kicks I want an iPhone 64 g.  Let's say the company I am using has it for $700, but if I sign a 2 year, I can get it for $400.  (These are the actual numbers she used last night.)  You pay your upgrade fee bringing your total to $440.  (Now this is where they start to talk fast so you can't interrupt with "and if I don't need that second phone?)  in 12 months, you want a new phone because the newest one is out, or your phone gets lost or broken.  Now you have to buy another at $700, plus another upgrade fee and you've forked out $1180, minimum, over the next year.

BUT!  With the new plan, the exact same phone is only $62 a month for 12 months.  If it gets lost or broken you get a new phone.  That's just $744 which is significantly less than $1180!

So I say; that's assuming you want the latest and greatest phone.  If you don't, then it's a lot more than the $440 to which she responds that it's covered if it gets lost or broken!

Gee... at least the place where I spent hundreds and hundreds for a new stove let me CHOOSE whether or not I wanted the warranty plan.  They let me decide whether I wanted to take my chances and gave me the option to be conservative and cautious so I don't break it in the first 2 years.  Of course, my stove is made of WAY better materials.

These phones - no matter what they do - are plastic pieces of crap.  When else on earth would you walk into a store and willingly spend your money on such flimsy pieces of pocket lint?  I laugh at people online who write reviews of products saying that their new $150 vacuum was made of cheap plastic and not worth the exorbitant cost, but their post gives away that they posted it from a smartphone.

Technology
On top of that, we just got new stupidphones and let me tell you, the technology on those has gone backwards.  Why?  Probably to bully us into smartphones.  This happened at the exact same time Google discontinued its SMS search services... saying that we can just get online to look up addresses and phone numbers.  Not if you don't have a smartphone or any kind of expensive (overpriced - seriously... how much are you charging for a few gigs?  omg!!) data plan.  Thanks a lot, Google.  You are a big bully, too.

Conclusion
I get it.  The companies are in it to make money.  They have a responsibility to their shareholders and they have to make sure the top dogs have enough to buy... what?  What do you buy when you make millions for running a company?  Most of us will never know and that's the nature of capitalism.  The idea is to work harder and smarter and you'll make more money, but the reality is there isn't room for $60 million a year jobs for everyone.  I support capitalism, actually, but only in the purest sense and this country hasn't had pure capitalism for 70+ years.  Slowly, the purity has been corrupted.  I know it's not very popular to admit that I like the idea of capitalism, but I also don't think there is anything wrong with the idea that if you work you have money and if you don't work, you don't.  I do think there is a grey area where we can use tax money to help those who cannot work, but I also think there is a difference between a hand-up and a hand-out...

But I am straying from my point.  I understand companies make more money by getting you to replace their items instead of using it up, wearing it out, and making do. Frankly, we can afford the phones and the plans and all of that... but we can afford things because we don't throw money away on everything so it makes it really hard to pay such a large bill every month for something that is not a necessity like electricity or a luxury that makes you feel safe like better than the cheapest insurance.  I cringe at the satellite bill, too, so it's not phone-exclusive.

At least once a day I consider dumping the cell phone and going back to landline.  The only thing I'd miss is texts and the convenience of my customers being able to contact me while I'm at the mechanic waiting for an oil change.

Is that really worth the expense?

Remind me why I have a cell phone at all?