Must be my lucky day

[JP Dogberry]

Play nice Children. I don't like the way this thread is going - next flame sees it locked.

On the subject, I hate cellphones also - they irritate me endlessly, with their sparkly cameras and irratating pop ring tones.

I have a cellphone despite this though, which I take everywhere, for a few reasons.

1) It's instead of a landline. The house I live at ahs one, but I don't use it, since the only person I ever call is my mother, and it's cheaper to make the long distance call using a cellphone.

2) The nerd that I am, I have a phobia of disconnectedness. Having a phone means I am always wired in - I like the safety net of knowing I am always contactable, often by multiple methods.

I could live without a cellphone, but having one is extremely useful.

[Archon]

On the subject, I hate cellphones also - they irritate me endlessly, with their sparkly cameras and irratating pop ring tones.

I agree JP, I dont think that cell phones need to have all of the extra fringes on them, such as cameras and really weird ringers. My dad works for Nextel which concentrates more on being practical and reliable than on having all the flashy stuff. Maybe not always, but for the most part.

[JP Dogberry]

See, a functioning cellphone could be sold for about
30$AU and still make a profit, if it wasn't stupidly miniturised and lacked the extra features. But since everyone only needs one phone, the companies can't turn a profit that way.  So they tack on useless extras to justify the 400$ price tag.

[Archon]

    I don't think so JP, you have to consider the broadcasting towers, the cost of employment, etc... I agree that they could be made to be much less expensive, but maybe not that much less.

[House of Mustard]

I also own one, although I couldn't say where it is right now.  It's almost never charged, and I usually go months at a time without seeing it.  We take it on trips, just in case of emergency, and when my wife was ready-to-pop pregnant she used to keep it with her, but that's really it.  

I think that the overuse of cellphones -- too much 'connectedness' actually disconnects us from face-to-face contact.  I think that cellphones, with all their convenience, only INCREASE the amount of stress in the world, not decrease it.

[JP Dogberry]

I don't mean the price of service - I mean the price of the handset itself. I think you'll find that a few bits of plastic, a couple of metal clips, a microchip, low-res LCD, a few wires, and a radio transmitter don't cost a whole lot, especially for a corporation who can buy in large bulk amounts, direct from the manufacturer.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

... and can give phones away free. Anything that can be given away free can at least be reduced in price significantly to people willing to make a lesser commitment.

[Archon]

    true, but then again, the quality of phones as far as reliability, is probably more than you would get with those materials. For example my moms phone has been dropped several times from several feet above concrete and it still works fine.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

eh. I think you're either under- or over-rating quality somewhere.

[JP Dogberry]

Ok. Add three cents for a little styrofoam inside.

[Archon]

    You could, but with public opinion being what it is, I doubt people would buy them. People usually consider price an indicator of quality, so I dont know how well they would sell, if people think they won't work.

   Oh and SE, I could be underestimating JPs creation, but I saw that actually happen to my moms phone, so that has to be right.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

I don't think you're correct on that. If you take a brand name that people recognize and associate with quality, and they offer an inexpensive model, people would certainly buy it.

[JP Dogberry]

That all has to do with marketing, which is a completely different topic. If they were marketed as what they are (Basic, Functional and therefore Cheap) a lot of people would be encouraged to buy them. People like me, who own three phones, use the best one they have, but got them all for free. In fact, all the cellphone users I know would rather buy a cheaper basic phone.

[Archon]

     Ahh I thought you proposed having a new brand that sold phones like that. Yeah perhaps, but it wont happen because the current cell phone companies would be shooting themselves in the foot, as more expensive phones wouldnt sell as much. So the only way I think it could happen would be if a new company tried it.

[JP Dogberry]

See, that's the argument I made in the first place: that cellphone companies won't do it even though they could, since they'd make less money overall.