December 3rd, 2012 marked the 20-year anniversary of the first text message ever sent. The message was simple and original. “Merry Christmas.”
On December 3rd, 1992, Neil Papwroth, a then 22 year-old British engineer was the man responsible for sending the first ever Short Messaging Service (SMS) from his computer to a friend’s cell phone.
This anniversary is particularly special to the communications industry; as reporters across the globe use their phones as a primary tool to do their jobs.
It’s no lie that the act of sending a text message has taken off at rapid speed over the past two decades and that’s put lightly.
But, it’s no surprise that the cellphone would become a popular item among society, especially considering all the luxuries that current phones, particularly smart phones, now provide. With the touch of a finger, people can check phone messages, send an SMS, read an email, check the weather, read roadway updates, check the stocks, book a ticket, check the time, listen to a song, watch a movie, take a photo, write a reminder, play a game and of course, make a phone call. With the latest and greatest, the imagination is the only limitation of what a phone and the beholder, can really do.
According to a PEW survey in the United States, 73 per cent of adults with cellphones text. I can assume that Canada’s number falls close to that percentage.
In a response to this survey, Telus reported that Canadians send about 8 million in a single month- that’s roughly 267 million a day.
It looks like reporters aren’t the only ones guilty of fanatically texting.
267 million texts a day can be perceived differently. At first glance, many might think that number is high. But I invite you to think back to the last time you were in a public facility or event.
I invite you to picture how many people were talking on their phones, using their phones, taking out or putting them away. Does that number still seem high?
Still, some people are calling the amount of texts sent a day, especially by this nation’s youth, a pandemic. Many of us will not leave the house without our cellular devices, and have a hard time making it through the day without checking our phones for updates. We use phones to deliver information, photos, thoughts, humour, and sarcasm. We use our phones to stay connected and in touch.
However, is the desire to stay in the know becoming a need?
Are cellphones taking over our lives?
Can our world still turn without the use of our iPhones, Androids and Blackberries?
When Apple formally introduced the iPhone 5 on September 12, 2012, over two million pre-orders were received within three days. When the phone was available on shelves on September 21, 2012, millions more were sold. From this we can gather that people want the latest and greatest, and they want it now. But what were to happen if the iPhone and all other phones were to disappear?
As of recent years, there has even been a word created for the fear of losing your cellphone- nomophobia, or no mobile phobia.
But is it the phone we are afraid of losing, or what the phone does? Are people addicted to their cellphones, or simply addicted to staying connected?
As the mobile phone takes a step forward with our communication abilities, I have to wonder if it is really just two steps back by replacing our independence with compulsive dependency?
Can society function without the 267 million texts that are sent everyday?
I believe yes but with great difficulty. Whether it’s a blessing or a curse, phones are now a fundamental part of our lives. Looking at how far the simple text has come over the past 20 years and phones in general for the matter, it’s interesting, perhaps even frightful to think where the phone will be and what it will be capable of 20 years from now.
