Yes, indeed it slips the world at your finger point. As all of us know, modern technology has reached to such an extent that we can perform magic, do our business, reach our loved ones, chat, entertain and enjoy, get to know more and more informations about what is happening around the globe and gather more knowledge by sitting at home merely at the tip of your finger point. But how and what it is?
Answer is very simple. Yes I am talking about mobile, smart phones. As the name implies is those kinds of phones which possess great mobility. It is also known as Cell phones or cellular phones. Under the current scenario it is very much required. It is the necessity not the luxury and handy as well.
Today we stand at a period where the telecommunication market is filled with smart phones of different brands, which can do many more things than a laptop or computer. The more and more features attached to each phones made the telecommunication sector the most competitive one today. More or less a mobile phone today performs the function of television, telephone, radio, laptop, camera, a guide to help you put for finding locations and what not.
However each and every technology has its own advantages and disadvantages for students in particular and public in general and mobile phone is one of them. Buying a mobile phone for your kid is easy, but think twice before buy that for them. In this current world, mobile phones are really essential for everyone’s life.
But, it doesn’t mean that you can’t live a life without a mobile phone. When we talk about school students, having a mobile phone is 50-50 chances of advantage and disadvantage. It’s all up to the student who uses the mobile phone. A student can improve themselves with the help of mobile phone, meanwhile, the same student can spoil their life with the help of same mobile phone. It does all depend on how they use mobile phones.
Before getting deep into advantages and disadvantages of mobile phones, let us make a small comparison with our age old land phone. We are familiar with both mobile phones and land phones, but there are certain factors which make us prefer one to the other. Let us observe it closely with the help of the below mentioned points.
· Convenience: Unlike in earlier days, wherein land phone was in vogue in every house and getting one was a prestigious thing and necessity too but now mobile phones, which can be carried everywhere, have taken its place and resulting ineffectiveness of land phones.
· Health & Safety: It is a sad fact that only a few among us are really concerned about our health and safety when it comes to mobile phones. Most of us go behind the convenience but on the other hand the usage of mobile phones causes certain health hazards which we ignore knowingly. When compared to the radiation and dangerous waves emitted by mobile phones, land phone are far safer and healthier.
· Monetary Factor: This is another factor we need to take into consideration as it not only makes us spend but also ends up in depletion of our natural resources. We just need to pay the rent and the charges on ISD calls and additional STD calls when using a land phone. This rate is very nominal and affordable to almost all. Mobile phones do not carry any rent, we just charge it up and use it to call and SMS others that too is very nominal as the telecommunications market is competitive. But have you thought about the electricity used when charging a mobile phone? If a family has four members there will be minimum four mobile phones, but only one land line. When we take up the total cost, mobile phones turn out to be expensive. It is one reason why we face scarcity of electricity.
Advantages of Mobile Phones
Living without mobile phones is a very difficult task today as we are so used to it. There is lot of merits to it which is attracting us towards mobile phones. Many of us can’t even part it at least for one day. Lets us see why and how this particular device was able to find so much of place in each one of our life.
· Wherever we are we feel secured just because we have a mobile phone with us and that helps us to call our loved ones when needed or in case of emergency. In short it is like a good companion who can save and help us.
· With the advent of mobile phones, we are able to keep in touch with our clans and pals. Earlier, we will either have to call them through land phone or will have to visit them in person, but now everything is easy as we are just a click away. In fact it has helped in globalization too.
· Another advantage is that mobile phones act as a walkman too. When waiting for a bus, alone at home or bus, we can listen to our favorite music, radio channels etc through our cell phones. This feature has won the mind of music lovers and others too as it keeps us engaged.
· The next main advantage of a mobile phone is the ability to capture every single moment and to treasure it. Many among us have a passion towards photography, but I agree that mobile phone cameras are not a substitute to the professional SLR cameras. It is not practically possible to carry the huge SLR cameras every day, and we never know when a moment approaches, hence a mobile camera is of great help at times.
· The facility to access internet is another main feature which has attracted many buyers, especially those addicted to it and the business people. With the popularity of social networking sites, mobile phones with internet have great demand.
· A main advantage of mobile phones is the ability to send and receive SMS. Many times we might not be able to take up the call or make a call while in a meeting, in a classroom or so, at these times SMS will be of great help. We get to know or can inform other important things with the help of SMS.
· The facility of MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) enables one to send messages with pictures as well. A laptop too has similar facility but mobile phones are much easier to carry than laptops.
· Anything from making a call to booking a ticket is possible through mobile phones. Everywhere even while filling up an application form, we need to pen down our mobile number. These examples shows us how widely people have accepted it.
· Having a top brand and latest mobile phone is a prestige thing now, hence people buy it for status and show off purpose as well.
Disadvantages of Mobile Phones
There is not even a single thing in this world which does not have demerits, so does mobile phones too. We are standing in the period where people are busy shooting the videos of an accident via mobile phone rather than trying to help the victims. The followings are the effects and hazards related to the usage of mobile phones. I agree that we are so used to mobile phone, but we should at least try to minimize its use or to use it properly. The main disadvantages of this technological advancement are listed below.
· The radiations emitted from mobile phones can affect us very badly but we ignore this factor for our convenience. Studies have proven that the radiation can affect our brain while talking through cell phones, it can affect the reproductive organs and the production of sperms if the phones are put in our pant pockets.
· Using headsets while talking and listening to music is hampering our brain. It helps in creating tiny bacteria’s in our head which in turn will damage the proper function of our body system.
· Never ever use mobile phone while it is put for charging as it can cause severe damages up to sudden death.
· Usage of mobile phones has increased the number of crimes. Criminals give and take information with the help of this device, which has made their job easier.
· Mobile phone cameras are used by many unethical people to capture vulgar and exotic pictures of others unknowingly or knowingly. Later these pictures are used to blackmail the person or is been uploaded over the internet to make money.
· Students or kids are left out with latest mobile phones these days, this makes them to use the internet option and thereby they get spoiled if not used properly.
· The number of love marriages is increasing, one main reason for this is the increased usage of mobile phones. There are many traps created as well with its use.
· New viruses are been created by unethical people to destroy or to collect information from others as most mobiles these days come up with internet facility.
· We are first of all leading a nuclear family life style these days, on top of that the increasing usage of mobile phones have reduced the number of visits made to our near one’s places. We prefer to talk over the phone and keep in touch with them, hence we do not visit them in person and this affects the bonding between people in the long run.
· Before these phones and technology, students spend plenty of time with their family. Now students spent their free time with mobile phones. Either playing games or chatting with friends via mobile phones. They don’t have any idea about how much family is important in their life. Chatting with family is one of the most important things for everyone and we can learn more good stuff when we freely talk with our family. So parents, at least, bring your kids together in dinner time and have your meals together in one table. A family chain is very important and tries to make them understand that.
· Sleepless nights and get tired
· When students playing games on mobile phone, they don’t care about time as they concentrate fully on the game. Most of the student chooses night bed time for playing. Because no one would disturb them. So they play till 2 or 3 in the early morning unless parents come and shout them to sleep. Some students choose the sleeping time for chatting with friends. Chatting also makes them sleep at very late. Do you know what happen if they sleep at late? Next day they get tired which doesn’t make them concentrate on subjects. So, students must sleep as soon as finish their homework and dinner so that they would start next day with fresh and confident.
· The latest smart phones, iphones etc uses high amount of electricity when charging. A study has proved that iphones take as much as electricity as a refrigerator. Aren’t we wasting our natural resources buy using phones with lot of features?
· The high waves produced by mobile phones have resulted in ending the lives of certain other species, especially birds. They have become endangered just because of these high waves. It may not be affecting us, the humans immediately but surely it is affecting us and we will see it gradually.
Shekar Moily
