Introduction
The world has experienced pronounced technological advancements in the recent past in the realm of information and communication technology. Some of the notable advancements that have caused a significant influence on human lifestyles in the social and professional arenas are the use of mobile phones such as smartphones. Among the innovations and inventions initiated by technology is the smartphone, which has transformed human lifestyles significantly (Yelton 5). The invention and the introduction of Smartphones into human life have led to positive and negative changes. Conversely, the positive changes initiated by the advent of smartphones outweigh the negative changes, and thus, the smartphone becomes an essential component of human life. Therefore, this essay argues that smartphones have transformed the social and professional lifestyles of individuals.
Source of information
The tremendous changes initiated by smartphones include acting as a source of information. Smartphones are gadgets that connect to the internet, and thus, allow their users to access massive information from the internet, just like computers. In health, smartphones enable healthcare providers to access medical information useful in improving the treatment of patients. According to Lewis and Vohra, smartphones have devices such as Bluetooth, which “allow monitoring of patients remotely using physiological sensors” (296). Moreover, medical devices connect to smartphones via the internet and enable medical providers to monitor patients in real-time through their smartphones.
Although critics argue that smartphones act as avenues to access information that may not be morally right, it is important that people use smartphones appropriately for the correct reasons. According to Darlin, smartphones provide easy access to answers that individuals can use in addressing contemporary issues that relate to their daily activities (par. 19). The information from smartphones helps people improve their thinking and enhance their understanding of various issues that affect their lifestyles. The advent of smartphones has transformed the way people understand all things in that:
Not to sound like a know-it-all, but it is now easy to be a know-it-all. How many times in a conversation, have you been stumped by a question? You used to drop the topic and move on. Now when you hit a wall, you have the answer no matter where you are. The conversation, refreshed, moves to the next point. (Darlin par. 20).
Smartphones have transformed the operations of various facilities like hotels, industries, and hospitals. Information concerning products offered by hotels, marketing, medicine, and other aspects of life is easily accessible since the phones can connect to the internet easily and quickly. The fast and quick connectivity of smartphones to the internet provides a wide spectrum of understanding issues that individuals face in their professional and social lives. Smartphones have transformed the way people perform their professional duties, as Darlin asserts that the “smartphone has changed our internal lives” (par. 6).
Doctors, teachers, marketers, and students can easily increase their level of understanding through the vast amount of information that they can access the internet using their smartphones. Critics argue that the ease in which smartphones connect to the internet creates a platform where people look for answers instead of doing research to broaden their knowledge. However, it is imperative to understand that individuals should manage how they use their smartphones.
Improvement of Technology
Smartphones have also increased the magnitude of technological advancements that occurs in the present world. The vast amount of information available on the internet and the connective ability of Smartphones provide a good environment for technological advancements. The argument that critics present concerning smartphones are that they have led to laziness since people easily get answers to their questions by clicking a single button. Conversely, the argument presented by critics is not justifiable because the information that smartphones provide through their ability to access the internet help advance technology. Kim, Ilon, and Altmann explain that due to the level of the Internet connectivity that smartphones have on the society, almost every student in some countries like North Korea has them in schools (4). Therefore, it is important to appreciate the role that smartphones play in technological advancements.
Smartphones have introduced high levels of innovation and creativity among people in contemporary societies. High levels of innovation and creativity that smartphones present contemporary society facilitate technological advancements and transform all components of life. Presently, several companies and organizations use smartphones to improve the quality of products and services that they offer to their clients. Since smartphones provide information concerning various social and professional aspects of life, organization, companies, and people can employ the information to advance the quality of their products.
Over time, critics have argued that individuals should not rely on technological advancements that smartphones facilitate since they are prone to costly errors and mistakes. However, smartphones provide information that boosts creativity and innovation of a person, and thus, the negative harm that critics pose does not relate to the effectiveness of the phone but concerns the application of information. Since Americans have created a significant intimate relationship with smartphones, “they are still modest compared with people in other countries” (Gibbs par. 5). Creativity and innovation that smartphones facilitate lead to enhanced transformations in the social and professional livelihoods of individuals.
Easy Marketing
Currently, several organizations and companies market their products using the internet and social sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. The advent of Smartphones has transformed the marketing of products in various organizations. Transformation of marketing takes place because individuals easily access sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social sites using their phones. Consumer-friendly rates that smartphones offer to its clients initiate consistent access to the sites. As a result, potential consumers come across the adverts and increase their awareness of the products. Darlin explains that smartphones have introduced consumer-friendly data rates that facilitate easy and quick access to the internet (par. 16). Easy accessibility to the internet and consumer-friendly prices supersedes the argument presented by critics that personal computers are useful in accessing information from various sites on the internet.
The effectiveness of smartphones in product marketing is essential since the majority of target consumers are technology-oriented. According to Gibbs, the fast and effective connectivity of smartphones to the internet and social sites promotes the use of the internet in product marketing (par. 4). The technological orientation of consumers implies that the use of technology is very vital as it creates a feeling that a company or an organization offers products that are in line with consumer expectations. In addition, social sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube provide avenues where organizations and companies exchange ideas with potential clients concerning products and their perceived qualities.
Through the avenues that the social sites on the internet provide, organizations and companies design products that are in line with customer expectations and increase their sales volumes. Critics explain that the ability of smartphones to access social sites like Facebook increases the risk of individuals to fraudsters and cybercriminals. However, increased education concerning internet usage reduces the harm posed by cybercriminals.
Providing Directions
Smartphones have reduced the stress that individuals experience in new locations, especially when looking for directions. Google maps present on the internet are easily accessible through smartphones, and thus, an individual needs to log into the internet and search the location of a region. The implication of easy and effective provision of direction is a very significant role that smartphones play in the contemporary world. As people travel to new destinations, Hwang and Yu assert that “location awareness and navigation are becoming one of the most important features in mobile phones and smartphones” (1).
Essentially, smartphones and other gadgets introduced by advancements in technology are quickly transforming the world into a global village. The transformation has made communication and interaction with individuals from other parts of the world easy and effective. Education and awareness on the use of the internet reduce the vulnerability of individuals to cybercriminals and hackers, and hence, the argument presented by critics concerning the increased vulnerability of individuals to cybercriminals does not override the benefits that accrue from the use of smartphones.
Smartphones and other gadgets like computers have quickly transformed the world into a global village. Globalization of the world using smartphones takes place through their ability to provide information concerning the location of places in the world. Currently, people do not need to go through the process of asking questions concerning the location of a place or a tourism destination from others since they can check the right location of a destination using their smartphones. Furthermore, the portable nature of smartphones implies that people can check the direction of a place everywhere since they carry their phones with them.
The use of smartphones is consistent with the dynamic and trendy behavior of consumers (Lane and Manner 26). Critics have always argued that smartphones do not provide accurate information concerning directions. The argument is not valid because the information about directions that smartphones provide relies on the information availed by Google maps. Therefore, smartphones help in ascertaining locations basing on the information available from Google Maps on the internet.
Reduces Anxiety
The advent of smartphones has caused numerous changes in the social and professional lifestyles of people. Presently, individuals cannot live without smartphones since they have become part of their life. The ability to have a gadget that helps advance the profession and social character of an individual makes the smartphone an essential part of human life. Smartphones are useful in ascertaining the welfare of relatives or friends. Moreover, people use smartphones to understand the current state of affairs in the world. The ability to know the welfare of the events around the environment or the locality of an individual helps to reduce anxiety. The lack of appropriate information creates anxiety as Darlin asserts that “when I think back to what I was like before the advent of the smartphone, I realize I must have been a quivering ball of anxiety” (par. 1). As a result, individuals cannot underscore the significant use of smartphones in contemporary human lives.
Anxiety is a feeling that transpires when an individual is oblivious about the welfare of relatives or friends. Absence of information concerning the events around a place or a region that the individuals reside leads to a certain level of anxiety and tension. However, smartphones have become very instrumental in minimizing the anxiety of individuals since they provide frequent updates on the affairs and welfare of the locality where people reside. Lane and Manner explain that several users of smartphones are young individuals, who need attachment from parents, caregivers, or spouses, and so, become anxious if they are oblivious about the welfare of their friends or relatives (26).
Critics state that smartphones reduce the attention and productivity of people in workplaces or in schools since they spend several hours inquiring about the welfare of their friends and current affairs. To counter the argument, employers need to exercise good management skills among employees so that they can improve their performance. Likewise, teachers need to monitor students effectively so that they can study and succeed. Thus, smartphones reduce anxiety as it enables people to know what transpires around them.
Advancement of Individual Lifestyles
Smartphones have transformed individual lifestyles since they increase their awareness of current affairs and behaviors that relate to the daily livelihoods of individuals. Social sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube help individuals understand what happens around the world and how others around them deal with challenges and issues presented by life. As a result, several individuals live according to how others live in societies of the world. It is important to understand that the ability to comprehend the contemporary livelihoods of others in the world is effective using smartphones as it facilitates easy access to the internet and social sites.
Moretti explains that the use of smartphones has greatly changed the lifestyles of families and societies (22). The latest destinations, shops, and fashions available on the internet come to the knowledge of a person because the use of smartphones enables easy access to the internet. Critics state that smartphones facilitate the passage of immoral and information that is not ethical. Conversely, the argument relates to the use of a smartphone and not the gadget itself.
Changes in lifestyles of individuals occur since they use smartphones to check and inquire about the latest lifestyle trends from others around the world. The changes are effective through smartphones, which access social sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, and facilitate conversation and interaction among individuals around the world, irrespective of their distance. In addition, smartphones provide information concerning healthy lifestyles and relationship strategies, which improve the social and professional lives of individuals. The fact that smartphones rely on the information from the internet downplays the argument by critics that smartphones erode the lifestyles of individuals because it regards its usage.
According to Yelton, the ability of smartphones to use applications such as android and java increases their speed and effectiveness in accessing the internet and obtaining the latest information from the internet (6). Therefore, it is important to understand that smartphones play an integral role in changing human lifestyles and perceptions.
Conclusion
The advent of smartphones has led to great transformations in the social and professional aspects of human life. Smartphones have changed the way people relate and behave in various societies. Currently, smartphones have become a basic requirement that a majority of individuals cannot live without. Despite various arguments that critics of smartphones present, the benefits associated with the use of smartphones outweigh the demerits.
The benefits associated with smartphones have made gadgets very important in various aspects of human lives. Fundamentally, a smartphone is a tool used in communication and learning, as well as advancing an individual lifestyle. Some of the roles introduced by smartphones include acting as a source of information, improving technology, facilitating easy marketing, and providing directions. In addition, smartphones reduce anxiety and advance individual lifestyles. As a result, the use of smartphones is essential, and people cannot underscore its importance in contemporary societies.
Works Cited
Darlin, Damon. How I Learned to Stop Worrying by Loving the Smartphone. 2011. Web.
Gibbs, Nancy. Your Life Is Fully Mobile. 2012. Web.
Hwang, Soyoung and Donghui Yu. “GPS Localization Improvement of Smartphones Using Built-in Sensors.” International Journal of Smart Home 6.3 (2012): 1-8. Print.
Kim, Juseuk, Lynn Ilon, and Jorn Altmann. “Adapting Smartphones as Learning Technology in a Korean University.” Journal of Integrated Design and Process Science 17.1 (2013): 5-16. Print.
Lane, Wilburn and Chris Manner. “The Impact of Personality Traits on Smartphone Ownership and Use.” International Journal of Business and Social Science 2.17 (2012): 22-28. Print.
Lewis, Thomas and Ravinder Vohra. “Smartphone Make Smarter Surgeons.” British Journal of Surgery 101. 4 (2014): 296-297. Print.
Moretti, Marco. “The Globalization Mobile Wireless Communication: Bridging the Digital Divide.” Globalization of Mobile and Wireless Communications: Today and in 2020. Eds. Ramjee Prasad, Sudhir Dixit, Richard Nee, and Tero Ojanpera. New York: Springer, 2010. 19-30. Print.
Yelton, Andromeda. “Who Are Smartphone Users?” Bridging the Digital Divide with Mobile Services. Ed. Andromeda Yelton. New York: American Library Association, 2012. 5-8. Print.