Poll: Should cellphones be called something else now?

[King of the Sandbox]

Here they're called Mobiles. It's very suitable, because they're mobile...

Mobile what though? Say phone, and if it takes pictures, texts and surfs the web, I'll e-smack you for not reading the OP.

Mobile multi-purpose devices. Mobiles for short.

Mobile just seems kind of redundant to me. I mean, what isn't mobile these days? But you may be onto something with the MPD (multi-purpose device). ^_^

 

[ffs-dontcare]

Spoiler: Snip!

I'd rather stick to "phones". To me there's no reason to change the name of it, because despite all its features it's still a phone even if it has a shitload of features.

So, then, by that logic, computers should still be called calculators, right?

If you want to call them calculators, then fine. It's not affecting me. If people like you want to call phones something else like comms, then go for it as long as you don't gasp when people like me continue to call them phones. It won't matter because it's merely colloquial in the end.

Really, who cares what they're called.

Uhm, people who favor logic? It just seems so out of place for me to call them phones anymore, as I see more texting and photo sharing than actual calls nowadays. Hell, I had a friend pick up his phone, tell me he was busy doing something, and asked me to text him instead.

I raged so hard.

People who favour logic? Oh my goodness. Is it really that important that we call them something other than phones?

As I said, you can call them something other than "phones" if you like, I won't really care. Personally I think that it's not worth worrying about what they're called.

I think it's important to allay confusion. Imagine it like this; Let's say aliens hit the planet. We show them our 'phones'. They scratch their head, think of us as backwoods hicks, and leave us to be wiped out by the coming space plague, deeming us too stupid to exist any longer.

Ok, that's a reach, and honestly, I'm not seriously up in arms about it or anything, I just find it silly and contradictory to call them phones when they're used more as telegraphs now.

But fair enough. I will call them Leela's Arm Thingies (LAT's) or Comms from now on. Please continue to call them whatever you wish as well. ^_^

Don't be surprised or condescending toward me. Change takes a long time, you know.

Who knows, in about 50 years we'll probably be calling them comms anyway. "Pass me your comm, bro."

 

[King of the Sandbox]

Spoiler: Snip!

I'd rather stick to "phones". To me there's no reason to change the name of it, because despite all its features it's still a phone even if it has a shitload of features.

So, then, by that logic, computers should still be called calculators, right?

If you want to call them calculators, then fine. It's not affecting me. If people like you want to call phones something else like comms, then go for it as long as you don't gasp when people like me continue to call them phones. It won't matter because it's merely colloquial in the end.

Really, who cares what they're called.

Uhm, people who favor logic? It just seems so out of place for me to call them phones anymore, as I see more texting and photo sharing than actual calls nowadays. Hell, I had a friend pick up his phone, tell me he was busy doing something, and asked me to text him instead.

I raged so hard.

People who favour logic? Oh my goodness. Is it really that important that we call them something other than phones?

As I said, you can call them something other than "phones" if you like, I won't really care. Personally I think that it's not worth worrying about what they're called.

I think it's important to allay confusion. Imagine it like this; Let's say aliens hit the planet. We show them our 'phones'. They scratch their head, think of us as backwoods hicks, and leave us to be wiped out by the coming space plague, deeming us too stupid to exist any longer.

Ok, that's a reach, and honestly, I'm not seriously up in arms about it or anything, I just find it silly and contradictory to call them phones when they're used more as telegraphs now.

But fair enough. I will call them Leela's Arm Thingies (LAT's) or Comms from now on. Please continue to call them whatever you wish as well. ^_^

Don't be surprised or condescending toward me. Change takes a long time, you know.

Who knows, in about 50 years we'll probably be calling them comms anyway.

Oh, that's it, I'm throwing you a surprise party where all the presents are simple toys, with simple instructions, that I will explain to you slowly and partly in baby-talk.

I kid, I kid, but I think you're right. I don't think they'll have the phone moniker for too much longer, like you said, maybe 50 years or so.

 

[ffs-dontcare]

Spoiler: Snip!

I'd rather stick to "phones". To me there's no reason to change the name of it, because despite all its features it's still a phone even if it has a shitload of features.

So, then, by that logic, computers should still be called calculators, right?

If you want to call them calculators, then fine. It's not affecting me. If people like you want to call phones something else like comms, then go for it as long as you don't gasp when people like me continue to call them phones. It won't matter because it's merely colloquial in the end.

Really, who cares what they're called.

Uhm, people who favor logic? It just seems so out of place for me to call them phones anymore, as I see more texting and photo sharing than actual calls nowadays. Hell, I had a friend pick up his phone, tell me he was busy doing something, and asked me to text him instead.

I raged so hard.

People who favour logic? Oh my goodness. Is it really that important that we call them something other than phones?

As I said, you can call them something other than "phones" if you like, I won't really care. Personally I think that it's not worth worrying about what they're called.

I think it's important to allay confusion. Imagine it like this; Let's say aliens hit the planet. We show them our 'phones'. They scratch their head, think of us as backwoods hicks, and leave us to be wiped out by the coming space plague, deeming us too stupid to exist any longer.

Ok, that's a reach, and honestly, I'm not seriously up in arms about it or anything, I just find it silly and contradictory to call them phones when they're used more as telegraphs now.

But fair enough. I will call them Leela's Arm Thingies (LAT's) or Comms from now on. Please continue to call them whatever you wish as well. ^_^

Don't be surprised or condescending toward me. Change takes a long time, you know.

Who knows, in about 50 years we'll probably be calling them comms anyway.

Oh, that's it, I'm throwing you a surprise party where all the presents are simple toys, with simple instructions, that I will explain to you slowly and partly in baby-talk.

I kid, I kid, but I think you're right. I don't think they'll have the phone moniker for too much longer, like you said, maybe 50 years or so.

That'll probably be the case. If it wasn't for the fact that "phones" is the current widely-accepted moniker, I'd most likely call them "comms" as well. It just seems to fit. I only feel like calling them "phones" at the moment because if I called them something other than "phone" or "mobile", I'd get a funny look from the person I'm talking to.

 

[mad825]

I'd rather stick to "phones". To me there's no reason to change the name of it, because despite all its features it's still a phone even if it has a shitload of features.

So, then, by that logic, computers should still be called calculators, right?

well technically, anything that has a processor chip and computes information are calculators as such. so really you can call any electrioic device a calculator

 

[Downfall89]

In Australia they are called Mobile Phones. And that is what they are; mobile phones. Why should we change it?

Well, ok, Mobile/cell differences aside, the reason I'd like to see it changed is because they do so much more now, as I mentioned in the OP. It's like calling a modern car a horseless carriage. It's kinda silly, because while in the past, yes, that's what it was, it's now so much more, what with phones in them, GPS, HUDs, electrical outlets, etc, etc.

That's what I was getting at.

.. Calling a car a horseless carriage? It's called an automobile, or car for short basically. Cars have GPS, radios, stereo systems- but they are still cars. Mobile/cell phones have cameras, gps, internet capabilities- but they are still mobile phones. What would you want to call them?

In all seriousness though, who cares. Stop calling your PC a computer and call it a calculator then.

 

[King of the Sandbox]

Spoiler: Snip!

I'd rather stick to "phones". To me there's no reason to change the name of it, because despite all its features it's still a phone even if it has a shitload of features.

So, then, by that logic, computers should still be called calculators, right?

If you want to call them calculators, then fine. It's not affecting me. If people like you want to call phones something else like comms, then go for it as long as you don't gasp when people like me continue to call them phones. It won't matter because it's merely colloquial in the end.

Really, who cares what they're called.

Uhm, people who favor logic? It just seems so out of place for me to call them phones anymore, as I see more texting and photo sharing than actual calls nowadays. Hell, I had a friend pick up his phone, tell me he was busy doing something, and asked me to text him instead.

I raged so hard.

People who favour logic? Oh my goodness. Is it really that important that we call them something other than phones?

As I said, you can call them something other than "phones" if you like, I won't really care. Personally I think that it's not worth worrying about what they're called.

I think it's important to allay confusion. Imagine it like this; Let's say aliens hit the planet. We show them our 'phones'. They scratch their head, think of us as backwoods hicks, and leave us to be wiped out by the coming space plague, deeming us too stupid to exist any longer.

Ok, that's a reach, and honestly, I'm not seriously up in arms about it or anything, I just find it silly and contradictory to call them phones when they're used more as telegraphs now.

But fair enough. I will call them Leela's Arm Thingies (LAT's) or Comms from now on. Please continue to call them whatever you wish as well. ^_^

Don't be surprised or condescending toward me. Change takes a long time, you know.

Who knows, in about 50 years we'll probably be calling them comms anyway.

Oh, that's it, I'm throwing you a surprise party where all the presents are simple toys, with simple instructions, that I will explain to you slowly and partly in baby-talk.

I kid, I kid, but I think you're right. I don't think they'll have the phone moniker for too much longer, like you said, maybe 50 years or so.

That'll probably be the case. If it wasn't for the fact that "phones" is the current widely-accepted moniker, I'd most likely call them "comms" as well. It just seems to fit. I only feel like calling them "phones" at the moment because if I called them something other than "phone" or "mobile", I'd get a funny look from the person I'm talking to.

But... that's the fun part... 6_6

I'd rather stick to "phones". To me there's no reason to change the name of it, because despite all its features it's still a phone even if it has a shitload of features.

So, then, by that logic, computers should still be called calculators, right?

well technically, anything that has a processor chip and computes information are calculators as such. so really you can call any electrioic device a calculator

Thanks, Captain Smart-Alec. 9_9

(I kid. I agree. ^_^)

In Australia they are called Mobile Phones. And that is what they are; mobile phones. Why should we change it?

Well, ok, Mobile/cell differences aside, the reason I'd like to see it changed is because they do so much more now, as I mentioned in the OP. It's like calling a modern car a horseless carriage. It's kinda silly, because while in the past, yes, that's what it was, it's now so much more, what with phones in them, GPS, HUDs, electrical outlets, etc, etc.

That's what I was getting at.

.. Calling a car a horseless carriage? It's called an automobile, or car for short basically. Cars have GPS, radios, stereo systems- but they are still cars. Mobile/cell phones have cameras, gps, internet capabilities- but they are still mobile phones. What would you want to call them?

In all seriousness though, who cares. Stop calling your PC a computer and call it a calculator then.

I will, now. ^_^

And did you even read my OP? It says what I think they should be called.

As for the horseless carraige/car comparison, I'll give that one up, as it was the only thing I could think of at the time to try and get my point across.

 

[Pendy]

There are cars out there now that have built in phones/built in GPS systems and can play MP3's/CD's/DVD's/Blu-rays/video games. And yet when I see one of those, as opposed to a car that's a lot more stripped down, I'm not "confused". The same goes for my PS3 that can play CD's/DVD's/Blu-rays and browse the web. It's still primarily a gaming system just like the Wii that sits next to it. Just because cell phones or mobile phones or whatever they call them in Germany has lot more gimmicky stuff they can do now, does not mean we need to change the name to alleviate this supposed confusion going on.

Coms would be a great name...for people who like Star Trek. I believe the rest of us red shirts will be continue to call them phones of some nature.

 

[PureChaos]

mine is my phone, that's all i use it for/it does so calling it 'my phone' works perfectly well

 

[Verlander]

Most people I know call it a phone as that is it's primary function, and landlines are becoming more and more obsolete. No one in the UK calls them cellphones unless they are American tourists

 

[Sion_Barzahd]

The more technical ones are just called smart phones, others are mobiles, easy enough.

Don't try fixing what ain't broken.

 

[manaman]

They have already been trying to differentiate regular cellphones from the mobile wonder devices by calling them Smartphones.

It doesn't seem to be catching well since nobody has mentioned this yet.

That's because it still has phone in it, and giving just one app of the product as the name is well, imo... kinda stupid.

The major function and the only one they all do universally well (except possibly the iPhone and a couple of blackberrys) is the normal phone crap. Messages, and voice calls. On most phones everything else feels a bit tacked on.

Sure some things shine on some phones. I will give the iPhone credit, it does have a shiny interface, but the camera sucks, most of the apps are just gimmicks, the browser is laggy and when I checked it out crash prone when you tried to view full sites (not mobile versions) it can't replace a computer, it's not an efficient game system.

Most people only use the camera, media players, and game on their phones because they always have the device with them, as stand alone device designed to do the same functions do them many times better.

You might not use the phone as often anymore, but that is still what the device is: A phone with stuff attached. Historically devices that worked the other way around have failed. Check out the Nokia game system that was also a phone if you want an example.

Now that trend is changing as they are able to shove fancier pieces of electronics into your hand. The next few years or so may just see more media oriented devices that also have phone functions, but until they can build out a simple board that houses everything you need for the phone operation on the network in a fairly standardized package then you are going to have the devices be phones first, with everything designed around that.

Fair enough, but with the proliferation of texting, I'd be more inclined to call them texters than phones. I, quite literally, see 20 people texting for every one on the phone.

I need to stop writing up things so late at night. I just read that over again in your quote, I'm not completely sure how you gleaned what I intended out of that, but kudos to you for being able to do so.

I lump texting in with the normal phone functions, SMS has been around for a very, very long time. The first phone I had, could store 10 phone numbers, and had an 12 digit display. Only a couple of years later I got another phone with a digital LCD display and it had SMS functionality.

SMS is a rip off anyway. Say you pay the $5 for 250 messages sent and received. Even if all of those messages contained the 140 bytes max That is still only .035 MB or 35KB of data. Think about that the next time your mobile provider tries to rip you off by charging you $20 a month for unlimited messages. Or about 140KB of data for the more average 1000 messages sent and received by a teenager. Think about that, then take a look at how much your provider charges you for a MB of data. Much better off just using IM programs on smartphones and telling the providers to screw over someone else.

 

[Tharwen]

Well, lets not call laptops 'laptops' any more either, because using them on your lap burns your legs and breaks the hard drive.

I agree that most of the time, my phone is just a miniature laptop for me, and I hardly ever use the 'phone' function. Maybe a new name would be accurate. No-one would use it though.

 

[Mcface]

How about annoying?
I have had the same cellphone for 4 years. It cost me 20 bucks, and it has never broken.

My friends go through 2-3 Black Berries or some other shits in a few months.

 

[Danny Ocean]

Pretty basic question here; since cellphones are now basically personal computers/cameras/phones/etc, kinda like Leela's arm thingy, should they be called something else?

Omni-Tools!

With a bit of tinkering we could basically have those anyway!

 

[swolf]

I'd say they're like Swiss Army Knives. Yeah, they have so many other functions but, take away all the fancy stuff, and it's just a cell phone...unless you have bad service and then it's just a paperweight with a clock on it. If it does get changed, it should be to "things that annoy me" since people insist on showing me only the dumbest Iphone apps that they could possibly find acting like it's the coolest thing ever. Wow, your phone pretends it's a beer? I don't care, that was a minute of my life that I will never get back. Instead of watching that stupid animation, I could've been...I dunno, drinking an actual beer or something. Other than that, they're fine...I do like the IGun app video on youtube. The one where the guy has road rage. That was hilarious. Could somebody post that for others to enjoy please?

 

[Abedeus]

No. I use mine for two things - call people and play Sudoku when I'm bored and don't have my DS next to me.