Bye bye smart phones, we don't need you

We have done it. The impossible? The inconceivable? We have switched from our iPhones to "real" cell phones. No more data plans. No more Internet, Facebook, GPS, picture SMS. Oh what will we ever do? The answer: nothing. We'll use our new phones to make calls. Imagine that. Oh yeah, and of course text, though neither E nor I wants to do as much texting with the keyboards our phones have. It's not as easy now.

E made the first step about a month ago. He had been complaining about his smart phone for weeks until he finally got fed up and took my old Motorola Razor phone to our cell phone provider and changed his plan, removing his chip from his iPhone. He could still use his iPhone to play music in the car and at home, as well as use the Internet on it, but everything else is gone. Does he miss it? No. Not at all.

So instead of missing his phone, E has only made comments about how much better the "old" phone is in comparison to his smart phone. He's really happy with his decision and encouraged me to do the same if I wanted to.

Today I took the plunge. I had been thinking about making the change for the past few weeks, and today I did it. I bought an old school Nokia cell phone. No camera. No frills. No nothing. I actually wonder if I went to the extreme, though the phone is of great quality. Anyway, we have less than 3 months before our cell phone contract is up and we were going to discontinue the use of iPhones at that time, so what's 80 days? I have a camera if I want to take pictures. I have a computer if I want to check my e-mail and/or go on-line. Who needs a GPS on a phone if there's one in the car? And actually having a phone whose battery doesn't die after 2 hours of wonderful.

I am going to keep my iPhone and take it with me to Brazil since I use it as an iPod, but I'm unsure if I'll use it as a phone there. I guess we'll see how safe I feel carrying around an expensive phone in my pocket.

E has decided to sell his iPhone now since it has a cracked screen and it has been sitting on the counter since he began using the Motorola. I do think, however, that he will buy another smart phone again in the future.

When we get to Brazil we'll make the decision as to the best phones and cell phone plan for us. At least in the meantime I'll spend a lot less time on my phone. I'm almost looking forward to not being so dependent on it.