Living without a mobile/cell phone

On September 4, my Bell Mobility cell phone service will be terminated, and I have no replacement service planned at this time. I'm simply fed up with Canada's mobile phone carriers, their outrageous prices, and their persistent attempts to deny us customers any freedom of choice whatsoever in phone selection and pricing. The rates are so bad that you either need to get a big plan to avoid paying exorbitant costs just in case you use the phone at one time more often than you normally would, or cut down to a minimum plan which unfortunately will not protect you against surprise charges such as receiving junk text messages at 15 cents a pop.

So how many here don't carry a mobile/cell phone and are living perfectly happy and healthy lives? And how about those of you who've decided to quit cold turkey? How was the transition from "With" to "Without?" Do you find you now have more time for yourself and your family by not being "on call" all the time? Or have you become a social outcast because your entourage can no longer reach you on a whim?

Or will I end up like that character in the Woody Allen movies who constantly calls his telephone answering service to inform them where he can be reached?

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

Cell phones are a very recent plague on humanity. People lived just fine without them just a few years ago. I think you'll be fine.

I carry one for emergencies, but it's generally turned off. I don't feel like I'm missing a thing.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I like my cell phone, but if I had to go without one, it wouldn't be much of a sacrifice.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I didn't have a cell phone my first three years of college (2001-2004) while living in dorms, but once I moved off-campus, I got one because it was cheaper than getting a land line. The university had a special plan, $15 for 300 minutes and only $.05/minute if you went over. Since I left college, I got a prepaid plan where I pay $.10/minute, and I only use 150-200 minutes/month, so I only pay up to $20/month.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I happily live without a cell phone, and curse the one I have to carry for work.

If I'm not home, don't bug me!

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I gave up a cell phone when I retired in 2006. It would be nice in an emergency but most of the wilderness areas here in Idaho don't have cell phone coverage anyway. There's always smoke signals, and of course I carry a .38 "communicator" which translates what you are trying to get across into any known language (including cougar and bear).

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I have yet to own a cell phone in my 33 years roaming this planet and I don't plan on getting one in the future either. I don't find that not having a cell phone hinders on my freedom or mobility.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

Although I own a cell phone, I only use it in very rare cases, like being abroad and if I need to call someone who's number is stored in it.

Most of the time (like now), it's switched off and lying in a drawer.

I'm fine.


Cees

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I'm happy using my Virgin Mobile cell phone only rarely, and paying less than 7 bucks a month.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I am 30, single, and I have a life. You do the math

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H

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

No cell phone here... never had one and I can't see myself ever having one.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I carry a Blackberry for work and have a personal cell phone (Blackjack II)- mainly for emergencies since I drive almost 100 miles per day. I absolutely HATE phones... any and all kinds, I'm not particular. Unfortunately, my job often necessitates the need for mobile communication, but the IT department has a policy of disabling the phone portion of the standard issue Blackberry unless you are a field support technician. (I am an onsite customer support technician, so my Blackberry is only used for company email and service support software.) I use my own cell phone for anything else.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I used to have a phone for work, but after I quit that job I swore I'd never own another one. I haven't owned once since and am perfectly happy without one.

I almost pulled the trigger on an iPhone when they first came out but changed my mind. I'll probably just get an iPod touch instead.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I had one for about a year.

Got rid of it over 2 years ago and dont miss it at all.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I also have a pay-as-you-go phone (Verizon. Edit: it's Virgin Mobile, not Verizon. Opp's!). You only need to add $20 every three months to keep it active and my company gives me $10 a month to use it (rarely) for business so I come out ahead. Besides, I run around in two old convertibles on the weekend, one of which is a Fiat so a tool box in the trunk and a cell phone in the glove box are mandatory! Otherwise, I don't use it much, but it's nice to have.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

A cell phone is like any other small personal device, you run it, or you let it run you. I elect to do the former. Cell phones are good to have in the event of an emergency (when you are in areas of service, of course). I've got a blackberry have also doubles as a music (MP3) player, or video player during exercise. I can play poker (and other games) on it if I'm bored and need a distraction. I don't pick up a call if I don't feel like it.

I think people have this reflex to automatically answer a phone call on their personal time. The sooner you rid yourself of that reflex, the more a cell phone looks less like an invasion to your personal time. I put my cell phone on vibrate, and if it vibrates when it's on my person, I'll decide if I want to take the call or not. If I don't hear it vibrate, it goes to voice mail. Not a big deal.

If the cost of cell phone ownership is getting you down, look for the pay-as-you-go options (as others have suggested). Owning a cell phone shouldn't put you in the poor house.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

My pay-as-you-go phone expired two years ago - the sad point being that those "pre-paid" minutes have an expiration date. But I still have the physical phone. IIUC in the US you can still place 911 calls with a deactivated cell phone so you can use that for true emergencies (i.e. NOT car breakdowns etc.). I'm not sure how this plays out in Canada.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

Exactly.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

Patrick, as Dennis mentioned, many service providers impose time limits on Pay As You Go credit. In other words, use it or lose it. To me, that's not a good deal at all. It's like a bank keeping my money if I don't spend it before a set date.

I'm truly fed up dealing with thieves.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

With T-Mobile, once you buy $100 worth of minutes, you become a Gold Member and your minutes don't expire for one year. You can add as little as $10/year, so I don't think that's a bad deal at all.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I don't look at it that way at all. To me, $7 a month is fair price to have a cell phone available, should I chose to use it. I look at it as a service fee, much like internet access and cable/ satellite service. You pay for it, even if you don't use it. And I'm not sure, but I think Virgin Mobile is rolling over my minutes (I'll look into this). They want $20 (edit: it's now $15) every three months just to make sure it's still an active account.

Now, one of those $40 a month for 300 minutes plans would be a waste for me. But my pay-as-you-go is the way to go for me. It's working out very well. But it's not for everyone.

The key is balancing your payment to your needs. And not abusing it. Or letting it abuse you.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

My friend's sister in law just gave her son a cell phone as a gift for his birthday. He just turned six. Pathetic...

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

My biggest regret with cellphones is the change in boundaries. When people were confined to landlines, only a few of the most intense fields required calls to one's home. Work calling the house was considered an invasion into the personal space. But with cellphones, it feels like so many of us are on call 24/7. I take pride in putting in my best effort on the job. But I like the idea of checking out at 5 and having the rest of the day for my time.
There have been a few times with car trouble, etc. where my cell has been a God send. When I was a practicing journalist, the thing was practically another appendage. (One of the things I hated most about the field, actually; I can't count the number of times I found myself crouching on the curb in a busy intersection, scrawling quotes into my pocket notebook.)
Now that I've moved on, I check it a couple times a day and return calls as necessary. But the less I have to think about it, the better. I hope I never need a Blackberry for the same reason.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I don't get this bizarre impulse to always answer the phone when it rings either. I talk to people on the phone at the time of my choosing.

I am also a text ho. Nowadays I text a lot more than I phone. Best invention ever.

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H

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I used to have the "I don't own a cell and i'm perfectly fine" mentality, too. But then I met my best friend here at HTF and she was gracious enough to put me on her plan and I got my first cell, this was almost 3 years ago and i'm now on my third phone.

I love it and use it because she lives in MD and it's the only thing I have that keeps us in communication with each other. Well that, email and texting (total ho too, Holadem) but yeah, i'm one of those who feels naked and adrift in the world if I leave the house without my cell.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I resisted buying a cell phone for a long time. Even for car breakdowns, which other posters have mentioned, I figured I could use the State of California's call-box system. I have used call-boxes before, successfully. Then I read an article in the paper, which said the State has stopped repairing damaged or malfunctioning call-boxes (because it was no longer economically feasible, since so many people use cell phones). So now I carry a cell phone, because even though we still see call-boxes on the freeway, who can know whether they are actually in working condition?

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I cancelled my home phone line 5 years ago. I don't even know my parents phone number, nor do I have it written down. Hope I don't lose my cell phone .

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My brother works for AT&T (in the business services division) and he says this is a big problem for them. Lots of people are cancelling their land lines. Unfortunately, a co-worker was in a pretty serious traffic accident on the freeway last Friday. She'll be alright but her injuries were quite painful. Luckily, someone who stopped to help had a cell phone so paramedics were on the scene in minutes. I'll be more vigilant about carrying it with me (even if it's turned off) because you never know when you can use it to help someone else.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

I’m with Dennis—no cell phone since retiring. As time went on, I really began to dislike the idea more and more that I was expected to be always available.

I cut the cord and (unlike Cees) don’t even have one sitting in the bottom of a desk drawer.

Re: Living without a mobile/cell phone

Without a cell phone, how would a person ever get phone calls? (landline-free for six years and counting)