What is that feeling you get when a new smartphone is announced that you simply must have? It isn’t a feeling I suffer from too much these days, until I got some time with the Nokia Lumia, but I witness it everywhere. I see it on the Clove Blog when manufacturers delay new releases or stocks run out quickly, the big tech news sites and anywhere else where people can chat online. The intense need to have that new device that does almost exactly the same things as the one you already own.
The new phone can be almost identical with just a couple of modifications, but that doesn’t matter because it is new, different and will offer you a slightly different experience. I know people who have driven hundreds of miles to get a new smartphone one day before it would be available. Yes, one day, 24 hours. The ‘need’ is just too much for some, but it isn’t completely irrational.
In fact, the ‘need’ for the newest phone has little to do with the device you want to purchase, but is more related to the one you already own.
When you own a tiny device that will wake you up, manage your calendar, play your music, deal with your email, let you play games, play movies, talk to people, message people, take photos… I could go on.
When you own a tiny device that embeds itself into your daily life so deeply, you always want more and you never want to be missing out on new features that may help you do more things.
A smartphone can be the most used piece of electronics that you use and so it becomes incredibly important to you. Life without it would seem strange and somehow chaotic. That is why you get the buzz and why you ‘must’ try to improve that experience all of the time.
About Shaun McGill