12
Jun
Just when we feel comfortable enough to say “wow, cell phones have really changed the way we operate,” things get even weirder. Here are 10 facts about cells from around the world that show the scale and style of our contemporary global use; sometimes for bad, but sometimes for real, cool, innovative good.
1. There Are LOTS of Them
There are half as many active cell phones on the planet as there are people. When you think of the general wealth distribution across the planet, it’s pretty remarkable to have over 3.3 billion active mobiles. Then again, Luxembourg’s mobile phone penetration rate is 158%. Yep - that’s 158 active cell phones for every 100 people.
2. And They Make a Mess
125+ million phones are discarded every year. Given the rate at which people go through cell phones (Koreans replace on average every 11 months), it’s easy to see how the environmental side can get out of control. At least there’s gold in the garbage! Yarr.
3. M-Voting in Estonia
While the 2008 US election is abuzz with web penetration, E-stonia’s been leading the global technopolitical charge. As Lithuania books a seat on the e-voting (online voting) train, Estonia’s letting mobile phones both act as a convenient vote delivery platform, but also a personal identity confirmation, ushering in a new era of what is being called “m-voting”.
4. Koreans Love to Text Message. Seriously.
Korean teenagers between 15 and 19 years of age send well over 20,000 text messages a year, on average (60.1 texts per day). I don’t care how fast StarCraft has made your fingers - that’s a lot of time that could have been spent… I dunno… talking to people. According to the Korea Times in February 2006, “over 30% of South Korean students send 100 text messages a day”.
5. The First Cell Phone Came Out in 1983
Well, at least, the first to get FCC acceptance. It was called the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. Before you lolz at the cheesebag name, wait until you hear what it stands for: Dynamic Adaptive Total Area Coverage. Kinda endearing, I guess. They sound… proud.
6. Cell Phone… Or Flashlight?
Lost power? Sneaking back into bed? According to a Sprint survey, just under two-thirds of cell phone users use the backlight as a flashlight. A testament to human ingenuity! I guess it’s obvious, in a way. And here I thought I was being clever.
7. You Can Get Stuffed Into a Locker Through Your Phone
Ok, not really, but apparently text message bullying is on the rise in England. As an online anti-cyber-bullying guide explains, text message bullying allows for abuse around the clock. You want to pick on some kid, he’s available 24/7. It’s like those massive Blackberry ads at airports that boast that you now never have to leave the office. Bullying has never been more efficient!
8. Cell Phones Can Help Stop Nuclear Terrorism
Using solid-state radiation sensors, researchers at Purdue University are working to allow network of properly set up cell phones to track the presence of radioactive material. Since likely targets for terrorist attacks are major urban centers, and since most people have cell phones, this system could help collectively find out where the problem lies.
9. Used for National Disaster Response
Mobiles are more useful during an emergency than just for calling loved ones. Other countries have adopted systems whereby phone companies automatically warn citizens of emergencies/disasters - free of charge. Finland, in 2005, adopted such a system, as did Japan.
10. Half of Japan’s Top Fiction Was Written on Mobile Phones
Absolutely nuts. Turning the publishing industry on its head, this trend’s subscriber models are thriving and making significant money for aspiring writers, in turn fueling the phenomenon. Authors tend to be young women sharing fictionalized aspects of their lives. Five of the top ten works of fiction in 2007 were written on mobile phones. Japan, you never cease to amaze me.
June 12th, 2008 at 11:18 am
Hey! The building shown in 3rd topic here is not in Estonia - it is in Latvia, Riga, Aspasia blv. 5. And it is not related any way to Estonia technology, in fact it is a building of the faculty of Economics and Management of the University of Latvia.
June 12th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
I can’t read this in IE, the pictures block the text.
June 12th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
All I know is I am totally lost without my Blackberry!
JT
http://www.FIreMe.To/udi
June 12th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
I’m one of the rare sort of people that do not own a cellphone, but also do not wish to own one. They’re handy, but I’m just not that social. I do find the mobile phone phenomenon to be fascinating, especially the way its integrated into several societies like in Japan in Korea.
June 12th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
I love to dip my afro in diarrhea!
June 12th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
To Janis: Haha, Latvia! My girlfriend/fiance is from Riga! ha ha.
1. How many of them still exist? The reason is that they are old and out of date! How many junk cars are there in the world? I’d like to see that number.
2. Sure the phones make a mess, but what about the chargers??? Until recently most of them were proprietary, and most ended up in the trash due to defective parts long before the phone ended up in the bin
3. Nothing new, American Idol has been doing it for how many years?
4. Ever ran up an $800 bill on text messaging charges alone? I have ha ha - Thank you very much AIM
6. doesn’t work too well when you turn the brightness down to save battery unfortunately… ha ha - i’ve tried and realized “damn my power-saving habbits!”
7. How did i not know about this? O wait, course i did. Remember that chick who killed herself from being bullied on myspace by a neighbor down the street…. If there is a way to communicate, there will be a way to bully.
8. Shame that many of these projects do not come to light because a lack of interest/support from the phone manufacturers. Interesting bot-net idea there. Course text-messaging alone could probably help prevent/alert terrorism acts…… “dude, a gigantic missile just flew over my house!!!”
9. Most colleges after the virgina tech massacre have adopted text message alert systems here in the united states.
Sorry, just had to make a few comments
June 12th, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Loved the old Motorola phone!!! lol It is great!
June 12th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
sick burn.
June 12th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
10 Things You Probably Didnt Know About Cell Phones | nerdd.net…
\r\nJust when we feel comfortable enough to say wow, cell phones have really changed the way we oper…
June 12th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
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June 12th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
11. Apple apparently has re-invented the phone … so the cycle begins again …
June 12th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
@dathump: Get a real browser then! IE sucks. Go do yourself a favor and download Firefox!
June 12th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
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June 12th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
I worship my JesusPhone…
June 12th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
i just came across http://stuffididlastnight.com
HILARIOUS!
June 12th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
[…] read more […]
June 12th, 2008 at 7:55 pm
[…] about cells from around the world that show the scale and style of our contemporary global use.read more | digg […]
June 12th, 2008 at 9:16 pm
Not including the anti-privacy facts here is pretty lame. How about the fact the with the chips now required in all new phones, the US military can shut down or spy on your location BY DESIGN, even if you’re in Asia or Europe?
June 12th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
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June 12th, 2008 at 10:50 pm
Hey …. who says IE sucks . I can read this article perfectly using IE
June 12th, 2008 at 10:52 pm
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June 12th, 2008 at 11:18 pm
I was born and raised in Toronto and have had a cellphone for over 6 years. Text messaging here is 15cents per message.
Last summer, I traveled to South, Korea and got a cellphone there. Text messaging there only costs a 5th of that. (3cents)
My text messaging increased to about 50 text messages per month. IT’S ADDICTIVE!
June 13th, 2008 at 12:56 am
What’s with the Japanese and mobile phone fiction? Maybe there’s an educational use for text messages. History facts, language facts, times tables and so on. Worth a thought?
June 13th, 2008 at 3:51 am
[…] about cells from around the world that show the scale and style of our contemporary global use.read more | digg story This post has been read 1 […]
June 13th, 2008 at 5:14 am
One of the 10 things YOU didn’t know seems to be that the first cell phone call as actually made in April of 1973 not 1983. It was made by Dr Martin Cooper (Motorola) and the call he made was to his rival, Joel Engel, Bell Labs.
June 13th, 2008 at 5:29 am
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June 13th, 2008 at 7:02 am
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June 13th, 2008 at 7:11 am
Montenegro has 2:1 cellphone to people ratio
Or something close to that..it’s a small balkan country,and,trust me,if you dont have a cell there,you are nothing
June 13th, 2008 at 8:11 am
The Japanese? They are heavily into escapism. If you lived in a chicken coop like most of them do, you would try to escape for awhile too, even if only in the head. Having a society that still highly values conformity means escapism is a nautural reaction.
June 13th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
DONT USE IE THEN!
June 13th, 2008 at 4:18 pm
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June 13th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
[…] Cell phones are amazing, in the way it changed our lives completely, and how it rapidly transformed from a symbol of status owned only by a handful of people to a device owned by almost half of the world population with over 3.3 active cell phone as of today. […]
June 13th, 2008 at 9:24 pm
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June 14th, 2008 at 12:31 am
Hardly anyone recycles electronics and most of my friends can barely keep a phone for 4-6 months. So cell phones are a huge environmental problem.
June 14th, 2008 at 12:39 am
That’s guy in #5 holding the brick, he’s waned by the FBI. Do you have his number?
June 14th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
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June 14th, 2008 at 8:35 pm
I have some Korean friends. Yes. They are absolutely #1 in SMS.
June 16th, 2008 at 10:32 am
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June 16th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
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June 18th, 2008 at 2:59 am
Lost my cell phone once.. it was horrible.. felt handicapped for a while.. hehe.. and yupp even i have reached 110 text msgs a day record once..
June 18th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
The comment about 20k text a year? I can do that in a month… 20,214 in 1 month… And talk 16,321 minutes a month.. Addict? Prolly.. But that’s why I have a blackberry.. With unlimited everything..
June 20th, 2008 at 6:09 am
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June 20th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
How bloody sad you idiots are, saying how you could not live without your blackberry!!! You need a kick up in the arse. Get a life.
June 24th, 2008 at 8:50 am
I see dead people.
June 27th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
nice post.
June 28th, 2008 at 9:42 am
That was a pretty good read. Korean kids sure love the text message.
June 29th, 2008 at 5:33 am
[…] en todos los rincones del mundo provoca situaciones de lo más surrealistas a diario. He aquí una recopilación de 10 cosas que probablemente no sepas acerca de […]
June 30th, 2008 at 2:36 am
I am ashamed to admit that I’m right up there with Korean teenagers in the texting department. I really should call someone sometime.
July 29th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
It seems like it would be easier to call someone right? But think the thing is that its cooler to text them!
hahaha! Great post!
August 20th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
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August 24th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
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August 31st, 2008 at 7:57 pm
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September 2nd, 2008 at 11:15 am
Great article.
September 2nd, 2008 at 5:30 pm
In Australia about 10% of automatic teller machines use the mobile phone network for alarms or transactions. That percentage is growing due to the high costs of wired services and cabling.