As an avid user of today's most popular technologies, I can attest to the ever-changing and rapidly advancing computerized world. With each year there comes a newer and better form of communication, whether that be through the release of a new cellphone, laptop, or even watch. Just yesterday (September 9th), Apple announced the release of the iPhone 6, 6plus, and iWatch. This announcement came exactly one year after the iPhone 5s unveiling, which took place on September 10th, 2013. Of course I have to get the new iPhone, I mean mine is now 2 years old so it only makes sense! There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, but like... it's a 5! Apple is playing the game better than any other company in the field. In our rapidly moving technological world, societies require more complex technologies that can offer its users seemingly infinite benefits. Apple seizes these opportunities for success and releases the most desirable products. Because the multi-billion dollar company is so good at replacing its barely outdated products, they are aiding in the growth of obsolete technology. Obsolete technology are those that have become outdated and useless because of newer and improved technology.
The lifespan of a cellphone, whether that phone an apple, LG, or samsung product, has greatly decreased in the past 10 years. In addition to their own individual lifespans, cellphones have also been constructive in making other technologies obsolete. For example, CD players and mp3 players are essentially outdated. Your phone can do anything those products can do, AND more. I haven't owned an iPod outside of my cellphone in at least five years. In a way, it is good that we are decreasing the amount of products that need to be made. Instead of having 4 different gadgets, we only need one or two in order to complete our every day tasks (cellphone and computer). However, I never realized how insanely fast we go through cellphones until we talked about it in lab. Here I am holding this $800 piece of equipment that I'm willing to discard at any given moment, just to spend another $800 (or $200 with an upgrade) on the next best one. How is that we are able to do this when there are tons of toxic e-waste being dumped in China? How do we so effortlessly aid in the pollution of the one world we have? It's astounding that we never really think about the consequences that our technologies have on the natural world. Even when it is brought to our attention, we forget about it shortly after. I know that I'm guilty of that. There are so many arguments for why rapid technological growth is good and bad, exciting and terrifying, uplifting and the root of our demise.
I feel like I have encountered people from both sides of the Hype v Hysteria argument that we actually discussed in lecture. For the most part, I side with the hype crew. This technology is amazing and it allows us to do so many impressive things. For example, I can tell my phone to send an email to my professor, and it will obey my command. Why we need this feature... who knows, but it's incredible and it's only one of the mind-blowing things a smart phone can do. Computers have the ability to recognize their users and access millions of databases within a second and at a click of a button. Tablets, phones, and computers can store documents in the "cloud" so we can view them at our convenience on any piece of technology we own. The possibilities are endless, so what could be so bad about an increasingly tech savvy world? Just like the innumerable benefits, there are hidden negatives. Just to name a few, we focus more on screens than our actual lives, pollution is at its worst because of e-waste, and we are starting to forget how to communicate face to face.
With the continuous development of new gadgets, more and more technology becomes obsolete. I think that with every impressive accomplishment in communicative technology there comes positives and negatives. Maybe instead of constantly ridding of old technologies, we can recycle them to aid in the building of new ones. Therefore, even if they are obsolete, they are not totally useless. Perhaps that will put some of the hysteria to rest.
No comments:
Post a Comment