Smartphones are quite possibly the hottest gadgets available right now – especially among college students – but are they for everyone?
Smartphones are phones with data plans that allow users the ability to access the internet, as well as a variety of different applications. Each application provides a specific task which it carries out. For example, the Facebook application allows users to access their Facebook profiles. Another helpful application that can be used is the GPS to give users directions if they are lost.

The uses of these phones are not limited to internet access and applications only though. Many of these phones have a hard drive with enough space to double as a video/MP3 player. They also usually come with cameras that can take high-quality video and pictures.

The main smartphones today are the Blackberry, Google’s Android, Microsoft’s Windows Phone and the most popular of the smartphones – Apple’s iPhone. Most of these phones are available through different service providers. Most cellular service providers offer smartphone options.
Daniel Lobran uses a Blackberry during his work as an Econ Analyst at a steel company. He says smartphones are only necessity if you are a “business” professional. “I think we have to look at what we define as necessity. Don’t get me wrong, I think smartphones are great, but it depends on your situation. If you’re someone who works on deadlines, constantly needs to check email or needs to work on the go, then you could say they are a necessity.” Lobran went on to say, “Think about the basic needs in life; shelter, food and staying warm. I’m not ready to put smartphones in that category, but it seems like the rest of country is.”

Mike Caro, 19, a liberal arts major from Levittown, enjoys his iPhone. For him, the appeal of having internet access and the ability to use the applications on the smartphones made it a no-brainer. He likes being able to use the phone to “keep boredom away,” and the application he enjoys using the most is the GPS, due to how handy it becomes in daily life.

Another smartphone user, Connor McGill, says he “doesn’t know how he ever lived without it.” McGill, 19, who is a nursing major from Holland, enjoys the internet accessibility and the applications and claims to have almost become independent on how useful it is. “One of the most convenient things is being able to download applications on the spot,” says McGill.

However, the smartphones aren’t necessarily for everyone. The data plans for these phones usually are between $30 and $40 per month, which can certainly add up to be an expensive chunk of change over the course of a year. However, most smartphone users can justify the cost of it.
Michael Puccio, a 19-year-old secondary historical education major from Trevose, says the smartphone appeals to him, even though he doesn’t have one. “I find the thing that appeals most to me about smartphones is you can go on the internet and have access to useful applications.” Puccio is planning to move out and would rather save his money, so he chooses not to get a smartphone, though he is very fond of the concept.

There is no denying the impact that peers and even the cellphone service providers have on the smartphone craze. CNBC reports that close to 40 percent of college students have a smartphone and the number is rising monthly. Some folks haven’t taken too kindly to the idea of being pushed into getting a smartphone.

“We live in a weak minded society; everyone thinks they need a smartphone, but people just want to fit in with what everyone else is doing” says Pat Rogers, 20, a business major from Huntington Valley. “Smartphones are just another example of our society spending money on things we think we need, but really for most people there is no need whatsoever.”

“With every major phone company offering their own form of smartphone, temptation certainly can come into play when purchasing a phone,” Jason Roth, 20, a marketing major from Warminster says, “When I went to the phone store a couple weeks ago because my phone broke, the people at the store were pushing me real hard to just get a new smart phone. They made a lot of good arguments and the phones can do some cool stuff, but at the end of the day it was just way to expensive. I can’t afford $100 per month for a phone.”

The smartphone appeals to most people. Most users enjoy the convenience of the applications and the ability to access the internet. They seem to be able to justify the cost of the phone and the data plan because the phone has almost become a part of their daily lives.

Whether or not one owns a smartphone yet doesn’t quite matter, but it’s hard to deny the fact that smartphones are definitely going to continue to rise in popularity.