# Do you carry your cell phone with you at home? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 26, 2024, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390 "2024-03-26T14:33:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/181 "2024-03-28T16:46:13Z")
> [@EddyTeddyFreddy](#): > > Well, yeh, of course. That’s as obnoxious as sneering at someone who refuses to dance on the bleeding edge. Live and let live, dammit! Yes. If you don’t want to text, don’t. I know lots of older folks who only do calls. That’s not a problem. If you _do_ want to text, you can’t demand that everyone follow the same etiquette you are used to from making phone calls in your childhood. Text is an asynchronous means of communication, and it has a bunch of features that let you avoid being disturbed when you don’t want to be. Those facts contribute to the etiquette that has developed around texting culture. If you want to text, but don’t want to bother learning how to mute your notifications at night, that’s a _you_ problem, and it is unreasonable to demand that others change their behavior to accommodate. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/182 "2024-03-28T16:57:17Z")
> [@Stratocaster](#): > > > [@enipla](#): > > > > The problem is if you don’t at least keep somewhat up to date, you could be left in the dust. > > What people may be missing is that there are those of us that don’t care if we’re left in the dust re: certain tech advances. Minor quibble though - you can be like my father, who does quite a lot of semi-secure financial business online, or even something simple (hah!) as taxes, but gave me a kneejerk rejection when I mentioned needing to replace his Windows 10 computer which is going out of support next year. No, he doesn’t have dangerous habits, and he’d _probably_ be okay for some time, but if you want to use the tech for business, you should probably make a minimal effort to keep secure and up-to-date. Huge variance in risks, amount of finances, etc will make that calculus different for everyone though. As I said, minor quibble. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/183 "2024-03-28T17:00:54Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > Windows 10 computer which is going out of support next year. Drat! That means I’ll have to switch doing financial stuff to the Win11 laptop rather than the Win10 desktop I restrict to financial stuff and record-keeping. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/184 "2024-03-28T17:02:07Z")
> [@Stratocaster](#): > > What people may be missing is that there are those of us that don’t care if we’re left in the dust re: certain tech advances. It’s not always keeping up to date with certain tech advances. It’s keeping the client (say your phone or computer) still working with the updates on what you are using server side. Not so much being left in the dust, as being left in the ditch. EOL (End Of Life) is a real thing. It may work, it may not. It’s a cat’s cradle. ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/185 "2024-03-28T17:04:06Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > As I said, minor quibble. Very minor, indeed. I happen to agree—info security is critical. For me. Those who understand the risks and don’t care enough to guard against it, that’s their decision. But as pointed out, then don’t bitch when your identity is stolen. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/186 "2024-03-28T17:06:03Z")
Depending on your level of tech-savvy, you can, against Microsoft’s suggestion but not _illegally_ force a non-supported hardware to Windows 11. For my father, I’m planning on doing a visit mid summer 2025 (IIRC end of support is October of 2025) after shopping him a new system, doing the migration with some help from one of my super-tech friends, and putting in Stardock’s Start 10 to keep the interface closer to his current style. > [@Stratocaster](#): > > Very minor, indeed. I happen to agree—info security is critical. For me. And, giving credit where credit is due to you, you were very clear in the section I quoted that it was “certain” tech advances. Not everyone (possibly anyone) needs to be current or cutting edge on _all_ possible new tech options out there. ETA - and back to the main theme of the thread, I’m probably going to ask him to consider a new Android phone at the same time - the econo-smartphone I mentioned having to sync with his new internal medical equipment is running Android 11 and while I’m not deeply worried about compatibility issues I’d like some future proofing. Which reminds me, since I’m authorized on the account now, I should ask if there an future incompatibility issues ahead of time. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/187 "2024-03-28T17:10:08Z")
Microsoft has already started offering to update my Win10 to 11 for free, but my concern is whether there’s enough memory available on the machine to do it. I’ll probably take it in to my regular computer shop so they can assess whether it will work, and do the transition if so. ETA: Having the Win11 laptop has already familiarized me with how that system works, so the transition won’t be as annoying as from Win7 to 10. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/188 "2024-03-28T17:32:01Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > If you don’t want to text, don’t. I know lots of older folks who only do calls. That’s not a problem. I’m fairly sure it would be a problem . Because I’m pretty sure the people I know who _only_ want to text will have a problem if I refuse to text. That’s actually where my problem is - I text because they prefer to text, not because I do. I’ve already accommodated them and some of them ( not nearly all) are unwilling to return the favor. And then get mad when I block them. I can’t imagine they would be ok with me calling them - I’m certain they wouldn’t answer or call me back. Maybe you wouldn’t do that- but that doesn’t mean no one will. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/189 "2024-03-28T17:43:37Z")
I live in “big, scary” Chicago (in the city proper, not a suburb) and I almost never lock my doors. Granted, I have an imposing pit bull that would probably scare ne’er-do-wells off, but, more importantly, I have eagle-eyed neighbors who call me when I do stupid shit like forget to close my garage door (which I have done many a time, to nothing stolen. I figured out that sometimes my door goes almost all the way down but then the sensor trips, thinking something is in the way, and it goes back up.) The car, though – that always gets locked. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/190 "2024-03-28T17:52:32Z")
Yes, my phone lives in my left front pocket, unless I’m in bed. Then it’s on the night stand. That pocket is deep enough that the phone sits entirely “below the fold” (where my leg meets my hip) and i barely notice it. It’s not at all uncomfortable. It sometimes lives briefly in my breast pocket, but only briefly. > [@wolfpup](#): > > I think you have the cell phone confused with the internet. No, my cell phone is how i mostly choose to interact with the Internet. It’s also my step counter and my flashlight. Oh, and my camera. I don’t really use it for phone calls, unless I’m out of the house. I avoid giving out the number. I use a landline at home for phone calls. I really didn’t buy it to be a phone. I never had a dumb cell phone. I bought it to be a portable email and Internet device. > [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > I can certainly see why some people would want to, and why others would not want to. What I don’t see is the need to make a religious war out of it, nor to insist that the way you do it is the way that everyone should. This Anyway, I’m typing this reply on my phone. The cat majority of my interaction with the sdmb is via my phone. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/191 "2024-03-28T17:56:22Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > The cat majority Lord help us if we ever give them the vote. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/192 "2024-03-28T18:13:30Z")
Based on the number of cat owners (or owned), cat avatars, and the explicit instructions of my local house panthers, their soft power (paw-er?) is more than sufficient. And based on personal experience, they couldn’t be bothered to exert an overt power when their current level of control is more than sufficient. 🐈 😵‍💫 ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/193 "2024-03-28T18:15:53Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > The cat majority of my interaction with the sdmb is via my phone. A fair amount of my interaction with the sdmb does have to do with cats. I don’t think it’s the majority, though I might be wrong – especially if we count the times I’m interacting with a cat while trying to type about something else. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/194 "2024-03-28T19:08:26Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Yes, my phone lives in my left front pocket, unless I’m in bed. Then it’s on the night stand. That pocket is deep enough that the phone sits entirely “below the fold” (where my leg meets my hip) and i barely notice it. It’s not at all uncomfortable. Yeah, my phone is on the nightstand charging when in bed. As far as pockets, well if I put it in my pocket, I would have to stand and dig it out of my pocket to answer it. with a holster, I just pop it off. No need to stand. And if I need to add something to it’s calendar or text someone, same deal. I like that about not putting it a pocket. My pockets are not full, but they do have a place for things. The phone is not one of the things. What ever works for anyone is great of course. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/195 "2024-03-28T20:01:01Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > > [@Babale](#): > > > > > [@wolfpup](#): > > > > > > The curse of the smartphone, as a perversion of the genuinely useful cell phone, is that it’s immersed an entire generation in a virtual reality instead of the real world. > > > > The world people access through cell phones is just as real as anything else humans create, like nations and societies and currencies. These are all fictions that we all pretend are real, which makes them so. > > What I’m referring to here is the generation of people who miss out on life by constantly having their attention glued to their stupid phones. People who attend spectacular events and miss a lot of it because they’re taking pictures and texting back and forth with their friends about how great it all is. I was at a very fine sushi bar some time ago – the kind where the sushi chef’s expertise is part of the experience, along with the beauty of the finished product – and some idiot nearby was constantly taking pictures of the sushi and, judging from the relentless tapping on the phone, exchanging texts about it with her friends. It was annoying, yes, but also rather sad. Yeah, here’s a better dissection of that POV: **[Full article here](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/social-media-kids-parents-1.7158074)**, but just the opening paragraphs: > What happens when the generation of kids whose parents shared all their milestones online gets older and starts using social media themselves? > > Several Ontario school boards are [suing](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-school-boards-sue-social-media-giants-1.7158033) some of the largest social media companies, alleging the way they’re designed has negatively rewired the way children think and behave. > > But some experts say the onus is also on parents to reflect on their own social media use. > > Not only are parents modelling social media habits to their children with their own excessive use — half of the parents surveyed in a [new study](https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2024/03/11/how-teens-and-parents-approach-screen-time/pi_2024-03-11_teens-and-screens_0-12/) admitted spending too much time on their phones, for instance — but they’re also sharing information about their own kids online, said Emma Duerden, an assistant professor and Canada Research Chair in neuroscience and learning disorders at Western University. > > “They’re showing their children, ‘This is what you do as an adult.’” > > And those children are learning that their parents are getting a lot of attention from it, she said. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/196 "2024-03-28T20:34:39Z")
I have a laptop. I have a landline. I have a new cellphone. I rarely use my laptop. It’s older at this point but still works fine. I rarely use it because I don’t have to. I have a computer that fits in my pocket. The landline came with the cable/internet package. I don’t even know the number. I have my cellphone with me all the time. Why wouldn’t I? It’s a very useful tool. Much more convenient than a computer. I’m never bothered at night because setting it that way was extremely easy. It charges next to me when I sleep because it’s my alarm clock. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/197 "2024-03-28T21:00:46Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > As far as pockets, well if I put it in my pocket, I would have to stand and dig it out of my pocket to answer it. with a holster, I just pop it off. I may wear my pants loser than your wear yours. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/198 "2024-03-28T21:42:09Z")
Somehow, boasting how you lose your pants seems out of place. 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/199 "2024-03-28T22:07:45Z")
Eh, i have covid and a fever right now. I might have made they typo even without swype to blame. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2024, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390/200 "2024-03-28T22:26:41Z")
One of the first things I do when I get a new phone is set the default notification sound to silent. Only people I know get to make a noise when they text me. That isn’t even about waking me up, as a notification sound generally isn’t enough to do that. It’s more so I don’t get sounds when I get the occasional spam text. I find that whether people text at night or not varies, as does whether they want to receive texts at night. If we actually text back and forth, you likely know my preferences and vice versa, so I don’t find it to be much of a problem. I do note that my phone has an option to press and hold on the send button, and then choose to send the text at a specific time. So, if I am worried I’ll wake someone up, I can schedule the text to go out later when I know they’ll be up. The fact that feature exists tells me some people do still care about the time they get texts. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-carry-your-cell-phone-with-you-at-home/999390.md?page=11)