# While in the office, where do you keep your smartphone? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 16, 2019, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634 "2019-04-16T16:52:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2019, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/21 "2019-04-17T05:40:15Z")
In my hand, usually. There’s nothing much to do in the office except play on my phone. ---
**Author:** ![lawf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@lawf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawf)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2019, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/22 "2019-04-17T07:04:59Z")
Thankfully, I dont gotta worry about theft. I keep it right beside my computer. If I’m busy, I just flip it over such that the backside of the phone faces me/up. That way, I can ignore notifications even when the phone is on silent. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2019, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/23 "2019-04-17T07:59:34Z")
I found a cute leather phone holder on a long shoulder strap. I wear that. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2019, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/24 "2019-04-17T09:26:01Z")
In one of the phone lockers\* scattered around the outside of secure areas, or outside in my truck. If taken into a secure area (even accidentally) it will be taken from me, unlocked, and all texts, pictures, etc downloaded for later examination by security personnel. I’m very nervous about taking it through the wrong door, so I often just leave it in the truck. If working in the white-world, I can keep it at my desk. \*Like lockers in a bus station, only smaller. You put your phone/pad inside, lock it and keep the key with you until the end of the day. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2019, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/25 "2019-04-17T09:38:48Z")
There are hundreds of people where I work. My phone is in my pocket unless I plug it into my PC to charge. When I do that I just leave it on my desk, often for hours. Sometimes I go out for lunch and leave it charging. Phones on desks are a pretty common sight at work and I have never heard of one being stolen. Quite the opposite, once in a while an email will go out trying to find an owner for a phone left in a kitchen or bathroom. You do require a security pass to get in the building. ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2019, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/26 "2019-04-17T13:29:24Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Not “most convenient” for me, it’s actually the only one. A couple of years ago they made us all switch from RSA hard tokens to the phone app. I’ve had a few mornings where I got to work and realized I left my phone at home, and had to drive back home to get it. Otherwise I’m not getting logged in! (Good thing work and home are only about five minutes apart.) We still have the option of hard token, mobile push, mobile passcodes, certs (for select systems while you’re on campus) and a frustrating voice verification option that I’ve never really figured out. The mobile push is the easiest for me. And since I have to have my phone to get back to my desk after visiting the bathroom, it’s really never left alone to be stolen. (it’s my ID card which is in my phone case I need, not the actual phone, but still) ETA - it’s pretty impossible for me to forget my phone at home, because my ID card, which lives in my phone case, is also my subway pass, so I have to back track if I don’t have my phone. I’ve only gotten as far as the subway a handful of times in 15 years. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2019, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/27 "2019-04-17T15:13:02Z")
In my backpack in my locker. I don’t use it for company business. If anyone at work wants to talk to me, they can come to my desk. ---
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/28 "2019-04-18T04:12:57Z")
I leave it on my desk when I’m at my desk. When I leave my desk, it goes with me. Even (or especially) when I go to the bathroom. It would not even occur to me for it to be stolen though. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/29 "2019-04-18T07:59:08Z")
There are only a few staff in my company and I get my own office with a door, so theft isn’t really a problem. I usually dump my pockets (phone, keys, wallet, epinephrine) on top of a waist-height filing cabinet when I come in for the day and pick it all up when I leave. I feel for you ladies without pockets but my coworkers seem to get by with purses under their desks. Then again, we try to minimize personal phone usage here at work. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/30 "2019-04-18T14:14:06Z")
I am a store cashier, and one of the strictest rules is “No cell phones at the registers.” I keep it in my purse, which is in the plastic box with my name on it. The aisle workers are required to carry their cell phones and to call 911 immediately if any disturbance breaks out at the registers. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/31 "2019-04-24T07:46:13Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > Yeah, I forgot about the “no pockets” thing. They still do that? I mean, no clothing manufacturer has come out with “our pants have POCKETS!” Not for women… evidently pockets require a penis to operate. It’s very hard to find women’s dress slacks that have pockets that are at all useful. Practically unheard-of in dresses / skirts. So: I usually work at home, but when I do need to go to the client, the phone sits on the table next to my laptop. If I get up to go to a meeting or the restroom, it goes in the pocket (or on a clip on my belt). The pockets in my slacks may not be great but they’ll hold a phone as long as I don’t do anything crazy like move too suddenly. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/32 "2019-04-24T10:46:30Z")
I work in a secure facility where we are not permitted to have cell phones, laptops, iPods, Fitbits, Apple watches, or anything else that can record, transmit, or receive data electronically. We have banks of tiny postal-box-sized lockers at the entrance where those things can be stored. There’s always somebody who forgets to turn the ringer off, and there’s a little game to find the locker that phone is in. I just leave mine in the car. It’s easier. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/33 "2019-04-24T16:28:24Z")
> [@Ashtura](#): > > I leave it on my desk when I’m at my desk. When I leave my desk, it goes with me. Even (or especially) when I go to the bathroom. > > It would not even occur to me for it to be stolen though. Yep, that’s my rule too, although every now and then, I leave it on my desk if I’m just going to the next row of cubes over or something. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/34 "2019-04-24T16:38:30Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > Not for women… evidently pockets require a penis to operate. It’s very hard to find women’s dress slacks that have pockets that are at all useful. Practically unheard-of in dresses / skirts. Well yeah, that’s what I mean. Seems a great business to get started - womens slacks with pockets. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/35 "2019-04-24T16:42:55Z")
I usually leave mine on my desk, plugged in. If I’m going to be away from my desk for a while, I’ll sometimes throw it in my pocket and bring it with me. I have a nice little stand I put it in so it looks more like a techie-clock than just a random phone. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/36 "2019-04-24T20:21:39Z")
> [@teela\_brown](#): > > We have visitors, workmen, clients, etc. frequently in our office. Before we took greater security precautions, we’d have issues with people coming in from the street dressed like an office worker (tie and jacket), and they’d steal purses and laptops. It’s a lot better now, but I am still uneasy about leaving my phone out. > > My husband works for a major corporation and security is very tight at his office. His phone is always on his desk in plain sight, and he’s miffed that I miss his texts due to my phone being stashed in my purse. I realize you didn’t ask for solutions but there are quite a few affordable smart watch options these days that will alert you when you receive a text message and maybe even display the message. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/37 "2019-04-24T20:33:35Z")
In the car. I rarely get phone calls (or tests) – most of my communication is via e-mail and I sit in front of two monitors all work day. Brian ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/38 "2019-04-24T21:43:36Z")
On my desk, usually facedown plugged into a battery while I am plugged into it, streaming my favorite radio station. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/39 "2019-04-24T21:55:10Z")
Inside breast pocket of my suit jacket. One phone on each side. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2019, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634/40 "2019-04-24T22:35:02Z")
In my shirt pocket. In summer, when I wear golf shirts, I have a holster for it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/while-in-the-office-where-do-you-keep-your-smartphone/832634.md?page=3)