Monday 14 May 2012

BLACKBERRY HATERS AND OTHER MATTERS ARISING

I really don’t know how to start this note. I have a lot of issues to thrash out concerning our society’s predisposition towards blackberry smart phones. By society, I mean Nigerians, mostly the youths (teenagers and young adults).

I was in a gathering this week and the topic on ground was peer pressure. While trying to motivate various persons to come out and speak on it, the moderator gave an example of four female friends who all had blackberry phones with the exception of one. One day, an important information was passed. The three blackberry users pinged themselves and disseminated the information amongst themselves leaving the fourth girl out. He went further to ask ‘wouldn’t the fourth girl be pressurized to get a blackberry by any means?’

At first he was trying to create the notion that people are mostly influenced by what they see their friends do and what their friends have. I totally agree that peer pressure can have such effect. I was glad when each speaker kept on reiterating that peer pressure has both positive and negative influence. Concerning the blackberry example, I believe that situation is enough reason for her to desire getting a blackberry phone; else other vital information would keep eluding her. The main issue should be why is she getting it and through what means.

Picture this all too familiar scenario; you are in a public function. Your phone beeps. You reach into your pocket to get it in order to check your alert. The person around you doesn’t have a blackberry. The minute you bring yours out, he becomes uneasy. Next thing he is thinking is you are just showing off. It happens thanks to our messed up society, low mentality and most especially inferiority complex.

Why is it that when someone starts stepping up, people start saying the person is showing off and trying to feel larger than life? Seriously, could people feel anymore inferior? People go about living their lives and being themselves, then some others start hating because they let themselves be intimidated. Unfortunately, they become blinded by jealousy they can’t reason properly to see the advantage in technology advancement and why they too should endeavor to improve/upgrade themselves. Fine they may not have the immediate means, but there is something called saving. There is also scale of preference. It may not be the most pressing issue for you now but that doesn’t mean if another person gets it they are being wasteful and foolish. Just as our faces are different, so also are our needs different.

Placing so much importance to a blackberry above pressing and more important needs that have to be met just because others around you have one is sheer indiscipline and a negative influence of peer pressure. Lying or stealing to get it is just as bad. Also, buying it not because you know its functions, but just because everyone is buying it, well that’s just dumb!

Two reasons I feel people hate on blackberry are – out of ignorance and inferiority complex. I was a blackberry basher out of ignorance. I had my Nokia N72 and Nokia N97. What drove me crazy was the fact that I had 32 GB internal memory to play with on my Nokia N97. That’s something no blackberry phone can offer, at least for now. I had whatsapp, I could browse the internet through monthly data mobile plan and whenever I needed to download stuff or do other serious ish I had my Starcomms modem and my laptop. What more did I need? Pinging? Nah!
I was already on enough social networks. That was before I stopped chatting away my productive time.

I was ignorant of the many advantages a blackberry had to offer me which my Nokia couldn’t. Each phone has its own advantages and disadvantages. I browsed the internet one day to know what was so special about the blackberry. It was then I realized how much I had missed. Try opening an email attachment on your Nokia phone or try sending numerous scanned documents from a café to your mail box when you could just snap them and send them straight up to you mail at no extra costs. Or try downloading so much or even browsing heavy pictured sites with your limited mobile data plan, then you’ll appreciate what I am talking about.

These and more I now enjoy on my blackberry. I get to download a lot of things without the fear that my megabyte would get exhausted, I can search for information straightaway anytime, anywhere when there’s an argument on ground or I hear a new term I need to understand better. I’m a music junkie. Now I can easily stream and download songs on the go. There’s no more stress of carrying my laptop around everywhere I go. It’s so easy maintaining my blog now. So much money I have could have saved certain months if had a blackberry. I can’t remember when last I subscribed on my Starcomms modem. Imagine paying N6, 500 every month when I could have had it all just for N1, 500!

Still the blackberry has its own flaws like low battery life but I’ll still say it’s one of the best things in the mobile world. I can’t imagine using an i-phone. It’s way too selfish. It doesn’t even have a Bluetooth device! Still it all depends on personal preference.

It took me months before I got mine. I knew the advantages but I just had cold feet. I needed a motivating force plus I really didn’t have the money to afford the exact model I wanted at the time. All my friends were getting theirs; slowly I was losing my contacts. I knew I had to upgrade lest I’d be left behind. This leads me to the issue of upgrading. I knew I had to upgrade but I had my heart fixed on getting a very good model. So I waited patiently till I had enough money to get what I knew was good for me.

People keep asking must you do what others are doing. Valid question I agree but not in all situations I must add. If I may ask, why are they wearing the latest clothing everyone is wearing? Why don’t they continue wearing those old school attires? Let’s see if they’ll fit into the society. Man is a social being, he wants to fit in and fell accepted in order to function properly.

To the blackberry haters, why aren’t you using your Nokia 3310 anymore? Oh, you want to snap pictures with your phone and listen to songs on your phone and also access the internet on your phone. Why stop there when you can advance to better phones that would give you even much more.

Just because some lot in the society have decided to abuse the blackberry and turn it into something that boosts their ego doesn’t mean you should be blind to its advantages or the fact it has a lot to offer you. That people abuse a thing doesn’t make it bad. You can cause a change amongst your friends and educate them about its right use. Pinging away your productive time? Is that why you bought it? You seriously need to set your priorities straight.

Flashy cars? If you have the means I don’t see why you shouldn’t upgrade your car to the latest model which I bet would be more comfortable and would even conserve fuel better. Remember the period asbestos roofing came on board and how people started changing their zinc roofing to asbestos. Or is it the sliding windows era? That’s upgrading not I’m doing it because my neighbour is doing it. You see someone doing something new and he’s getting positive results, ask yourself what are the advantages and how it can help better you. Ask yourself do I really need it? Would it benefit me better than what I have on ground? Do I have the means to upgrade immediately? Do I need to save for it? Do I have other pressing needs I need to attend to first? Don’t start feeling inferior and intimidated. Next you start hating and you become blinded to its advantages, limiting your advancement. We should know ourselves first and know what we really need.

The blackberry porsche is an upgrade, though I haven’t yet looked up its features I know it’s going to be far better than what I have now but its way above my means now. So getting it isn’t really on my mind now. Maybe later when I can comfortably afford it, that’s if a better model isn’t out by then. The thing is, I am contended with what I have now and I am not killing myself to get a porsche. If you can comfortably afford it that is after settling other more important needs, what are you waiting for?

When it comes to fashion, you really have to know what’s in vogue and acceptable. What matters is the size of your purse and what fits you. Don’t go wearing suspenders when no one else is all because you don’t want to follow the trend. You’ll just end up being a laughing stock.

Maybe when no one invites you for functions or your name just keeps getting missing from the guest list; you’ll realize that appearance really matters a lot.
Change they say is constant. We live, we grow. Our society develops and advances. We too must advance to function properly. Keep up with the change or be left behind. Wisdom is the principal thing.

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