In the US they disabled 2G. Other countries are doing the same.

Thankfully, my country is slow on that. I have some brick phones lying around for when I go in the field. The duration of the battery is like twice on 2g than on 3g on standby (Like two and half to five days; I haven't checked talking time). Granted, that might be phone specific, network specific, or something else specific, but when internet is not needed, I have more use for extra battery than extra security.

I know my government has 100% control over my telecomunications. It is a tradition in this country.