alt Hacker NewsNot the person to whom you're responding, but for me, some of the heavy hitters:
- Real-time weather alerts (I spend a lot of time in a naked Jeep in the summer, it's helpful to know when rain is imminent)
- Work-related authentication
- Audiobooks
- High quality, always available camera with quick editing and instant sharing capabilities
- GPS tracking when I'm exploring
- Find restaurants, museums, hotels when I'm traveling
- Pay for nearly anything (credit cards are useful but more time-consuming, and pulling them out frequently is a minor friction point that I'm grateful to leave behind)
Replies
none of these are required, aside from the work example.
You just find a phone useful
Required would be “I can’t participate in society without a phone”, eg not being able to get healthcare or pay for things w/o a phone
Although I do agree with some that you listed, I think that many do have alternatives:
- Audiobooks can be listened on other devices besides smartphones
- A dedicated camera is a very good option for taking high-quality photos fast, but I do agree that instant sharing is not a possibility
- GPS tracking is available on many watches, even non-Smartwatches like the ones Garmin designs
- You can pay with a credit / debit card via NFC - just as fast as with a smartphone
- You can find restaurants and other places through maps, tourism centers, etc. Or there's a option for researching where to go before heading out