Are cellphone companies such at AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T Mobile and the like slowly eating away at the family budget? According to research, the numbers show it to be very true yet, appalling. Before the launch of these smartphones, it appeared that having a cellphone was much more affordable then than it is now. The article that I came across interviewed a few families in which they remember the good old days. Let’s take the Steffens for example, they used to always go out to their favorite restaurant on the weekends and enjoyed delicious meals and quality time as a couple. However, when they both decided they needed to get iPhones, their weekly restaurant visits became virtually non-existent.
The article states that research shows more than half of all U.S. cellphone owners who happen to have a smartphone have had to redo their budget. Data showed that people have spent the most on phone bills over the last four year period and less on entertainment, dining out and the like. If you thought it’s not high enough already, it’s only going to get worse. According to the article, prices of cellphone plans have risen across the board a whopping 5% since 2005.
Perhaps this is a wake up call to reassess what exactly is a need versus a want. Does everyone really need a smartphone? I personally along with my husband have regular non-smart cellphones. It does have web capabilities but we prefer not to use it and it ends up saving us so much money. Don’t get me wrong, it is nice to see how the advancement of technology can help however, I believe for most people, it is more of a need than a want. More so, just for that want, it is taking away from needs such as mortgage/rent, food, clothing as well as other necessities. My take on it is if you can afford it, then by all means enjoy. Yet, it’s not worth it to be a slave to the “bells and whistles”.
This article was found on news.yahoo.com