Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
simonhill
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by simonhill »

In addition to my earlier post I want to make a declaration.

I love my smartphone.

When I was a kid, something like this was only to be seen in the hands of Dan Dare in The Eagle. Now I have this absolutely amazing piece of technology in my pocket, at a reasonable price.

I repeat, I love my smartphone.
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Sweep
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by Sweep »

Stradageek wrote: 11 Nov 2021, 9:34am I

I think my realisation that the world has gone (smartphone) mad peaked when at church they wanted a show of hands on some issue or another but rather than a show of hands a QR code appeared on a screen and we were asked to scan it and answer the question on the App that then appeared :roll:

Needless to say my vote wasn't registered :lol:
!!
but they are behind the times - I was recently shocked by this horrifying news.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p09zbgcz

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mattheus
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by mattheus »

simonhill wrote: 11 Nov 2021, 10:19am
I repeat, I love my smartphone.
This may be the equivalent of joining a discussion of vegan recipes with.

"I LOVE meat. Especially red meat, but it's all yummy!"

; -)
nsew
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by nsew »

I first used a smart phone, dongle and 10000 mah charger in 2019 for 8 months away self supported. Camera function, music files, and gps when totally lost in one device was fantastic. The what felt like near constant need to be charging stuff was a royal pain. Every other long duration tour has been without a phone of any sort, only a camera and music player. Except once I discarded the music player and camera (all electronics) for one 9 month tour from home to Morocco and back. That was probably a mistake on reflection but I have vivid memories of each part of the way along the journey and was never encumbered by reaching for a device or needing to charge. Total freedom. Sent a few postcards once a month.
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horizon
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by horizon »

freeflow wrote: 11 Nov 2021, 4:32am A smart phone is a tool. Treat it as such and your life will be immesurably better. No need for existential angst when you can switch them off untill you decide you want to use the tool.
I think this was my point. I switch it off and leave it at home - job done. I have lots of "tools" that remain at home, useful though they might be on a cycle tour. I think the existential angst is expressed socially and culturally so this is what has in effect to be overcome.

PS I've never seen or used the phrase "immeasurably better" in relation to a mobile phone, one way or the other. "Quite useful" is about as far as it gets! :D
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
st599_uk
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by st599_uk »

Depends on the purpose of your trip - I do a lot of sailing where I'm out of range of UMTS/GSM and it's blissful.

But my next cycling trip is planned in Germany, where I'll be meeting a lot of friends in various places who I haven't seen face to face in 18 months - so the phone will be on and busy.
A novice learning...
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Manc33
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by Manc33 »

Paraphrasing an old Jack Dee bit from back when mobile phones first started getting popular...

Salesman: "Just think, you can be anywhere and anyone can get hold of you anytime!"
Jack Dee: "I don't want anyone to be able to get hold of me anywhere, anytime".

He's right and it's stuck with me ever since. Some of us don't want a phone bothering them "anytime".
horizon wrote: 11 Nov 2021, 1:02am...it is a distraction, for the obvious reason that it calls for attention. But it also becomes a prism through which the world is experienced.
Exactly. It's not natural to be looking at these things all day like a lot of people are doing.

I've never had a smart phone and I'm not getting one. The old Nokia I have is turned off 99% of the time. I have got absolutely zero interest in these things. The one time I tried a hand-me-down quasi-smart phone a few years back, it was taking £1 per day off my credit even though I wasn't using the internet on it. I just took my SIM out and never used it again.
We'll always be together, together on electric bikes.
Psamathe
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by Psamathe »

I think it all depends on personal circumstances, nature of trip, what you are looking for/enjoy, what else you are doing on the tour, etc.

For me, I "drift", only planning tomorrow the evening before so technology is very useful. I enjoy looking around at scenery & wildlife and having to be interrupted by the need to check a piece of paper is not something I'd enjoy (I know I can navigate if I need to but I'd rather delegate it to a small bit of technology). Aged parent and being the emergency contact for the helpline means being contactable 24/7 is important (and they have called on several occasions whilst I've been on tour). I've tended to go on 2 month tours (but no end date, just head home when I'm ready) so planning that length of tour before departure is not easy even if you have a destination or plan (and I don't have either).

But different people do things differently for different reasons, hence phone vs no phone is different for different people (no "right" or "wrong").

Ian
simonhill
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by simonhill »

Maybe we should change the name.

Although I call it a SmartPhone, I rarely use the phone on it. Last call was 2 days ago to get me a bed in a B&B that was unmanned. Before that 21st Oct to check a ferry was running before I cycled 30 Kms to it.

I consider it a pocket computer.
Jdsk
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by Jdsk »

simonhill wrote: 11 Nov 2021, 3:50pm Maybe we should change the name.

Although I call it a SmartPhone, I rarely use the phone on it. Last call was 2 days ago to get me a bed in a B&B that was unmanned. Before that 21st Oct to check a ferry was running before I cycled 30 Kms to it.

I consider it a pocket computer.
Me too.

Jonathan
pwa
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by pwa »

Jdsk wrote: 11 Nov 2021, 9:46am What hasn't come up...

... safety issues.

... using a smart 'phone as a satnav device can mean one less piece of technology. Ditto camera.

... all of the other things that a smart 'phone can do.

Jonathan
I must admit that I have been packing a (non-smart) mobile in my bag for years now, charged but switched off. Just in case.
For satnav, I have a GPS that runs for hours and hours on a pair of AA rechargeables, so that's covered. It is a lot less demanding on battery than a phone.

And my cycle tours have always had an element of wanting to get away from news, social media, and even friends and family. To be alone just for a while.

But people should tour the way they want to. There is no right way here, just choices.
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TrevA
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by TrevA »

Just switch over to the 3 network. Most of time you won’t be able to get a signal anyway, so your phone just becomes a useless lump of metal, glass and plastic.
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wirral_cyclist
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by wirral_cyclist »

You should have one, but certainly no need to actually use it, but one day it might save a life - could even be yours...

My wife's GPS/Smartphone sent me a google maps location and from that I could see she was somewhere that meant big trouble, but also that that this busy location would also guarantee a response/rescue - had her location been off the beaten track (but in signal[1]) I could have at the very least have asked local plod/vicar/publican/local paper to go and check. But I suppose you might not have anyone that might have any interest in your well-being.
When I worked in the Alps I often offered my mobile phone to anyone needing to make a call (emergency or otherwise) this was pretty much always in the aftermath of a crash/incident and often all I could offer being fairly linguistically challenged, everyone always gratefully accepting as so many others passed the incident, ignoring their own national law (+common sense) to offer help.

A phone of any intelligence could save a life.[2]

But smartphones are really just tiny laptops, and as such they allow a workaround for something you've planned that's not actually working out, you could always go to a phone-box and make a call to someone with a real laptop or a big PC to workaround a problem I suppose.

[1] But on her tours I know when I should be getting tracking data so have only blackspots to 'worry' about.
[2] I don't use my (smart)phone much as a phone - but it is there!
MarcusT
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by MarcusT »

The pluses of a smartphone:
Emergency phone calls, stay in touch. Sat Nav, contact accommodations, quick photos and videos, weather forecasts, tour guide, bike repair reference, first aid reference, library, torch, online gear ordering, and the most common use for a smartphone; posting pictures of your food

Negatives: Whatever somebody posted above
I wish it were as easy as riding a bike
tatanab
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Re: Cycle touring: time to ditch the smart phone?

Post by tatanab »

MarcusT wrote: 12 Nov 2021, 5:35am The pluses of a smartphone:
Emergency phone calls, stay in touch.
A dumb phone will do all of that, be smaller and of much lower battery usage. i.e no recharge anxiety. Emergency use - if "everybody" carries a phone, why do I need to?
quick photos and videos
My camera is faster than waiting for a smartphone to power up. Oh, I see, the smartphone has to be switched on all the time - more anxiety about recharging.
Sat Nav, contact accommodations, weather forecasts, tour guide, bike repair reference, first aid reference, library, torch, online gear ordering,
On tour, don't really need or want these. I ask locals if need be.
Negatives: Whatever somebody posted above
add to that - having to have it attached to your hand ready to be checked every 30 seconds (when not riding), oh the stress of needing to check it. I have seen this - a non smartphone user bought one. Now, immediately upon arrival at the cafe etc on a ride, out comes the dratted thing because it must be checked. I think they must be like the 1990s electronic toy/pet Tamagotchi and "die" if not attended to regularly. I also know some rufty tufty MTB types who will not go into certain areas because there is no phone coverage, so in their case the reliance on phones RESTRICTS their riding.

At big multiday cycling events, such as the Semaine Federale, you can see lines of people waiting by the charging points to feed their devices. They then have to sit nearby because you cannot leave a £700 device unguarded. Even more stress, no wonder modern folk seem so wound up.

Meant light heartedly, but surely there's a nugget of truth in there.
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