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My cell phone is bigger than yours...

Posted by Deanna Zandt at 8:02 AM on November 14, 2006.


Deanna Zandt: What do you *really* use your cellphone for, hmmmm?

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Just a short reminder that we're all hopeless monkeys trapped inside one giant National Geographic special, via TechDirt:

Well, it appears some things don't change much. Almost exactly six years ago, we wrote about a study that said that men tend to use mobile phones in the same way that peacocks display their plumage: as a mating call to try to impress women. A new study has found that this still happens. Men are much more likely to actively display their mobile phones in social situations. The article suggests it's a way to pick up women, but it also notes that men are just as eager to display their mobile phones to other men to make themselves appear more important. Of course, what makes this even more interesting is the study we saw this past summer that found that women use mobile phones for almost the exact opposite purpose. They do it to keep men from approaching them. That is, if they see someone approaching them, they may pull out the phone so they have an excuse to avoid talking to the man. No wonder the sexes have so much trouble communicating. They don't even use communication devices the same way.

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Tagged as: sex, gender, technology, women, men, communication, cellphone

Deanna Zandt is a contributing editor at AlterNet.


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I don't fully agree.
Posted by: Benjaminsjw on Nov 14, 2006 9:15 AM   
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As a European I of course don't know what it's like in the US, but around here there are two possibilities to be cool, cell-phone-wise: either it's small, nifty, foldable, hard to find in your pocket, or it is jam-packed with all kinds of extra functions (camera, MP3-player, organizer, internet, you name it)
Of course, the coolest phone is one that is small AND jam-packed.
Summarizing: it's not the size that matters, but what you can do with it. :)

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» RE: I don't fully agree. Posted by: albrechtkrausse
And this surprises people?
Posted by: medstudgeek on Nov 14, 2006 9:46 AM   
Current rating: Not yet rated    [1 = poor; 5 = excellent]
We're just monkeys with big brains and weird sex lives anyway.

The only exception I can think of might be women trying to pick up techies by showing off how many gadgets their cellphone has. Ms. Zandt is probably more qualified to tell me if this happens in her social group ;)

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» oh, and btw... Posted by: medstudgeek
So true!
Posted by: mmeetoilenoir on Nov 14, 2006 10:15 AM   
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Cells are the perfect thing to have when walking around NYC, because skeezy guys won't bother you. And yeah, guys are always buying the newest phones and PDAs, just so they can be like, "So...(whips out shiny toy)...what was your number again?"

Hahahaha! So true.

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hahahahaha
Posted by: sui_generis on Nov 14, 2006 10:26 AM   
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This is so true. I've done this before when I'm not up to approaching a girl.

I never did this until I got a really cool phone, however. And after it's no longer a "new" phone, I'll undoubtedly stop.

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cont.
Posted by: sui_generis on Nov 14, 2006 10:28 AM   
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On the other hand, most of the types of women i'd be into WOULD be impressed by a techie phone. So there, "study"!

: )

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P-cocks
Posted by: lamar on Nov 14, 2006 1:59 PM   
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I lost my phone. That's sexy, too, right?

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for these and many more reasons
Posted by: ellie on Nov 15, 2006 4:10 AM   
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there is NOT one living, breathing cell phone in this family. I refuse to bend to the arguements for one, even my teenaged son. just think; peace and quiet in the car, not yelling at my students when they forget to turn theirs off in lecture, time be by myself without inturruption, kid thinking for himself when he misses the downtown bus home.

not to mention not getting the huge bill at the end of the month!

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I use my cell...
Posted by: Bbear41 on Nov 15, 2006 6:46 AM   
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...phone for making phone calls - nothing else.

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No cell phones here either
Posted by: mviscid on Nov 15, 2006 8:09 AM   
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When I see college kids taking smoke breaks these days, do they sit in quiet, poverty-stricken contemplation or strike up conversation with other smokers? Nope! They're head-down, texting or calling each other while guzzling Red Bull. I've always been one of those "the kids are alright" people, but this in particular unsettles me. Sit still and be here, shitheads!

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entendre, anyone?
Posted by: roc on Nov 15, 2006 8:21 AM   
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we love it when you talk dirty, Deanna

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Bet they haven't thought of this one...
Posted by: monkeywrench on Nov 15, 2006 8:48 AM   
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Frankly, I just want my cell phone to...dare I say it?...reliably make phone calls. But manufacturers insist they have to keep adding gadgets and "services" to attract buyers (and, coincidentally, raise prices). Yes, just like lower forms of life, we humans are easily seduced by bright shiny objects and technological playthings. So, with that in mind, here's another possible marketing ploy for cell-phone companies:

With a slight change in shape and a return to palm-sized housings, women could find another use for their cell phones – a use that could make men obsolete. And the "improvement" would also be fairly economical: after all, cell phones already have vibrators built in...

(Hey! This would be more useful than half the stuff they put in 'em now...)

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Advancing Age
Posted by: ProgressiveManiac on Nov 15, 2006 6:14 PM   
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I seem to be a bit of an anomoly. In my past I actually worked designing cell phones and even hold a few patents on cell phone technology. However I have never felt the need to carry one around aside from a brief time when I was testing a new one.

In particular, I've never owned a cell phone.

I never did think of this as a sign of advancing age and a reduced interest in sex, however. Interesting thought.

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