Sunday 7 August 2011

Brismod in the 21st Century

Although vintage is all the rage, it certainly isn't when it comes to mobile phones. You'll be pleased to learn I've made the giant leap with the acquisition of a new iphone.

My antiquated Nokia can now be retired after several solid years of service. It was still working okay but the screen was getting too difficult to read.

I probably would've kept it until it died, however I was recently offered some freelance copywriting work. Yay! An urgent upgrade of some basic technology tools, such as the phone, was essential. Being connected 24/7 seems to be a must these days.

It wouldn't have felt right to whip out the old Nokia during important business meetings. The phone hasn't reached the right age to be considered 'cool' retro yet... just sad retro. And really, image is everything...

What credibility I have would be instantly wiped if I dared answered this dinosaur at a meeting.

image from here


I was a bit embarrassed at the Apple store because the kid who served me looked younger than my mobile phone. His name was Ace, by the way. And I know that I am getting old when my mouth speaks before it ought..

"Is that your real name?" I enquired of the very fresh-faced Ace.

"Yeah. It's Ace. Not short for anything. Just Ace."

"No! That's terrible. Your parents! You're not named after Ace Ventura - Pet Detective?" I exclaimed, like an old bat with no insight. (Thank goodness, I'm not a teacher)

"Oh, I happen to like my name," he lied, as he avoided all eye-contact. "I was actually born before that movie came out."

I was going to tell him "only just" but then I remembered this kid could possess the knowledge to hack into my accounts and unleash technological revenge upon big-mouth me. So I zipped it. Quickly.

Anyway, Ace couldn't have been nicer, despite our awkward start. Apple should give Ace a brightest star award, because he excelled at fresh-faced customer service. He did not judge my Nokia. He really was his name.

Now that I'm in the 21st century what tips can you give me about iphones? And do I dare use my igranny cover?


igranny

21 comments:

  1. Hello.

    I'm interested in what people say. I am thinking of upgrading to a phone that does everything, and was speaking to some young hep cats at Uni, and they said 'you're either an 'apple' person or not'.

    They said I may have trouble adjusting to an i-phone ... should I be offended? I don't know.

    1. Where's the Apple shop?
    2. There was a young male journalist who I used to occasionally come across and his name was 'Zebedee'. I never asked him if his parents were fans of the Magic Round-a-bout.

    Ace post.

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  2. Hi there

    Now that is a funny story!

    And - congratulations for moving with the technology and bless your nokia - many a moment you have had with it obviously!

    I think you should keep the nokia though - imagine in 20 years time and we all say remember when we used to have those mobile phones and they looked like....

    have a great day/night

    x
    Loulou

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  3. I've only ever had Nokias too, Bris. From Brick to brick. Did you know that Nokia organise a distance-throwing competition for mobile phones in Sweden every year?

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  4. I used to have one of those nokias but I gave up when the battery kept dropping off. My only words if warning re the iPhone is to avoid addiction at all costs and be very careful of highly questionable predictive texts.
    Maybe Ace's parents are into daytime soaps. It's the perfect name for Bold and the Beautiful :)

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  5. Anita, you've abandoned me! I'm still here stalwartly sticking to utterly simple talk & text, and you are in the ring with the bright young things and their miracle machines. I miss you. It's a lonely place without you.

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  6. Hehehe ... I had that phone 3 phones ago. I wore the buttons out. It came with 2 interchangeable covers. I liked the red one I had.
    And yes, you probably shouldn't be a teacher when you come face to face with kids called Jamanda, J'den, OC, Roies & Harley Davis.
    iPhone tips ... ditch the iGranny cover. You need at least a rubberised cover. Those things don't bounce ... & then you'll be back in the Apple store dealing with some kid who isn't Ace but is called Storm & he will be a grumpy ass.
    p.s. I was thinking maybe Ace Frehley from KISS.

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  7. Lol! Welcome to the two thousand and teenies (or whatever this decade is called!). I ditched my old phone for an iphone at the beginning of the year and haven't looked back! In fact, I more often than not look things up on my iphone rather than the home computer as it's just so convenient! When I travelled overseas, it was a total Godsend as there was free wifi in the hotel lobby and I just sat there on my phone and email everyone back home!

    Don't forget to go App happy, too. Needless to say, you need the obvious...facebook, google, white pages,etc (actually, FB might already be on the phone!) but I also love pocket cinema (for Event Cinemas), Channel Ten (they have a tv guide!), Weight Watchers (new recipes out every week), Real estate.com (cause I love looking at the houses), IMDB (you can look up who was in any movie, anytime) and ebay and Gumtree just cause I can! I also have a few games but I prefer the more simple ones like Bejeweled, Mancala and Falldown.

    Oh and the Maps app has a built in GPS....not as flash as some of the expensive ones but I've used it so many times when I've needed directions!

    And don't forget to find the ring tone that matches Nina from Offspring! Everytime I heard her phone go on the tv, I'd automatically look around to make sure it wasn't mine! Lol!

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  8. My tip with an iphone, or an ianything for that matter, would be to get a sturdy cover. Out of very painful experience the glass shatters and as well as being expensive to fix, hurts like hell when you impatiently still use it and get glass splinters! I do like your granny cover though...
    I'm sure you will have lots of fun with it.
    x

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  9. I am almost incommunicado..without communication atm..my telstra hub had to go back for repairs..and they haven't replaced it yet after 2 months..grrr! My home phone is dying..my mobile needs charging and some money put into it's prepaid account..so here I blog. Blogging is definitely ace..I think!

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  10. I hope you don't kick me out of the club, but I don't even have a cell phone. Sorry Ace.

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  11. sign up for a mobile.me account. There's an option to either remotely track or remotely wipe out sensitive data if your phone gets lost or stolen.
    The iphone is lucky that it has probably the largest and most diverse app market anywhere. You can get your phone to do just about anything.

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  12. Welcome to 2011 - don't worry, you'll be retro again when the iPhone 5 is released. Can't stop progress!

    And that's great news about the freelance copywriting work xx

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  13. The name thing is too funny. You do realise that you and I would fall into the category of parents who name their children interesting or is it different names..you know after cartoon cats and streets he he. I think I just had a Mr Rooney moment. Congrats on the work, will you be investing in any suits I hear hand made is all the rage? xx Katherine

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  14. I can't comment. I'm laughing so hard my fingers can't type. Go the Granny cover. I'm going back to re-read your post!!

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  15. I was using an old phone for a while there and when I went into the shop to get a new one I kept it hidden in my bag as I took the SIM card out. The shop assistant noticed and had a good laugh but I swear he would have laughed more if he had seen my phone that was missing HALF the buttons!! Hope you enjoy your new phone. Sherry

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  16. I have that exact phone with the super daggy yellow cover still intact! Did "upgrade" to a flip open phone a few years ago and felt so ultra hip for all of about 2 minutes. Legoman has an iphone and is addicted. I am contemplating as currently I have important messages recorded on 3000 bits of paper and a phone that is never charged. Congrats on the work by the way. melx

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  17. My mobile phone is from 2006. Mr FF is buying me an iphone later this week so I can join the Now Generation Phone-wise.

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  18. Oh, I like that story..we has also moved into the 21st Century and bought a new android phone each (for our holiday)...however, it takes me 1000 years to write a text message..haha. The apps are good though. Love the granny cover, but it may be a bit tight??

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  19. I sometimes think we're the only house in the country that doesn't have pay-TV yet. So we're not in the 21st century!

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  20. I had a nokia just like that one! Wish I'd kept it now.

    Have fun with your new phone. I have a BlackBerry but really want an iphone so I can get that amazing instagram app!

    I'm having a give away at my blog so if you have time please pop by! I hope your work is going well!

    Best wishes,
    Natasha.

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  21. I thought i was about the last person left with an ancient phone until i upgraded earlier this year. But it seems there are still a few others out there. I have to say these iphones are very addictive!!

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