So, they say it is a mobile
revolution in India. To give you a perspective of how things have changed in the
last 3 decades – Overall tele density in India was 0.6% in 1990. Today it is a
whopping 89.9%. Mobile telephony when it was introduced around 1995 was
considered a luxury item then. Incoming calls were charged at the rate of Rs.16
per minute.
Emails and internet also started
to gain some traction, roughly about the same time.
Slowly things started to change.
Somewhere we saw a convergence of Internet and Telephony. That was the
beginning of a new era. The Millennial era!
Rest as they say is history.
New Telecom operators were born.
Initial thrust was to increase telephony presence. Call charges dropped.
Incoming calls became free. Outgoing calls were charged under a rupee. That was
the real beginning of the “mobile revolution”.
What did it do to the psyche of
people? Mobiles shifted from being an aristocratic luxury item to be a common
man commodity. Missed calls became a phenomena. SMS lingo were invented.
Then started the data
penetration. Tablets, smartphones came
to existence. Apps and social media became a part of life. From cameras to
address book, Computers to wallets, shopping to books & music - everything
got encapsulated in the small device.
But as in any new technological
development, there were collateral damages. Slowly but surely people started
losing some of their life skills. For example – people started being more
comfortable texting than talking. PMs meant Private messages and not Private
Meetings. They were more comfortable in their virtual world of social media. Group
chats took the place of group meets. Not to forget, Mute buttons in group chats
got more importance.
Does anyone remember any
telephone number now, apart from their own?
Writing with one’s own
handwriting – that has definitely taken a beating. Either it is typing on the
computers or extensive usage of thumbs on the phones. Thankfully the new
smartphones have made it easier for the thumbs.
Now even the doctors have
starting typing their prescriptions. As the joke goes, deciphering what the doctors wrote in their handwriting needed some skill!
Would the thumb have actually liked
to provide the good supporting role that it used to do while holding that
mighty pen? Remember the days when the thumb would be soiled with ink from the
fountain pen?
With the latest thrust on data
penetration, spectrum availability for faster speeds etc – the good old voice
calls have now become free. Yes, all incoming and outgoing calls are free. There’s
one silver lining there. Move on from missed calls and short messages. Take the
telephone and speak. SPEAK. Let your voice be heard by the other person. Lest,
that life skill would be lost too.
With technological advancements
in SMAC & IoT, looking forward to some interesting applications which can
enhance and utilise the life skills of people as well.
Can there be a laptop without the
key board – but have a writing pad wherein one can write with one’s own
handwriting? Artificial intelligence(AI) can take care of deciphering the
letters and words. With the option of displaying in the original handwriting as
well as a digitized version. After all, AI can now identify human faces faster than humans.
The day may not be far when the
traditional paper back note book be connected to the cloud? Whatever one writes
in the notebook, (which would perhaps be sporting a printed antenna built-in on
that paper), gets stored in the cloud too. A few years ago – the laptops were named Notebooks
and had tried to take over the traditional note books. There will be a time,
when the traditional paper back notebook takes over from the laptop with even better
technology at a fraction of cost.
The fountain pen hopefully will
have a rebirth with an embedded chip inside, coupled with AI and to connect to
the cloud.
Lovely name – Fountain pen. Will the new
fountain pen spread data and connectivity in all directions just like the
fountain? Will it have music too?
