Cracked phones have no clear downsides…

In an era dominated by smart phones (or the Siri age), simple cellular devices, carrying the basic functions of a standard phone, are becoming an endangered species. Every day more and more people are switching over from “dumb phones” to iPhones and Droids and Galaxies and other devices whose names imply that they belong in a science fiction novel. But for those still on the fence about the subject, here are some reasons why upgrading to a more high-tech model may not be an upgrade at all:

1.) Dumb Phones are indestructible- You may be super excited about that new iPhone, but you won’t be so excited when after one drop its screen is completely shattered. As amazing as smart phones are on the inside, they somehow have not developed the ability to withstand basic impact. You can by cases and screen protectors and other gizmos and gadgets, but those aren’t cheap. You’re much better off with a phone that you can throw across a room without the slightest worry of it breaking (because let’s face it, sometimes you just want to throw your phone across a room).

2.) No More Auto-Correct- While some praise the auto-correct feature that comes standard with many smart phones, all have fallen victim to its occasional misreads. Sure, 95 percent of the time, you can text away without a care in the world, but when you do send that text to your mom saying that you’re making heroin with your friends rather than hemp bracelets, your loyalty to this feature may falter.

3.) A dumber phone equals a smarter you- At this day and age, there is no more brain stimulation when the answer to any answerable question ever lies in the palm of your hand. By not owning a smart phone, you are forced to think of the answers all by yourself, and who knows? Maybe you’ll actually learn something for a change.

4.) Anti-theft Protection- One of the best things about having a dumb phone is that no one else wants one! People will go out of their way to snatch that new Galaxy of yours, but if you leave your dumb phone in the middle of a lunch table you can be fairly certain it’ll be there when you get back…and that’s a pretty cool thought.

5.) Smart Phones are the Ultimate Time Waster- With smart phones come dozens of wonderful features like games, group messages, and, best of all, INTERNET. You could pick up your phone to send one text message and end up literally spending hours watching cat videos. Why is this something you wish to subject yourself to? In that wasted time you could write poetry, learn an instrument, or do pretty much do anything to distinguish yourself from the rest of the cat-enthused world.

6.) Touch Screen Issues- Though touch screens seem cool and futuristic on their hypersensitive surface, they’re really just accidents waiting to happen. For a while you feel like a God clicking and dragging things with the simple touch of your finger, and then one day for whatever reason (remember, its fragile), your phone decides to click everything two centimeters to the left of where you touch it. You want to pull up that essay you emailed yourself to prove to your history teacher that you did, in fact, write it, but your phone only wants to pull up that video of you attempting to “twerk….” Needless to say, your teacher is not amused.

7.) Inspiring the true social media- With dumb phones, you don’t have constant access to your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter 24/7. While this may sound like a horrific nightmare, it really only means that if you want to get to know the people in your sphere of friends better, you’ll have to do it the old-fashioned way- talking to them. And it could be that taking a Tweet-cation will help you out in the long run because while it might seem ever-important to you that you’re “@ da mall againnnn,” #nooneelsecares.

8.) The Simple Lifestyle- Having a simple, easy-to-use phone can change your outlook on life. Once you realize that you don’t need all the glitz and glamour to survive, you can dig deep and focus more on the important things in life: family, friends, love…I’m not saying that having a dumb phone will automatically make you a better person…but I’m strongly implying it.

9.) Going against the flow- Having a dumb phone in a world of smart phones gives you a sense of individuality and a chance to set yourself apart from the crowd. Plus, making fun of it yourself, makes for a tasteful joke to tell a friend or an ice breaker for that girl you just met (although she has a Droid, I wouldn’t trust her). Not to mention, willingly dropping your phone and exhibiting how it doesn’t shatter can be a lovely party trick if necessary.