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Comment by BlueTie | Hacker News Reader

Isn't this entire article missing the difference between a luxury item and an essential item? A smartphone 10 years ago was a luxury for just about everyone who owned one (that is, bought with extra money) now it's a requirement.

The luxury purchase folks are certainly getting a better deal as apples:apples prices go down; but if you're paycheck to paycheck and used to be able to not buy a smartphone but now have to - you're just running on tighter margins.

I would imagine measuring economic well being directly through something like a "economic desperation index" makes more sense than doing a bunch of calculus on comparing the price and quality of items in two different years since the latter would only apply to people who own the item in both domains. Especially in the context of this article which is discussing if people have it better now or then.

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Essential? Really? Many of us leave our phones off, leave them at home or in the car, and are only marginally impacted. The difference between 'any phone' and a smart phone is quite small. Except for folks addicted to them, who can't last a day without constant updates.

I think you are seriously underestimating the number of essential services which are now mostly been conducted online. Try finding a property to live in or a new job without using the internet.

Hot water isn't essential either. Some of us prefer cold showers!

As much as people like to dump on smart phones; yes, they really are essential. My having access to news, music, books, podcasts in the palm of my hand is revolutionary. Literally any curiosity about any subject can be indulged at a whim. Social media might be toxic if you let it take over your time, but the benefits to society cannot be overstated.

Or folks who have only phone as their connection for voice and data. Not everyone has a car or home to leave it in and has to keep the phone on for their next gig.

Many people don't have a computer. Their smart phone is also their computer.

There's myriad services in modern western life which require a computer of some sort to access. Increasingly government services, banks, transport, event ticketing etc are operating in an online-first way. How do you access those services without a computer?

Ok, the phone makes that very convenient. But they all, all have a manual process too. They are not 'online-only', not yet anyway.

It's more essential the poorer you are. Because what's truly essential is Web access - for communicating with your friends and family, for access to government services and banking, and bunch of other little things you may need to do to secure a job, etc. Most of these things you can do even better on a computer - if you own one. A smartphone is the cheapest personal device with full-featured Web access these days, which is how it becomes essential for people who can't afford a computer (and a place to keep it, i.e. a home).

Ok I overstated it, I admit. In fact, my acquaintance who panhandles downtown has a phone and a tablet which he uses to keep connected, check weather (critical to him!), look up fitness routines etc. Especially now that the library is closed, it's a lifeline for him.

For many people their smartphone is their only access to internet (and thus bills, emails, and everything else that is more or less essential). The difference between the group of people buying an iphone because they need access to that stuff and the group of people where an iphone is only a distraction machine is a pretty solid proxy for the two groups I'm talking about between those who buy as a luxury vs essential purchase.

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