Blog Post #9

 Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations 

The Innovation of the Smart Phone 

    The spread of the smart phone caught on because of its ability to do the job of a phone and some computer functions all in one device. The spread caught on because of multiple different factors including style and function, ability to take pictures, more screen, 5G, and artificial intelligence including things like Siri. The fact that this new phone could be fit into someones pocket and still be able to do so many different things made it very popular and easily accessible. 

    The early adopters are the people in our younger generation today who jump on all of the news trends and technologies. People jump on this kind of technology for the convenience of having new features and shortcuts to do the things that use everyday. Having the chance to do something fast or more efficient is very appealing to the new generation. 

    

    People who adopted this technology later see that the times of the world are changing and technology is taking over in a sense that we need smart phones in order to do most of the work we are tasked with. Corporations and businesses are beginning to require these different devices, for example a company smart phone. They may not have thought that they needed one at first but now they are being shown different way to use the smart phone in their different lines of work. 

    Most of the people who are laggards about the smart phone are in the older generation who are mostly retired or don't need a smart phone to do work. They don't use the smart phones mostly because they grew up in a time where the simple flip phone for making calls and sending a quick message was enough. They could also have a spouse or someone they live with has a smart phone so they don't see the need for them to also have one. 

    Some of the negatives about having a smart phone could include creating bad sleeping habits, cause car accidents, create more anxiety and depression from the constant comparing yourself to others, very distracting, and they are constant expense. For some people in the late adopters and laggard categories these factors could make them want to put off or not get a smart phone at all because they don't seem worth it but they have so many other things to offer people as well. The positives include instant communication with people making it easier to stay in touch with family and friends and making some jobs easier. It also includes a camera that can hold thousands of pictures to keep different memories locked away, the ability to surf the web and look something up fairly quickly, they have GPS systems for directions, and so many apps to help make daily tasks easier to complete (for example depositing a check on your phone instead of having to go all the way to the bank). I believe that smart phones have been a huge step in our future and help us more than we know and the ways that the smart phone can help us far out weighs the negatives if you set screen time boundaries and try not allow the phone to control your life.