Cell phones are not going anywhere. It's time to accept it. I'll confess that when they first came out, I regarded anyone that had one with a kind of jealous scorn. But now they are just so practical and inexpensive, that there really is no excuse not to have one. Whether you're a student, a teacher, a doctor, a full-time parent, or a member of the business world, the convenience of being able to talk to whomever, whenever, wherever, has become second nature. Cellular phones have exceeded their primary utility and have now become a main aspect of our social world. They have become fashion statements.
Just like the clothes you wear, the car you drive and the house you live in, the cell phone you carry says something about you. First and foremost, owning one is a symbol of power and importance. But the type of cell phone you own labels you more than you might realize.
For instance, the large and clunky yet functional phones may signify a thriftier person who doesn't travel much and most likely will use the phone more for calling out then for receiving calls. Then of course there are the "Zach Morris" phones, named by Generation Y in reference to the revered show of our childhood, Saved by the Bell. Though these phones have now become scarce, they are still thoroughly humiliating for everyone involved when taken out and used in public.
For the more technologically-savvy or economically-secure shopper, there are the very popular tiny flip phones that are light, sleek, delicate and very functional. So far, these have been the best seller.
Then there are the very colorful Nokia phones with the interchangeable faces that are made for the teenage market and are taboo for anyone in the business world. With colors like cherry, lime-green and bright yellow, they have become the perfect fashion accessory.
But different colors are far from being the most exciting new creative development in cell phone technology. It has been rumored that top designers such as Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger have been asked to design a line of fashionable cell phones. But the companies aren't solely fixated on improving the looks of these handheld phones. They also see a potential market in applying cell phone technology to clothes, shoes and other accessories. Some retailers, especially those who target younger customers, have already begun exploring this notion.
Levi's jeans company, for instance, has worked with altering its pockets in both size and placement. They had originally been making the pockets longer and more narrow in order to store cell phones, but now that the phones are becoming shorter and wider, the shape of the pockets are changing with the technology.
The Gap, which has also been influenced by cellular technology, now offers cargo pants with special cell phone pockets and backpacks that have small pouches on the front straps dedicated to holding the phones safely.
Not only is our world of fashion seeing dramatic changes, but it seems as if we are fast approaching the high-tech world of James Bond and the Mission Impossible crew. Motorola is currently working on a new type of cellular phone that comes in the form of a wristwatch. The StarTac wireless phone comes with many accessories such as an imitation pearl necklace so that the phone can be worked around the neck. What's next, voice-activated cell phone earrings?
Though some of these new ideas haven't been put out on the market yet, there are still many more fun and exciting things you can buy to improve your cell phone fashion sense. Among the many choices you may find phone carriers with built in wallets, colorful emergency key chain chargers, sleek cases which hold a palm pilot and a cell phone, hands free headsets, and stylish belt clips for your cell phone.
By far one of the best parts about stylized phones, in my opinion, is the opportunity it gives us to make a statement that surpasses fashion. The new American Flag phone cover does just that.
What can be better than showing your support for the nation and doing it fashionably?
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