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The year is 2009, and I think it’s safe to say that practically everyone has a cell phone these days. They’re portable, relatively inexpensive, and do way cooler stuff than the phones our parents grew up using. So here’s a question from a Generation Y’er who has relied solely on a cell phone for the past seven years — why do people still have landlines?
Seven years ago, I got my first cell phone, and I’ve never looked back. Since then, I’ve never had a landline. Cell phones put home phones to shame nowadays. I saved up for an iPhone 3G at the end of last year, and it’s awesome. I use it as my phone, a navigation device, a portable media player, and a portable Internet device.
Cell phones do have some disadvantages though. I’ll never forget the time I tried to get pizza delivered to my apartment in college, but they refused to do it because I called from a cell phone number. I think that’s the only time I’ve wished that I still had a landline since deciding to live life landline-free.
It’s even more confusing for restaurants now because you can keep the same cell phone number. I know a lot of people, myself included, that keep the same number even after moving somewhere new, because it’s easier than having to update all of your accounts and letting all of your friends and family know about the new number.
While cell phone coverage has dramatically improved over the years, I still get bad reception and dropped calls every once in awhile. The most annoying part is that you always seem to get the worst reception at the places where you spend the most time, like your home or workplace. I get spotty reception in my bedroom at my current place, but it’s fine if I move into any of the other rooms.
So based on the points that I’ve covered, the only reasons why people still have landlines are to:
- Ensure that you can order delivery from restaurants
- Make it more confusing for friends and family to keep track of all of your phone numbers
- Be able to talk anywhere in your home without losing reception, including the basement
With an estimated 20% of American households without a landline, I’m definitely in the minority, but as a Generation Y’er, most of my friends live a cell-only life too. So, I’m curious. What do the 80% who still have a landline use it for?
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Comments
04.24.09
I have one, and I don't see myself ever getting rid of it. When I was single and didn't have much to deal with, a cell phone sufficed. However, once I got married, had a child, and owned a home, the need arose. Whenever I fill out forms, need to provide a contact number for institutions (banks, etc), using a cell phone isn't practical, not to mention can get very expensive if you're on hold for 45 minutes waiting to get a hold of someone in a call center.
04.24.09
Most landlines aren't powered by the electric in your house. Traditional lines can carry a current, etc. That is why when your power goes out, your landline still works. For example, something happens and your power is out for a prolonged time - you won't be able to charge your cell phone. What do you do then?
Pretty much the only reason my parents still have a landline. Everyone I know and my entire family uses cellphones as primary now but the landline is insurance.
04.24.09
If you have an alarm system in your house, you need a landline for the system to call out in the event of an emergency.
04.24.09
We only have cell phones now- works fine for us and has for years. When we have kids, I'll get a land line in order to have immediate and reliable access to 911 and dr's offices in an emergency.
04.24.09
I think a landline is still a necessity and acts as contact insurance. I can do without a cell but not a landline. Its great for when ur home and u don't want to use up ur minutes for any type of calls. Plus u wouldn't want solicitors calling ur cell and collection agencies. So basically u give ur landline to people u don't want to give easy access to but will still need some kind of way to get a hold of you.
04.24.09
During the Northridge quake of 1994, cell towers and power went out all over the Los Angeles basin. I managed to get to a pay phone booth and call my parents and siblings to inform them of what happened and that I was okay. Cell service was spotty for almost 2 months.
I've always had a landline since.
04.24.09
I am under the impression that I need it in order to have DSL in our house. Maybe I am wrong. Also, I'm not sure if the reverse 911 calls go to cell phones or just landlines.
04.24.09
Working for a telco in Australia I often come across these 'who needs a land line anymore'.... Here are some reasons why people want a fixed line service:
- Phone line remains powered in a blackout as it is powered by the exchange (you can always call for help if there is an emergency)
- Quality. People have substituted voice quality for mobility, some people value voice quality.
- Reliability. It's always on, it's always there. 99.999% uptime.
Just touching on both quality and reliability - You said that you have a iPhone, so do I, the latest 3G version.
In a sense of making phone calls how would you rate it compared to a fixed line phone? So we're talking about 'just phone calls' I rate mine a 2/10. The coverage is fine, but the device simply just sucks at making/receiving calls.
- Gen-X, are not as adaptive to change as Gen-Y, therefore you will find that they are 50/50 when it comes to this.
- Baby Boomers, they have always had a fixed line phone, why change now?
Being a Gen-Y myself I have no purpose for a fixed line what so ever, though for me to get my ADSL2+ on a decent plan I have to have it bundled... :/
04.24.09
@JRandom42 - we actually agree on something, I am glad this day has come. Most people haven't been in a natural disaster like the Northridge earthquake, so they have no idea how many things they use every day will cease to function or exist in an instant. Should there ever be a disaster on this scale again the slow elimination of landlines will literally result in the death of many who otherwise would not have died. I would even argue that the decline of landlines influenced the effectiveness of help during the Katrina disaster. There is a reason why analog devices were chosen in the past, due to reliability. I know this is not the right forum nor do I wish to get into an argument, but traditional analog land lines have many advantages that will disappear when the world converts to cell/digital services alone (anyone ever heard of or used ham radio or CB radios?)
By the way I also live through the Northridge Earthquake.
04.24.09
Reasons to have a landline:
1. I live in earthquake country and during emergencies a lot of times cell phones don't work.
2. As expansive as the networks have gotten some people still don't have coverage at home. For instance, my parents cannot get cell coverage at their house and they live in a major metropolitan area, they just happen to live in a valley where as soon as you turn on their street you lose coverage.
3. As someone already mentioned, you need a landline in order to have an alarm system that dials out to a company in an emergency or break in.
4. I work in a field that requires that my job be able to get in touch with me in emergencues. If my cell isn't working then they can call me at home. (see number 1 above.)
5. My cell phone has a different area code than my home phone - my grandmother shares my home phones area code. My grandmother does not make long distance calls (even though we set her up on a plan where she can) and she doesn't like using the cell phone, so the only way my beloved grandmother can reach me is on my home phone.
I could go on and on.
04.24.09
The United States is a very large and geographically diverse country - there are still many areas that do not receive adequate or any cell phone reception (take a drive through the Berkshires in Western Massachusetts or the Adirondacks in upstate New York and see what happens...and these aren't just "vacation" places - folks actually live there too...).
For the same reason there are huge swaths of land in many rural/mountainous/desert areas where folks still rely on dial-up and/or satellite service for television and internet connections. These are often very expensive options and result in a true "digital divide" between the rural poor/working class and those living in urban/suburban areas.
04.24.09
I haven't had a landline in about 3 years, but I've considered getting one again. If so, I would probably get it through Comcast or Vonage. I don't really need one, but it would easier now that I'm living in a house.
04.24.09
@boohoo,
You did? I lived in Canoga Park and worked at Teledyne. Remember the street of fire in Granada Hills? Ah, the nostalgia.... :)
04.24.09
I don't own a cell phone and don't know if I ever will get one. I don't like talking on the phone & keep that to a minimum. I prefer email, and I'm fine doing that on computers rather than being always textable. I really treasure my privacy and just don't want to be at people's beck and call all the time. Finally, I just don't see the need. For my life, a landline suffices.
04.24.09
Where I live, cell phone 911 calls go to the state police and landline 911 calls go to my city police. Guess which one requires less transferring--saving time and, potentially, lives--if I'm trying to report something where I live.
04.24.09
@KateNonymous - I actually just sat in on a seminar with this topic. Yes what you state is mostly true, but you will not get faster service all the time. You are essentially adding another middle man to your emergency because sometimes they are just routing you back to your local authorities.
04.24.09
Landlines are required, because, contrary to what the young'uns think, CELLPHONE VOICE QUALITY SUCKS. 90% of the time, the voice quality is just awful. If a person calls me on a cellphone, truthfully, most of the time I can barely understand their distorted voice. If you want to talk to me, call from a damn telephone, and stop being such a dipstick.
04.24.09
@boohoo, that's what my comment was about. What does the "mostly" mean?
04.24.09
I am a Gen-Y'er who has a landline and a cell phone. There are several reasons I have a landline:
1. When somebody calls me on my landline, I don't have to use up minutes, although I still have to pay the landline's base fee.
2. Cell call quality is spotty, and my cell phone's battery life sucks.
3. If I give someone my landline number, and they call when I'm not at home, they won't disturb me.
4. I need it for my DSL. I had my landline long before I switched to DSL.
04.24.09
Because my cell phone costs $0.50 a minute to talk, and my landline only costs $0.20 to talk for unlimited time.
Although Skype is picking up - they're even using it on Oprah (I'm not sure if it's just paid product placement though).
04.25.09
In the UK we are slightly screwed on the whole land line issue as our DSL relies on having one - only a small percentage of the population recieves cable.
If it weren't for that, it would be gone.
More interesting than Gen-y's take on the landline vs. cell issue is the case of less well developed nations.
Landlines never really made it to most of Africa (infrastructure costs etc...) so the ONLY type of phones most people are really aware of are cellphones.
Why anybody would give a shit about the quality of the sound on a phone is beyond me, I mean, if you can hear it, what does it matter? Or are we trying to stream last.fm down the line?
And I saw a comment from someone saying they can live without talking on the phone and email etc... works. I'm sorry, but if you want something done, or God forbid you have to sell someone something, its gotta be the phone. Email does not work when you want something the other party doesn't want to give.
04.26.09
This entire dialogue ignores the idea that there are still many Americans who cant afford computers or cell phones. As someone who works at a poverty-relief agency, I see clients daily who have only landlines because they cant afford to buy a cell phone or because their cell phones have been disconnected because they cant pay for their minutes. They tell me that they want a cell phone but its just too costly.
While you may find your iphone and its accompanying plan "relatively inexpensive," it might be worth remembering that this is not the fact for a large chunk of the population. Judging by the lifestyle you imply in your post, you may not see these people very frequently, but I promise you, there are many people out there who cant afford college or pizza delivery or a cell phone.
04.27.09
I still use a landline because of the quality. The only real reason I have a cell phone is in case something happens to me when I'm on the road (which is a lot). My family and friends like the landline because they know they can call my house and if I'm home I'll pick it up. Sometimes even if my cell phone is in my pocket, for some reason it will not always ring (not getting signal I'm guessing) or they don't know if I am in class or driving or at work and did not pick it up for one of those reasons. I think if you start to see cell phones have the same quality land lines have, more people will switch over. I can't speak for smart phones or for higher level cell networks as I don't have one.
As for price, state/federal government generally offers discounts on landlines for low income people. It would be nice to see those discounts extended to cell carriers as well. Or maybe more information about pre-paid phones which are an affordable alternative for those looking for cell phones as an emergency. And I'm going to guess for the people who visit poverty relief centers, not having a cell phone is the least of their worries. Not having an opportunity for their kids to go to college is a lot more troubling to me.
04.28.09
I like how I can be inaccessible sometimes, and the landline exclusivity gives me that perfect excuse.
08.03.09
"Make it more confusing for friends and family to keep track of all of your phone numbers"
ha ha , that was funny . i guess its easier to remember landline numbers then mobile num. as they keep changing
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