A Young Boy's Wish, A Student's Basic Needs

It was love at first sight...

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I just wanted to play Clash of Clans. Seriously. That's why I pestered my dad to buy me a smartphone. I was only 15 when the CoC fever swept through the whole world and had the tech literacy of an average 2018 3-years-old. I chose the cheapest smartphone I can find on the market that is not a fake(though I still have doubts to these days) and realised too late that cheaper is not in any way better. The phone came with Android 2.3.5 (an ancient piece of software by today's standards) whereas my desired game only runs on Android 4.4.2 and above. Strike one. All my "hard" work persuading Dad to buy me a smartphone to play CoC went down the drain, leaving me with what is essentially a MYR100 worth piece of brick.

Cue the Antagonists

My resentment towards mobile apps started when I realised that my first smartphone is filled to the brim with bloatware. Bloatware by definition can be described as softwares that are pre-installed by manufacturer's in a device and can not be uninstalled as part of a business deal with the developers of the particular apps. My phone came with 2 "cleaner" apps, which does nothing but install malware, an outdated Facebook client that Play Store would not update (instead installing a new one), a Play Store clone app that only advertises porn and three browser apps (only one works properly, the other two open the working one as soon as you tapped "Search", making you wonder what's the point of installing it on the first place) which collectively bogged the phone itself down that even a 2G Nokia phone can send an SMS faster than it can unlock. Finding apps that fit the small storage of 1GB physical memory is yet another challenge, reducing me to using "lite" versions of apps, which comes with fewer features than the original apps.

I used the smartphone for 4 years, which educated me a lot. I now know the basics of choosing the right phone for the right price and grew more critical towards new app owing to my bad experience. Finally, it was time to upgrade.

Education and Applications

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I decided to buy a new phone on my first semester at IPG. I needed a phone that can handle more work as a trainee and new enough to not have vulnerabilities towards cyber attacks. I bought another "bargain" phone ,but with enough features to be relevant. Advances in the developer community has supplied me a fresh new market of apps to be explored. With the increased challenge of studying for a degree, the presence of a smartphone with the right apps is both a need and a blessing.

Picks and Bans

I have to say, my favourite type of apps is streaming apps. At the end of a stressful day, nothing beats unwinding with your favourite tunes and videos. They also help during studying and completing assignments as a breaktime entertainment. Next comes the productivity apps such as Word and Google Docs. These app lets me continue working and studying anywhere and anytime. With the amount of time teacher trainees like me spend outside campus, these apps became as basic a need as food or air. And of course, there's #eSteem. With this wonderful app, I can now bring my writing hobby to new levels and even earn money while doing so.

On the other hand, I would never install any "cleaner" apps on my phone. My past experience taught me that. They either don't work, create more junk than they clean or are straight-up malwares and adwares. Next on the list are photo editing apps as I do not have the need to use them. Finally, the apps I hate the most are social media apps. I understand why other people uses them but for me, the sheer amount of advertising is too much that I only use "messenger" apps like Whatsapp and Discord. In my opinion, a phone without these kind of apps is a perfect phone.

In hindsight...

Mobile apps are inevitably a part of our daily life now. There are the good and the bad but wherever your opinion stands on this matter, you have to acknowledge their significance. As with any other creation invented by humans, mobile apps is a double-edged sword so it all depends on us, wether it will be a blessing or a curse. What are your thoughts? Tell me in the comment section below.

This post is an entry for @alvinauh 's contest for #esteem-malaysia members. Help me win by upvoting! All images used are in public domain and/or protected under the [Pexels Licence](https://www.pexels.com/photo-license/).