A report that people in the UK have never been more addicted to their smartphones, and that one in three adults admit their overuse reinforces the belief that they are in the grip of an addiction to their devices. But Britons are not the only peoples who have this fear of missing out. While the UAE holds the No. 1 spot for mobile phone users among countries in the Middle East and Africa, Saudi Arabia is right behind. Smartphone users in Saudi Arabia are estimated at 15.9 million. If the Kingdom has 32 million people, then nearly half have smartphones. The figure is staggering. Whether in the UAE or Saudi Arabia, young people are turning to their smartphones more frequently than ever. In fact, one study says consumers in the Kingdom are almost on par with their Western counterparts in terms of Internet usage throughout the day, with 66 percent saying they use the Internet constantly throughout the day. Another 54 percent claim that the Internet is their main source of news and entertainment, surpassing both the US and UK. Such a prevalence of smartphone use might not be new and might not even be bad. Smartphones are the new way of living. The speed of information exchange since the invention of the Internet has increased significantly and the mobile is simply an extension. But the smartphone is also a distraction and a serious problem for many people. Young people in particular cannot seem to focus for more than two minutes on their studies or their job without checking their phone. Smartphones are the most important thing in their lives and they cannot seem to live without them. At home, at work, in a restaurant, at the beach, on the street, in cars, people are interacting with their personal world through their smartphone, ignoring the actual world around them. Some people don't know when to switch them off and are living their lives looking at a miniature screen as opposed to living in the moment. There is a real need for etiquette where smart/mobile phone use is concerned. The prevailing culture seems to dictate that the communication device takes precedence, even when in a face-to-face situation with others. This is at best impolite. And smart/mobile users still use their devices when specifically requested not to, the car being the worst example. The manufacturers of smartphones tout the fact that the devices enable people to keep tags of what's happening, what people are saying, what people are posting. They do that throughout the day and what smartphones are encouraging people to do is to do that at night. That sounds like a lot of time wasted. Phones are checked in the middle of the night. When one in 10 smartphone owners admit reaching for their phone as soon as they wake up — with a third grabbing the device within five minutes of waking — the dependence is becoming inane. There is nothing wrong with the smartphone in principal; it's the overkill. The share of time spent watching video on mobile devices in Saudi Arabia is 62 percent. When compared with countries like the UAE, the US, the UK and Germany, that is disproportionately high. The technophiles will say this is overall harmless. The technophobes will say this is overall harmful. The truth lies somewhere in the middle. The paradox is that while social media enables communication between people it is also causing the isolation of people. The smartphone is creating a more insulated world. People are losing the ability to communicate with each other, losing their social skills as they bury their noses in social media and handheld devices. People have become oblivious to the rest of the world. Physical face-to-face contact is declining. The real problem is that many people don't see that as a problem.
