On Thu, Jan 07, 2021 at 01:27:07AM +1300, Mark Foster wrote:
I respect this in principle, but hyperbole serves no-one - a smartphone only creates a "morass of privacy/security issues" if you let it.
You can't be serious. Have you paid *any* attention to what's been going on in this ecosystem for the past N years? It's not as bad as the raging dumpsterfire in the IoT, but it's still bad. Why would I want to give myself security/privacy issues (that I currently don't have and thus don't need to solve/manage on an ongoing basis) in exchange for functionality I don't need or want?
A basic smartphone can be had for less than $100 USD, which would give you calling, text messaging and emergency alerts.
It would also give me a much less sturdy device and one that chews up its battery doing things that I have no use for. I [sometimes] use my phone for critical communications in hostile environments, so anything that doesn't increase the probability that it will work is just baggage. And as a bonus it would cost me more every time I lose or destroy one. ---rsk