Death of the phone call

When I got my iPhone a few months ago, I picked a plan with the lowest number of minutes but highest data package. Someone I’m related to asked why and I answered without thinking, “because I never make phone calls, the minutes will never be fully used.”

I thought I was crazy but according to a New York Times article, I’m not. The act of picking up the phone to call someone is becoming quickly extinct. The only people that really call me anymore are family and even then, it’s a quick call. We default to text. Same with friends. I call if I’m running late or am lost, but text, tweet or Facebook message is the preferred way we talk to each other when we’re not in person.

As a teen, I dreamed about having my own phone line in my room but now, I don’t even have a main line in my apartment! I don’t hate talking on the phone, but I find that when it’s not about business, I’m very awkward. If I had a nickel for every time I had an uncomfortable, dramatic pause-filled conversation with a guy from Match, I would be rich.

At work, using the phone is the last method I go to to reach someone. It’s always IM, email or even walking by his/her desk first. I guess that I just think that no one answers the phone anymore so I don’t reach for it right away. In an age where just about everyone has a smartphone, I think that they would respond faster to text or email than a call. And let’s be honest, conference calls on speaker phone are insanely annoying and I don’t want to be that girl so if an email will get me my answer, I’d rather do that.

Chicago even has a take out ordering service called Grubhub where you can order and pay for your food online without talking on the phone, you only have to meet the deliveryman to get it. Yes, it’s amazing.

What about you? Do you still talk on the phone or have you moved more to text or email?