The world is fast evolving and engaged with high process developing technology. Modern contraptions are ultimately all about speed and efficiency. Gadgets now represent advanced technology including modern electronic appliances for daily use.
In recent years, these devices have become increasingly general purpose as they combine several functions including making calls, streaming video and playing games. Typical examples include e-book readers, smart watches, digital fitness trackers, GPS devices, video game machines, laptops, desktop computers among others.
Generally, modern gadgets determine whether or not a provider is to be trusted as well as see how beneficial whatever service people are looking into will be to their advantage and enhance their daily activities.
Think about it this way; most people nowadays would almost never buy into any kind of service without reading comments and reviews of products online. This has been made possible by access to information on modern gadgets and technology. Technological advancements such as internet and computers have opened up anew world for you to learn from and choose wisely.
Modern gadgets have changed the world! It makes you wonder what the world would be like without it. According to a market research study published by Facts and Factors, the demand analysis of Global Wearable Technology Market size & share revenue is anticipated to exceed USD 380.5 billion by 2028. Wearable technology market size and share was worth USD 115.8 billion in 2021 and with a compound annual growth rate of around 18.5%, is predicted to exceed the 380 billion mark. Astonishing how this could never have been imagined fifty or so years ago.
This tells its own story. The surge in growth cannot be all good, can it? There are over a million zillion articles propagating the positives of technology and modern gadgets. Let me highlight a few:
Information, on its own is a powerful currency. Access to information is by far one of the biggest advantages of technology and modern gadget use. They have revolutionised the way we work, eat, sleep, shop and communicate. They are an ever- present part of modern life. This must be a good thing, isn’t it?
Let’s take communication. Do phone booths still exist? How about those fat, heavy mobile phones that made the user look like a soviet colonel or a sugar daddy? Before the days of mobile phones, it was somehow inconvenient trying to reach people since one needed to find a phone booth to make calls while away from home. Modern technology helps us stay personally and professionally connected by providing access to email, text messages, WhatsApp, video chat and social media, all through a mobile phone!
Modern gadgets have revolutionised the world of shopping, allowing online shoppers to buy millions of products with a click of a mouse. Online stores, drop-shipping, et al were all born from the Boom that is technology.
Ghana has been making impressive strides in digital inclusion and technological adoption over the last six years. A deliberate policy direction by the government may be the real drive for this adoption and advancement, but I daresay this is the only reason. Ghana’s economy is dominated by Micro, Small and Medium scale Enterprises that struggle to grow, hence digital growth can be the X factor that leads to a massive transformation of the economy.
According to the latest country Economic memorandum report of the World Bank on Ghana, 98% of the country’s businesses were Micro or Small and 90% were informal.
Pierre Laporte, World Bank Director for Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone highlighted, “Digital technologies could offer a source of productivity growth and accelerate firm upgrading and spur innovation as well as entrepreneurship, thus driving growth of higher quality jobs in Ghana”.
Same report also highlights though Ghana performs well on the availability of digital infrastructure- with high coverage and relatively low costs for mobile internet, fixed broadband is the main barrier to digital technology adoption. Ghana’s broadband issues are well documented, with no near solution in sight. For Ghana’s digital transformation to continue to evolve, there must be a deliberate focus on increasing the internet speed whiles continuing to reduce the costs of handsets and gadgets, as well as data plans.
I must however add that, while I am an advocate for technology, tech, digital transformation, and the inherent benefits they provide, not just for me as an individual, but for National advancement, I must add that the downsides worry me as well.
I worry about the impact of all this on the present and future generation. Gadget addiction is fast on the rise, especially in children! About 47% of parents believe that their children are addicted to smartphones. 52% of teenagers surveyed sit with their smartphones for more extended periods than hanging out with friends!
Children’s addiction towards gadgets of any kind is a widespread problem for parents world-wide. Countries like the United States, Korea, Indonesia, etc. have studies affirming the alarming rate of gadget addiction among children and their negative consequences.
The negative impact includes decreasing cognitive skills like attentional and memory issues, academic skills, increased aggression, perceptual problems, and anti-social behavioural patterns (Sandya Basu).
Modern gadgets, especially the internet-connected ones usually generate radiation leading to several health issues. For example, you may get blurring vision from the screens of a laptop or smartphone. This exposure is usually prominent especially when these gadgets are directly in contact with the skin. Overuse of modern gadgets such as ear buds could cause health related issues such as earaches. Also, many modern gadgets have caused sleep deprivation especially at night. Studies also prove that the excessive use of electronic gadgets in early childhood or teenage years can result in different psychological disorders, like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as well as physiological complications like obesity, myopia, dryness, blurring vision, headache, etc.
Though social media and other technology help many people strengthen relationships, others feel pressured to keep up a certain image on these platforms. Children and teenagers are especially vulnerable to the social issues associated with smartphones and other gadgets connected to the internet.
The ability to shop and conduct banking operations from a mobile device is convenient but brings an increased risk for identity theft and other serious crimes. Loss of privacy is another challenge! Personal videos, photos and other private information are at greater risk of being exposed or lost when stored on a modern gadget.
I asked a question in my title, Is it worth the risk? I love technology, but at what cost? Something for you all to chew on…