I was momentarily taken aback when asked this question by the helpful saleslady, as I handed over SGD $656 (USD$475) for two Samsung A30S at a mall. "Are these for kids?"
Recovering my composure, I suggested that I was trying to avoid attention over a flashy phone in South America. I asked if adults these days didn't use such 'cheap phones'. The saleslady, who was in her late 20s said most adults purchased more expensive phones. She owns a S9+ which cost her SGD $1298, and admitted that as a salesperson, there was pressure if she did not buy one. It was maybe half her monthly salary, or close. I felt self conscious as I pulled out my SGD$50 Samsung J5 which was 3 years old.
She was helpful with testing the phone, and explaining the warranty was local, not global. She asked if I was overseas a lot. I didn't know what to say, so I said I was going to travel for a few years.
Why must an adult's phone cost 2 to 3 times the laptop Debbie and I are using? Whose perceptions are these, and what is the cost of such consumerism?
Sometimes it's the kids who use kids' phones who have not lost the simplicity of mind to dream. Or is it the other way around?
We leave in 2 weeks.
Written by Kelvin
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