Technology in our lives: How Smartphones enhance the access to entertainment
Cast your mind back to the 1960s and imagine a time when we didn’t carry around these amazing devices in our pockets. It would’ve been hard to imagine back then that we’d have access to virtually all the games imaginable, plus films, live television, and other forms of entertainment, on us at all times.
Even when the very first smartphones came out, you probably couldn’t have predicted the immense progress they would have made and some of the wonderful (and sometimes weird) ways that smartphones have changed our lives.
In terms of entertainment, it has changed everything for the industry, with virtually every entertainment brand having to think about an app or another way that they can access the mobile market (and millions of consumers).
Casino Games
Who would have thought you could get all of the games of a casino into a tiny little device in your pocket? Even when the 1990s saw a few sites starting to offer casino games and poker games through clunky old websites, it was hard to imagine the digital landscape that would emerge and even the fact that you’d be able to connect without one of those old noisy modems.
When cellular data started ensuring devices were connected all the time, mobile apps became even more mainstream. A bit like the poker boom we saw in the early 2000s, there is another huge development in the industry happening now in the form of cryptocurrencies and digital payment methods.
Gaming has a huge level of choice for players, from poker games to themed slots and more, plus as well as the traditional versions of games there are more modern variations available to play on mobile apps. Poker used to be played with physical cards and chips, but now things have become digital for lots of people, with options to play online using different currencies and versions of the game, mBitcasino video poker bitcoin games combine a modern variety of poker games with cryptocurrency payment methods. Video poker has a lot in common with slot games which are also incredibly popular and designed to look good and play well on a mobile phone.
Movies, Videos and Television
Watching a movie is something people used to go to a drive-in or other cinema to watch, but it gradually became possible to watch on your television at home and then gradually watch on other devices such as smartphones, even though some directors like Martin Scorsese have been very critical about watching on a small screen, and will only accept people watching on “a big iPad, maybe.”
We all carry a small screen in our pockets, so why not use it to watch a movie, log into Netflix or Disney Plus, or even check out the latest news, even if it isn’t the same as the 50-inch widescreen you may have at home?
People watch videos of all different kinds on their phones including live events, which may include TV and movies but can also include streamers and other media like sports, or a Sky Cam showing the weather in your local area (we all need to plan whether we need a coat or not).
Deloitte studies have shown that 3 in every 4 people have access to some sort of streaming service on their mobile, and that number is on the rise. Mobile convenience is why you see people watching on public transport, in the waiting room while they wait for an appointment, or on their lunch break from work.
Music and Podcasts
Audio entertainment is another huge category of smartphone entertainment and one of the clearest examples of how tech has changed to allow us access to virtually every song ever when just 30 years ago we were walking around with big brick-line Walkmen to be able to listen to one album.
Spotify (which is still only one of the ways to access this content) claims to have a whopping 100 million songs and five million podcasts on their platform, and over 500 million different users with accounts.
Spotify works on Chrome and other browsers, so it isn’t just for iPhones and other mobile devices, that flexibility means people can listen to an album, playlist, or podcast while at the gym or doing some other activities, it can even make mowing the lawn or doing the dishes less of a tedious task.
Conclusion
Your smartphone can be your best friend when it comes to accessing entertainment or enjoying hobbies, and a lot of us even use our phones while doing other stuff. If your partner is watching a show you don’t want to, you can always log onto your phone and read a book or play a game.
Smartphone entertainment doesn’t always replace the real thing, but that doesn’t mean it can’t work in harmony with other forms of entertainment rather than replacing them. Just because you can access casino games or watch a movie on your phone doesn’t mean you’re going to stop going to casinos and cinemas, right?