[fuzztester]

around the same time that the original 5110 was getting popular, I bought my first mobile phone, a used Motorola Amio.

It was quite big, with big buttons, and looked somewhat like a walkie talkie. I liked it and used it for about a year, before I got another make of phone.

I searched and found some images that look something like it:

https://www.google.com/search?q=motorola+amio+phone

[ljf]

I remember that Motorola, I was opening a student bank account and they offered a free 3 year student railcard (to buy discount tickets), a camera or that motorola - I was just about to get it when the lack of Snake and also the pretty poor contract it came on made me jump for the Railcard.

But still felt wild at the time that they were 'giving away' a mobile phone.

[fuzztester]

ha, nice story. I can relate to it.

but the US practice of a contract thing for phones seems to me to be a scam, kind of like a lock-in scheme. in fact i am sure that it is that. because then they have you by the balls, financially, for their gain and your loss, and you can bet your ass that they will exploit that position, if not now, then in the future.

It is highway robbery, IMO.

I wonder why people in the US do not understand this.

Or is it related to what I have heard, but not sure whether it is true, that a lot of people in the US do not have much savings, and so live paycheck to paycheck? and is it also related to the constant desire for consumption, which I've also read about?

Fuck, that's pretty bad, if so. I can understand that there can be many historical reasons why a lot of people are now in that state, due to past and current oppression, non-level playing field, etc.

I am not judging, just commenting and asking.

In at least some other countries, including India, mobile providers or mobile phone sellers trying to lock in people to such schemes, would be laughed out of court, so to speak, by the vast majority of consumers, IMO, although I have have heard of some such schemes that do exist, and some people probably do go for them, for short term reasons, due to being cash-strapped.