The Use of Cell Phones Has Increased Rapidly in the Twenty-First Century- IELTS Writing Task 2

The use of cell phones (mobile phones) has increased rapidly in the twenty-first century. Additionally, cell phones can now be used for many purposes besides making phone calls. What are the advantages and disadvantages of cell phones?

Outline

Essay Type

Advantages/Disadvantages essay

Introduction

Sentence 1&2 – Paraphrase the question with the help of synonyms. Elucidate how cell phones have become integral in our lives, and how it also distracts people from their work.

Sentence 3 – Mention that the essay will cover various advantages and disadvantages of the topic.

Body paragraphs

Paragraph 1 – Mention the advantages of the cell phone, like how it connects the world, how it makes everything convenient and easy to reach, how it helps us gather information and facilitates communication. Mention examples if possible.

Paragraph 2 – Mention the disadvantages. For instance, talk about how cell phones have connected the world but only socially, that we are slowly growing distant on the whole. Also mention how cell phone radiation is harmful to humans and the environment.

Conclusion

Summarise the advantages and disadvantages in one line and state your observations.

Sample Essay 1

Cell phones are an integral part of our functioning and are no longer just a means to communicate. In fact, it is safe to say that it has become a necessary evil. ‘Necessary’ because most of the people, irrespective of their age group, need a cell phone for their studies or professional work and ‘evil’ because it has now become an addiction rather than a tool for our convenience.

From being able to get in touch with hundreds of friends with one click while on-the-go, to being able to have easy access to vast amounts of content through Google, Youtube, etc. on your hand-held device, the advent of mobile phones has actualized developments that seemed magical a few decades ago. It is almost impossible to cover all the benefits of the cell phone, but we have video-calling, emails, photography, gaming, and entertainment, to name a few. It is impossible to imagine a world without cell phones today, for they have improved our user experience to a great extent.

As with everything in life, there is a downside to this boon as well. In my opinion, the biggest disadvantage of cell phones today is that the very tool which was supposed to bring the world closer has allowed people to dwell in their own private bubble. A cell phone has enabled people to live in a rather confusingly structured world, wherein people are connected to others but disconnected from the reality around them. People prefer chatting over messages or a phone call much more than face-to-face interactions. Even the brand or model of the cell phone one owns is seen as a status symbol, rather than it being considered a utility itself. Additionally, the radiation caused by extensive exposure to cell phones, which, as per studies, has caused endangerment or extinction in various bird species in some places.

Even with all its negatives, the cell phone can be counted among the monumental inventions of human existence, right beside the wheel and fire. However, it totally lies in the hands of humans to strike the right balance and make the best use of it.

Sample Essay 2

Cell phones are an integral part of our functioning and are no longer just a means to communicate. In fact, it is safe to say that it has become a necessary evil. ‘Necessary’ because most of the people, irrespective of their age group, need a cell phone for their studies or professional work and ‘evil’ because it has now become an addiction rather than a tool for our convenience.

From being able to get in touch with hundreds of friends with one click while on-the-go, to being able to have easy access to vast amounts of content through Google, Youtube, etc. on your hand-held device, the advent of mobile phones has actualized developments that seemed magical a few decades ago. It is almost impossible to cover all the benefits of the cell phone, but we have video-calling, emails, photography, gaming, and entertainment, to name a few. It is impossible to imagine a world without cell phones today, for they have improved our user experience to a great extent.

As with everything in life, there is a downside to this boon as well. In my opinion, the biggest disadvantage of cell phones today is that the very tool which was supposed to bring the world closer has allowed people to dwell in their own private bubble. A cell phone has enabled people to live in a rather confusingly structured world, wherein people are connected to others but disconnected from the reality around them. People prefer chatting over messages or a phone call much more than face-to-face interactions. Even the brand or model of the cell phone one owns is seen as a status symbol, rather than it being considered a utility itself. Additionally, the radiation caused by extensive exposure to cell phones, which, as per studies, has caused endangerment or extinction in various bird species in some places.

Even with all its negatives, the cell phone can be counted among the monumental inventions of human existence, right beside the wheel and fire. However, it totally lies in the hands of humans to strike the right balance and make the best use of it.

Sample Essay 3

Since the beginning of this century, the use of cell phones among the people in our societies has escalated dramatically. Though it is primarily used for phone calls, nowadays it is utilised for lots of other purposes such as gaming, ticket booking, and numerous others. Despite its usefulness, it still poses lots of problems to our society.

Firstly, people can easily communicate with their friends and family regardless of being separated physically which used to be an issue in the past. In the past, people had to wait for months to get a letter from their loved ones. Secondly, the network of information piled on the internet are readily available for the user. For instance, we can get a particular thing without having to flip through hundreds of books. Also, one can use it to entertain themselves.

On the contrary, it negatively affected our society. For the foremost, it increased the social media content consumption among the population which led to an increase in the number of depressed people, especially among the children. A recent survey showed that the majority of the people are spending more hours on mobile phones than the suggested amount. Also, people’s personal lives are affected as people are caring more about strangers than their families. The supportive family is becoming a thing of the past.

In conclusion, no matter what it did to influence other people’s lives, the cell phone is a mere electronic device. We can use it to provide the service that we need and get benefits by using it.

Sample Essay 4

The usage of cell phones has risen in the twenty-first century. Moreover, besides calling, these can be utilised for many purposes. This essay shall discuss the positive and negative aspects of cell phones.

To begin with, the fact that mobile phones are a lot beneficial to human beings in many ways cannot be denied. Firstly, these electronic devices are equipped with an operating system that allows users to install applications. These simplify a number of cumbersome tasks and aid in saving time and energy which can be utilised productively in other humongous jobs. For instance, airplane and train tickets can now be booked online, whereas earlier, people had to visit the physical centers which was time consuming. Moreover, inbuilt features like calculator, alarm and so on also compliment the resourcefulness of these devices.

However, these devices are fraught with ramifications that cannot be overlooked. Since these cell phones offer features that are utilitarian, people become highly contingent on them. Thus, this dependency renders them handicapped. For instance, people do not remember contact numbers; they can effortlessly save these on their devices. Besides this, exhilarating games, social media, and other fascinating applications which allow the public to watch movies, series cause addiction. Therefore, focusing on crucial tasks becomes an arduous job owing to the never ending urge to be glued on their phones. Moreover, this also refrains them from any kind of social activity.

In conclusion, while advantages like being equipped with features that help in performing actions efficiently proves the usefulness of these gadgets, the demerits such as reliance, and isolation cannot be overlooked.

Sample Essay 5

Since the last few decades, there has been a considerable rise in the usage of mobile phones. This has made communication much easier by keeping people well connected all the time especially in time of emergencies but on the other hand this has also led to valuable time getting wasted as people are glued to their phones all the time while ignoring other important tasks at hand.

Cell phones have definitely simplified the way people used to connect with each other. Life has become much easier now that we can talk to our family and friends by simply pressing few keys on our mobile phones. Recent reports state that around 90% people in this world use mobile phones for communicating. When I had left for college in another city, mobile phone made reaching out to my folks back home so fast and easy that I rarely missed them even though I was so far away from them.

Alternatively, there are many people who end up wasting their precious time on cell phone as it is addictive. This leads to people postponing other crucial activities which they need to perform only to do some aimless scrolling on their cellphones. Just to give an example of my cousin who had been so obsessed with his phone that he absolutely side lined his studies prior to his college entrance exams which in return ruined his chances of getting admission into a good college.

In conclusion, there is no doubt that the arrival of cell phone has brought considerable improvements to how people used to communicate with each other by making it very quick and smooth however, people have also become addicted to cellphones therefore squandering a lot of their time on them and thus overlooking other critical tasks that might require their attention.

Vocabulary

• Integral 

Meaning – necessary to make a whole complete; essential or fundamental.
Example – A good manager is integral for the company’s success.

• Addiction 

Meaning – the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance or activity.
Example – Unfortunately, his downfall was because of his addiction to alcohol.

• On-the-go 

Meaning – Very active or busy.
Example – His job is so demanding that he’s always on-the-go.

• Advent  

Meaning – the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.
Example – The advent of Indus Valley civilization was aided by the Indus river’s water.

• Actualize  

Meaning – make a reality of.
Example – He actualized his dream of performing at the Prithvi Theatre.

• Boon

Meaning – a thing that is helpful or beneficial.
Example – Good roads are a boon to the economy of any country.

• Dwell  

Meaning – live in or at a specified place.
Example – It is said that the first humans dwelled in Africa.

• Utility  

Meaning – the state of being useful, profitable, or beneficial.
Example – Smartphones have become such an important utility in today’s times.

• Endangerment

Meaning – the action of putting someone or something at risk or in danger.
Example – The police are actively arresting reckless drivers who cause endangerment to people on the road.

• Monumental  

Meaning – great in importance, extent, or size.
Example – The invention of the wheel is seen as a monumental development in human history.