Celebrities Who Refuse To Use Cellphones
By
Sughra Hafeez in
Entertainment
On 8th August 2017
Research has suggested that we are so addicted to our cell phones that we check on them 150 times a day–the equivalent of once every 6 and a half minutes. This includes 22 calls received or made, 23 text messages sent or received, and 18 glances just to check the time! Never mind checking emails, social media notifications, playing games, and using apps.
And while people of all ages love their cell phone, it does seem to be young people who are particularly affected by the crippling symptoms of nomophobia. A survey in 2016 found that 50% of the teenagers questioned felt that they were addicted to their smartphones.
Somehow, some people have managed to break away from the curse of the cell phone, including the celebrities below. Could you manage to follow their example?
#1 Elton John
Elton John may be the musical genius, but like most geniuses, he’s also a little crazy. He’s against the use of technology, so much in fact that he’s in favor of a global shutdown of the internet. If you’re thinking a day without the internet might not be too bad, he’s suggesting it be shut down for 5 years!! Needless to say, he doesn’t own a smart phone and has likely never even used one.
#2 Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise is notorious for having a few crazy habits, although whether his Hollywood lifestyle or his devotion to Scientology is to blame, is up for discussion. In a 2007 interview, the actor revealed that not only does he not own a cell phone, but that he doesn’t even have an email address, and weirdly, he doesn’t own a watch either. Not everyone in the Cruise family has the same attitude to mobile phones. His ex-wife, Katie Holmes, was reported to have used a disposable cellphone to arrange her divorce from Cruise, without him or his Scientology buddies finding out.
#3 Tyra Banks
Supermodel-turned-TV-presenter Tyra Banks seems like a thoroughly modern woman. Yet for many years, she refused to own a cell phone. In recent years, she has finally taken the plunge, but she still has strict rules about what she can and can’t access on her mobile phone. For example, while Tyra is happy to receive and send the occasional text and even check her social media from time to time, she refuses to use her cell phone to read and reply to emails, as she says she knows she would end up checking incoming mail every few minutes, leaving no time for herself or her family.
#4 Simon Cowell
Some might argue that Simon Cowell doesn’t need a cell phone, as no one would want to speak to someone so grumpy! However, the reality TV show judge refuses to own a mobile phone, as he fears that being contactable at all times would leave him without a minute’s peace. Given that he has made the careers of so many music stars, who can blame him for being worried? It is worth noting, nevertheless, that TV’s Mr. Nasty isn’t averse to using cell phones, as he has borrowed from friends, family, and colleagues and was once pictured speaking on two handsets at the same time even though neither of them belonged to him.
#5 Shailene Woodley
Millenials, those born in the 1980’s and 1990’s, are almost as obsessed with their cellphones and technology as teenagers. So, it may be surprising to learn that actress Shailene Woodley, born in 1991, no longer owns a cellphone. The Divergent star decided to ditch mobile phones when she found herself spending too much time interacting with people online, rather than enjoying the company of real people in a real community. Woodley says that her communication skills have improved since she made the decision to check her cell phone and that she speaks to new and interesting people all the time as a result.
#6 Sarah Jessica Parker
Carrie Bradshaw may have been on her cell phone often, but not SJP. Parker recently admitted to ditching her cellphone, saying, "I don't like being behind in both phone calls and emails, so I chose emails because when you're on a set, you can carefully and sneakily check a BlackBerry, but you can't return a phone call. Hearing 'Your voicemail is full' is horrifying to me."
#7 Casey Affleck
Sometimes the mobile phone addiction can outweigh a celebrity’s desire to do without a cell phone. That was the case for this actor who decided to toss his cell phone into a river one day. The reason that he cited was that he is highly conscious about his health and had fears that a mobile phone is a cancer-causing machine. Never mind that studies have consistently proven that the mobile phone is probably not linked with an incidence of cancer. Affleck must’ve decided that there was some validity to those rumors because he decided that he couldn’t be without a cell phone and ended up going to get another one. However, he tries to keep his use of the mobile phone to a minimum.
#8 Ian McKellan
Ian McKellan is rumored to not have a cell phone and he reportedly never has. That doesn’t seem to have slowed him down or prevented him from having an acting career. He and best friend Patrick Stewart seem to have great fun together. Ian McKellan is probably most recognized in recent years for his role as Magneto in the X-Men franchise.
#9 Christopher Walken
This is another celebrity that prefers life in a simpler time, at least when it comes to the use of technology. He’s well-known as a celebrity that doesn’t have a cell phone and doesn’t ever desire to have one. When you’ve got fifty years of movie making behind you, you’ve also got people to take your calls for you.
#10 Dave Grohl
This Foo Fighters singer is also a BlackBerry owner who really doesn’t use the phone much. He’ll go so far as to place calls through the smartphone but he’s not interested in taking advantage of the advanced phone features that are available to him on this expensive wireless gadget. He’d just rather not bother with those complicated things. So, he’s another celebrity who is willing to use the mobile phone but only in limited form.
#11 David Sedaris
One of the hilarious people on earth, David Sedaris, doesn't own a cellphone. As of a few years ago, the writer admitted to having only a land line, but no cellphone or email address. That's crazy!
#12 Vince Vaughn
Vince Vaughn has no trouble using a cell phone. If he is out and about and he needs to get a hold of someone he will ask to borrow one. However, he is against the idea of owning one himself because he does not want people to be able to easily reach him. He wants to have a sense of privacy and not have people be able to call him wherever he is.
#13 Casey Affleck
Casey Affleck is reported to have thrown his cell phone into the ocean because he was worried about the health effects of using it. His concerns had nothing to do with addiction to the phone or social media, but rather the fear that cell phones can actually cause cancer. He did eventually get a new phone, but he does try and limit his use of it as much as possible.
#14 Mikhail
Mikhail Prokhorov is a Russian billionaire who does not have a cell phone. He writes all his correspondence by hand and doesn’t even own a computer. He says that the computers and the internet have too much access to information and there is no way to filter it. It sounds strange to rest of us, but if his massive fortune is anything to speak of it’s been working well for him.
#15 Warren Buffet
Warren Buffet says that he doesn’t get rid of anything until he’s had it for 20 – 25 years. So while he does have a cell phone, it is an ancient Nokia flip phone. He has never owned a smart phone and he doesn’t use email. He may be a billionaire and the most famous investor in the world, but he still lives in a very modest three bedroom home and fights for the rights of the working class.
