When I was little, before I could understand such comments and remark upon them; my parents, grandparents and anyone over the age of forty used to make comments about things not being made the way they used to be, or not lasting half as long as they did back in my day.

As I grew up, I began thinking about their comments and thought that it was just silly views from the older generation who just didn't like the idea of change. But now as I myself get on in years, and I have my own possessions, I find myself thinking more and more that the old sayings, and beliefs are true, and that they really don't make things the way they used to. And the main thing is I'm not even that old, infact I think I'm far to young to be this cynical but when you face the facts of life, you begin seeing things very differently.

For instance, the one accessory that springs to mind, which I can assure you, my grandparents never commented on, are the use of mobile phones. I have had a mobile phone since I was fourteen and I have had a contract since eighteen years old, looking back I miss the days of simple phone, when they were just that, phones. These new special smart phone, aapplications and accessories are brilliant, innovative and look good, but these fancy new phones seem to fail me when I need them the most, they fail when I need them to just be phones. It's ok that angry birds is still working to keep you entertained when stuck on the hard shoulder of the motorway, not so good that you cannot actually call for help.

The very first phone I ever owned was a motorola I believe, and it lasted me for the last two years I was at school. And I used it a lot. It was a new piece of technology and personal mobile phones were all the rage. My friends would borrow it, it was thrown around, sometimes it was in my pocket during water fights, I would drop it and it would on many occasions be taken off me and put in a drawer somewhere. However, when I needed this phone, it never once failed me, well unless you count the time my friend tried to guess my pin and got it wrong, so I had to call up my service provider for dreaded PUK, which I had never heard of until that moment. But in fairness that was her stupidity so I do not count that time!

My second phone was a Sony Erikson that flipped open to reveal the keypad, it was a beauty, but very bulky. That was my only ever issue with it, as it served me well, and it was so good it went on to serve my mum well too. My mum had this phone for years without a problem, and I think she only gave it up because try brother bought her a new one for Christmas. Back then times were simple, a phone was used for calls, texts and possibly the odd game of snake, and I would keep phones for years, as I never felt I needed to upgrade as my phone worked perfectly for me.

When I finally became an adult and was allowed my own phone, all of my others were bought for me, I purchased a shiny new Nokia on a twelve month contract, and at the end of that contract, I renewed and kept the same phone for another year, I think this was the last time I ever did that, because after that my success with phones went down hill and some of them didn't even make it to the end of the first month, let alone the end of the contract. How many of you can say you have kept a phone longer than the contract in more recent years? I am actually generally interested to know, as I really do feel phones aren't built the way they used to be, but now I am beginning to wonder if it is actually just me.

My trusty Nokia lasted me for that year too. But at the end of my contract, I was talked into upgrading for a newer model, I was practically promised the earth from this new phone. It came with a camera, limited Internet and better ringtones, and I being the susceptible person I am, was reeled in like a gullible trout. I now realise that for myself, that it where it started to go wrong for me.

I always go back to phone shops with one thing on my mind, I just want a simple phone, but in today's society where everything has to be better and more technical, I always somehow come away with the exact same type of phone, with all the gadgets and gizmos attached, and every time I find myself unhappy after a month. But let's be honest, some of that is my own fault, I should stick to my guns and opt for a simpler model, but do you know how hard it is to find one of those? And is it so bad for me to want a new phone that maybe has a few special features but still does its job. I do not think I am asking for much. For example, my mother upgraded a few years ago, before phones went crazy and got a phone that has a few bells and whistles but is still mainly a phone, and she has never had any trouble with it and it comes through for her when she needs it.

The major downside to a newer fancier phone is that all the gadgets seems to have replaced the longevity of phones, for one reason or another. From battery life to reception, it seems to get better and worse in the same breath. Picture quality, games and applications mean nothing to the stranded traveller stuck on the side of the motorway trying to call for assistance, when all of sudden signal goes or it randomly switches off, I can tell you from experience it does leave you a happy customer, I can tell you that for free.

I am not saying lets all look to the past for our technology, change is good and so is improvement of technology. But within all this change it would nice to see some improvements on a grander scale. I am also not foolish enough to paint every phone and everyone's experiences with the same brush, this has just been mine and some of my friends experiences, but I also know plenty of people who have new phones and have had hardly any trouble with them. So I am not telling everyone to rush out and find an old nokia, or to not keep searching for a good phone with all the bells and whistles, but in my experience I wish I had found that simple phone all those years ago, and stuck with it because in the past 2 years, I have been through two Nokias, a Blackberry and I am now on a Samsung and each one has been worse than the last.