“These days almost everyone can take pictures which goes to show how much mobility has become such a widespread lifestyle.” 

Kasminder Singh

I was chatting with some friends a few weeks ago and the subject of mobility came up. We all agreed that mobility had nothing to do with whether the person had wheels or not. That is so ‘last century’. These days, mobility is about how much one can do, either at work or play, while on the move.

That discussion got me thinking. Just how would one decide if a person was mobile or not?
If at one time a car or a bike would have been required, these days other gadgets are a must. First off would be a mobile phone which is so obvious that nothing more needs to be said on that. But there are quite a few other capabilities that makes the mobile person - the ability to take photos for instance.

A mobile person should always be ready take pictures. It doesn’t matter what is used. I always carry a small digital camera; the camera on my phone is just a backup but many others use their cameraphones which is equally fine. Like mobile phones, even camera capabilities are hardly noteworthy. These days almost everyone can take pictures which goes to show how much mobility has become such a widespread lifestyle.

I would also say that access to music on the go is important. Many phones have MP3 features. The rest seem to be carrying MP3 players anyway. The specialised and expensive HiFi setups in houses are slowly becoming the privilege of die hard music fidelity fanatics. The mobile person is more than happy to compromise some quality for the ability to listen when and where he wants. Go look at the electronic stores. These days there are more MP3 players than normal CD players on sale.

We then move on to video recording which is turning out to be the next big thing if you judge by the popularity of websites like Youtube. Interestingly, not many bother to buy dedicated videocams which are not only expensive but also not that easy to have around at all times – the major requirement of a mobile device. Most people simply use their mobile phones which gives good enough video quality for the Internet.

If you have the above capabilities, I’d say that you look like someone who has embraced the mobile lifestyle. But of course there are varying degrees of mobility too.
If you still receive and send email from your desktop PC, then you are a bit behind time. Many people have long been receiving email on their mobile devices. Even cost cannot be an excuse. You may not be able to afford that Blackberry but there are tons of other ways (and many of them are free, by the way) to get email on the move.

Beyond email, extremely mobile people carry out online chats and surf the Internet using mobile devices. They are comfortable working on documents wherever they are. Some would even add the capability to receive or send a fax to the requirements for mobility though I think even faxing itself should have been sent to the bin a long time ago. If faxing can be replaced by email as it really should, many forests can be saved.

When you stop and think about it, most of what I specify above can be accomplished easily by anyone at very little cost. I got a great Casio Exilim digital camera with videocam features  for a friend for only RM599 last week. A good mobile phone with video, camera and email capabilities can be bought for around RM700. Unlimited data and surf packages are below a hundred a month. So everyone can be mobile.

But there is one other point to note. Having the devices does not automatically make someone mobile. There’s not much good having the capabilities if you don’t have the right mindset. Attitude is equally important.

However, judging from the kinds of postings and websites we see these days, more and more people are beginning to embrace the mobile lifestyle. I started this column in the office, continued it in my home and finished it in a mamak shop. Are you still working solely from your office desk?

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