The Mobile Internet and How It’s Changed the Way We Spend our Money

I’m curious about something and I’ll get to the questions for you shortly, but the internet is great isn’t it? I mean it’s allowed us to do so much more and it’s come so far so fast really. I think most of us spend a lot of time on the internet and it’s certainly changed the way we do things in life. I remember years ago when the ‘web’ came to mobile phones and it was nothing like what we have today, it was pretty much all text based really and it was a big disappointment. Now our phones can access websites just like we can on our computer, it looks and acts pretty much the same. We can do so much more on the go and it’s changed our lives possibly for the better, but I think that point might be debatable as it’s also caused a disconnect between people and how we interact now. It seems that mobile phones have caused people to care less about others, people seem just more rude than they were before mobiles became as popular or maybe as accessible as they are today.

The internet for me has allowed me more freedoms and it’s also given me more ways to spend my money. I love Amazon and Steam, the convenience is just great really. The recent Steam summer sale is prime example, I know many people that dumped a lot of money into it. I didn’t as I have a large library of games and I had most that were on sale, at least those that I wanted anyway. The Steam sale I think provided people with a way to spend their money without leaving their home and also gave people a reason to buy games that they normally wouldn’t buy. There aren’t many actual brick and mortar places to buy PC games anymore, at least around here there isn’t. I don’t think people would have spent as much as they did if they had to go to a physical store and pay full price for those games and even on sale a brick and mortar store couldn’t match the prices on Steam.

Amazon is another great one, I know I use Amazon a lot and it’s truly opened up a world or possibilities in what the consumer can spend their money on. We can order right from our phones or home computers of course and it’s just so damn convenient and I think people buy things they normally wouldn’t just because of the convenience of it all.

The Appstores for all of our mobiles have also given us a way to spend our money obviously as our phones have become so much more than something make a phone call on (honestly I miss the days of a phone being an actual phone sometimes…). We spend our money on apps and games to help us do more and to help us pass the time.

Let’s get to my curiosity here and the questions.

I’ve been to Vegas many years ago and honestly it was a big letdown, it wasn’t as ‘magical’ as it’s made up to be. Sure it was interesting to see something new but it wasn’t all that. It’s all about spending money in the hopes of getting more money. I live in Pittsburgh and we have a casino aptly named Rivers Casino and it’s been open for a while now, a few years really, in 2009. It’s located maybe a 10 minute drive from me with light traffic and I’ve never stepped foot into it and I probably never will. If it was there when I was younger and didn’t have children I think I would have spent a lot of time there honestly, but now not so much.

The mobile internet has opened up so many possibilities to spend our money it’s ridiculous right? One of them is gambling. It used to be only on our computer but places like Ladbrokes are now offering mobile apps to help you gamble on the go. You just visit their site and download the app on you iPhone or even Android and away you go to gamble your cash away. You can gamble while you’re standing in line for groceries or waiting at the doctors office or sitting the bar having a drink. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

I’ve never gambled over the computer or via my phone but I’m sure some of you have. So my questions to you dear readers are:

Have you gambled via your phone?

If you have, will you do it again?

Is it the same? Does it give you the same feeling or rush as a real casino does?

Is it fun?

The most obvious question: Did you win?