The Cell Phone Address

 The Cell Phone Address…
 

Embracing a cell phone number, as the complete personal address, is a great mistake of the 21st century. Sending a parcel through the carrier services, the most important detail required is a receiver’s name, cell phone number and the preferred pick-up point. This has duped the young people of today. To them, as far as addresses are concerned, a cell phone number is everything. This is wrong. Advancement in the digital technology not withstanding; a physical address, & a mailing address are still a relevant component of the communication system; without forgetting that an unexpected disconnection can render a cell phone useless. There is more to an address than a cell phone number can offer.
 

First of all, a physical address is very important. (PostGrid, 2023). Once your physical address is known, anyone can walk or drive over to it for a one-on-one meeting. Civilian carriers, like DHL, Amazon or the FedEx, can deliver parcels to the recipients’ locations with ease. On the same breath; it is easier for vital service providers like the government or NGOs to visit someone with a physical address. The same case applies when you have a valid street address. A cell phone number cannot be a fixed location. Unless it is backed with additional information, its address cannot be physically traced.
 

Secondly, a mailing address is a beneficial addition to a personal address. Similarly, a P.O. Box address or even the military address offers lots of benefits unlike a cell phone number alone. (Hub, 2023). Think of a military address for example. With this address, mails for the soldiers, once posted, can always be rerouted by the military postal services to the actual location of the recipient, without the knowledge of the sender. A P.O. Box address on the other hand, enables one to have mails waiting, safely, in a box for a convenient time of collection. A cell phone number-only-address, will deny one the benefits of a mailing address.
 

Truth is, a cell phone address will provide real-time updates. But there is a real threat in unforeseen disconnection in it. A service provider, using the cell phone address availed, can give details of departure from station of origin, arrival at the destination or estimated time for collection of parcels; but the owner of the cell phone might not be available on the other end. Again, if the cell phone number is erroneously entered, or the cell phone user unexpectedly changes his/her numbers, the real-time updates can never reach the intended recipient. A shutdown or disconnection, for whatever reason, will definitely render a cell phone address useless. A physical location, just like the street address, cannot be easily changed.
 

Addresses have different purposes. Personal addresses have benefits, advantages or disadvantages that cannot be guaranteed by a cell phone address alone. Communication systems, especially the digital technology, without doubt, have come with a myriad of benefits. But the ease of communicating over a cell phone is not enough reason to stop using other addresses. Thus, the place of the physical address and the mailing address is still relevant; and the risks of a cell phone shutdown cannot be ignored.

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