Whether it's iOS or Android, everyone will continue to be friends.
Last night, I reveled in more millennial nostalgia by going to see the Rilo Kiley reunion show in Berkeley. I met up with a smattering of friends from different friend groups. We were all in agreement that everyone would pursue the concert experience they wanted individually, though we would periodically check in with drive-by hugs and hellos.
The best thing about the Greek Theater is that it's a Choose Your Own Adventure type of venue. You can choose to stand up the entirety of the show in the pit, netting you the closest view of the band out of the entire crowd. You can sit on the concrete seats up high where the sound hits you directly without having to deal with aching legs and the sweaty, swaying bodies of other people. Or you can choose to spread out a picnic blanket at the very top of the venue and dance in your own space.
I've done all three of these variations, often rotating between them depending on the genre of music playing and who I'm with. This time, I wanted all my friends to take up a section of the seats and cry with me (I was at my softest in my indie rock era). But the upside of being a grown adult is that you understand not everyone has the same appetite for being emo that you do, and so you compromise. Four of my friends were down in the pit, while I went up to the rafters to grab a spot nearest to where the pit enters and exits so that my two other pals would spot me. We hugged and squealed over the existence of one another in between sets. It worked out perfectly.
What does this have to do with smartphones, you ask? Well, most of my friends use iPhones. You would think that, based on years of fear-mongering about children bullying each other over green bubbles, this would have inhibited society's ability to coexist. But it hasn't, because none of that actually matters. My friends called and texted to figure out where we could meet. Whatever the hills of Berkeley have going on with cell towers worked to our benefit, because no one had any issue contacting one another. I was also wrangling a group text with two other iOS users, the two friends I was holding a space for up in the seats. Whatever Google did to bully Apple into complying with RCS (actually, it was the EU Digital Markets Act) worked splendidly, along with reactions, read receipts, and "person is typing" indicator.
It doesn't matter anymore what mobile platform you're on. We live in a duopoly anyway. It's merely a choice between this and that. But I also take solace in knowing that, even though we have constant, direct digital access to one another at the push of a button, it will never replace the in-person exchange of pleasantries and chemistry that refill our proverbial cups.
Huyen makes her triumphant return to the show, joining Mishaal Rahman and Ron Richards to discuss AI in Android and the latest leaks about Android XR. Plus a little segment from yours truly on what the Pixel Watch 4 is like to wear.
