Boys and Their Smartphones

[Dodger]

The worst thing that ever happened to the gay scene in Thailand was the advent of the Smartphone. It wasn’t the economic decline in the 1990’s, it wasn’t the police raids in the early 2000’s, and it wasn’t this pandemic we’re facing now. It was the Smartphone.

The most fantastic memories I have of my Magical Mystery Tour of Thailand was before smartphones were invented, when you could simply walk into any beer bar or gogo bar and be treated by the boys as if you were something special…truly appreciated…the person they were waiting for. Where the sole reason for them being there was to service you…to make you happy…to stroke your ego and other more tangible body parts, with their sparkling eyes constantly glued to YOU, sometimes to the extent that it become embarrassing, but one would find it hard, if not impossible, not to feel as if you were in heaven being catered to by angels who were summoned there from your dreams. It’s that magic that I miss the most.

Now, with the dating apps being more lucrative to the boys than the nights they work in the bars, they have completely abandoned the hospitality that created the kind of magic I’m talking about. Their eyes are somewhere else. And when that happens, the experience you were hoping to receive is completely erased. You are just back to being a normal replaceable person again…the angels have lost their wings…and your dreams seem a million miles away as you face the cold hard reality of competing with a smartphone.

I know business is terrible…can’t be worse, but I’ll wager that the first bar owner who tells their staff to make those smartphones disappear when they’re working the bar, will draw more customers (and repeat customer) than his competition.

The CUSTOMER has been forgotten!

[Daveuk]

I couldn’t agree with you more Dodger !. I first discovered Pattaya in 2001 as a gay tourist and then it seemed like a wonderland with my pounds buying 70 baht. In the bars and gogos of Sunee and BT the boys gave you full attention and worked hard to get you to off them. I’ve had some good experiences with the dating apps but the excitement is not the same as in a Gogo when you see a stunner boy and invite him over for a drink,flirt with him, and very often off him for a night in your bed.

[goji]

Also, 10 years ago, it used to be possible to walk down the street and see massage shops with loads of cute lads outside. In Thailand, Cambodia and Laos. Spot a nice lad, then go and ask HIM for a massage, therefore no chance of getting fobbed off with a lad that's not to your liking.

Phones also seem to have killed off cruising.

Finally, some long time boys seem to spend an excessive amount of time on their phones, rather than interacting with the customer.

Of course, phones aren't going away anytime soon, unless there's a Myanmar style coup, with the internet shut does. So we need to make the best of what's available in 2021 onwards.

In Yangon, I did find some truly excellent massage boys in places a few miles from the centre and wouldn't have found those without smartphones.

[StevieWonders]

I literally do not know a single money boy in Bangkok who works in a boy bar now. Part of the “problem” is that those bars are themselves disappearing. Banana Bar in Silom Soi 4, for example, is now a music bar

It’s almost back to the Eighties because - as the name implies - you would walk into Telephone Bar, spot a boy (or he would spot you), you’d pick up the phone and .... Now you and the boy “see” each other online, one of you picks up the phone and you’re instantly chatting. In those days gogo was not the norm but the exception. The norm was the host bar - and now we’re returning to that norm - like it or not. The difference now is that it’s “virtual”.

[snotface]

Nice post, Dodger. Only you forgot to mention another drawback of the smartphone - the way they get dropped with alarming regularity and then comes the bereft, pitiful look from the boy as he requests your help in replacing the cracked glass or even (gulp!) in buying him a new phone.

[Daveuk]

I’ve got myself involved with a number of boy’s phone disasters. Such as
- one dropped in the pool at the Zing Resort.
- broken glass when bedside lamp fell on his phone which was on the floor.
- lost somewhere between Dongtan Beach and Boys Town Hotel
- having to ransack my room to find where he had put it. (In secret pocket in his back pack.)
And a few others
Beware of being guided to a smartphone showroom such at Tuc Com in Pattaya. Usually turns out to be expensive with a more longer term boyfriend.

[dab69]

What ever did they watch in bed to get them hard before smart phones were invented?
How did they have sex without a smart phone?
How did they get diverted home early (friend need key to loom) before smartphones?

[dinagam]

Beware of being guided to a smartphone showroom such at Tuc Com in Pattaya. Usually turns out to be expensive with a more longer term boyfriend.

There was a time this century when boys were in possession of seemingly expensive smartphones which turned out to be made in China copies with inferior processors and features from the original ones. I suppose they got to redeem themselves when a "boyfriend" finally relented in gifting them the original version.
Thai working boys will always try to "save face".

[goji]

I remember meeting one lad who had a near 40,000 baht Samsung phone with that difficult to protect curved screen. This was already cracked after a few weeks.

Some have the sense to buy something more modest and put it in a protective case.

[Oliver2]

Those of us in LTRs have another gripe, if the above weren't enough. The damn things are usually our only link with our distant beloved and , accordingly, it is nearly impossible to suggest cheaper phones or even trying to get one fixed in the repair shop. We know that, if the phone isn't working, the difficulties of getting in contact (via perhaps a non-English speaking parent, or a friend) are so dispiriting that we eventually fork-out for the super-duper model that does all sorts of things way beyond our comprehension.

[a447]

There's no way a guy I met in a bar is going to drag me to Tucom to buy him a phone.

If he did, I'd tell him I'll stay downstairs and wait for him in Starbucks. He can look as long as he wants.

Now, if he were my "boyfriend" it could well be a different story. But I wouldn't be buying anything from Tucom, that's for sure!

But to be honest, I've had very few requests for a phone - or anything for that matter -from the guys. No dead buffalo stories, either. Maybe I've been lucky but I don't think so.

On the other hand, I've heard lots of horror stories about the money boys in Europe, where it appears to be a case of AYOR.

But not in Thailand. In my experience they are not out to fleece us.

Over the years I've bought lots of things for certain guys who I consider a little bit special. But they never asked me - it was I who offered.

I just LOVE Thai guys!!

When I finally make it back there, I can think of a couple of guys to whom I'm going to be especially generous. I miss them so much!

[christianpfc]

The worst thing that ever happened to the gay scene in Thailand was the advent of the Smartphone.
Smart phones kill the atmosphere in a bar or during a date.

But it's a boon for me for online dating to meet boys largely for free (and a few for pay). And it's great for navigation (GPS, google maps), translation, entertainment, taking notes and pictures.

Since I started using mobile phones in 2000, I have dropped a phone three times, none of which resulted in damage. Most boys I know have a cracked phone screen. But we can be happy that a cracked screen still works! It could be by physics or design that a cracked screen does not work any more.

Phone addiction (or rather social media / online gaming addiction) is a serious issue and I know some boys who are obsessed. Social media zombies! When I meet someone, I keep my phone in my pocket; and if my partner does not, that's a bad start.


When I finally make it back there, I can think of a couple of guys to whom I'm going to be especially generous. I miss them so much!
Why wait? I have been sending boys I have known for longer money online from my Thai bank account.

[cdnmatt]

Yeah, but back in those days were you able to just nonchalatnly lay in bed while checking with a handheld device which one of the couple dozen cute guys you have in your list is online and bored, then proceed to have him join you 30 minutse later in bed without ever having to even get up?

[a447]

Why wait? I have been sending boys I have known for longer money online from my Thai bank account.

Under normal circumstances I wouldn't be sending guys money, but Covid changed all that and I've been helping a number of guys since their customer base disappeared.

I prefer to take them shopping in person because I guess you could say I have an ulterior motive. I really enjoy seeing the happy look on their faces.

If it's clothing, they can't wait to get back to the hotel and try every thing on and do a little fashion parade for me. What a sight for sure eyes! They always look even more stunning. That's where I get my kicks.

You wouldn't get that with a new phone, that's for sure.

Guys and their phones are a double - edged sword. For those who love finding guys on the apps rather then in the bars, they obviously need the guys to have a phone. Keeping them off it when with you without causing an argument is the problem.

[StevieWonders]

Guys and their phones are a double - edged sword. For those who love finding guys on the apps rather then in the bars, they obviously need the guys to have a phone. Keeping them off it when with you without causing an argument is the problem.You make it sound as if there are money boys known to you who don’t have a smartphone. I’ve never met one recently. As for keeping them off it - with my cock in their mouth their attention is usually focussed, and when not well, frankly, I’m not there for their conversation.

[goodtimeth]

I like it when a boy fucks me while watching porn on his smart phone ;)
I think smart phones are great. But that is probably because I don’t like bars and alcohol.

[Dodger]

I have friends over here (farang and Thai) who actually get upset because I'm not constantly connected to my smartphone. If I don't respond to their calls or texts within minutes they seem to get concerned. And If I don't respond the sane day they tend to get upset.

Like most everyone else, I like the advantages of a smartphone, i.e. GPS, internet, messages, alarm, camera, and of course making phone calls, but it's not something I lug around with me all the time. I never take my SP with me when I go out in the evening, or for that fact, when I go out anywhere, unless I'm taking a road trip and want to use the GPS. I use my laptop for surfing the net...e:mails, buying things...research...chatting on social media, etc., and rely very little on my smartphone.

When I go out to a bar, club, karaoke, or any other type of social venue, I have no intention of looking at the back of some boys neck while he sits there in a trance with his eyes glued to a small plastic screen. For me, going out to enjoy social interactions, means interacting with human beings, not robots who are so addicted to virtual reality that they don't even know how to function "in reality" let alone hold a conversation or enjoy an intimate or romantic interaction.

Sorry, not for me. Great for ordering home delivery, no argument there, but as far as having meaningful social interactions with other humans, totally worthless IMO.

[cdnmatt]

Elon Musk was right, we've all turned into cyborgs with our phones an extension of ourselves.

[StevieWonders]

I have friends over here (farang and Thai) who actually get upset because I'm not constantly connected to my smartphone. If I don't respond to their calls or texts within minutes they seem to get concerned. And If I don't respond the sane day they tend to get upset. As bad are the ex-pats who interrupt every face-to-face conversation to check the latest “chirp” from their phone. I have a friend now in his ninth decade who behaves as if a random message from a hooker after money is the most pressing thing going on in his life.

[StevieWonders]

Elon Musk was right, we've all turned into cyborgs with our phones an extension of ourselves.Don’t knock it; the smartphone often performs the same function for an adult as the baby’s “dummy” does for younger children.

[arsenal]

The smartphone should hold it's hands up and accept responsibility for aiding and abetting the closing of so many go go bars. A crime against humanity. Where the hell are Amnesty when something important happens?

Back in the day sitting in the Corner Bar with it's mine host par excellence Michael we laughed as we imagined two forum members sitting in the bar, hurling insults at each other onlune and occasionally offering a mutual scowl across the pool table.

Fuck I miss Pattaya.

[StevieWonders]

The smartphone should hold it's hands up and accept responsibility for aiding and abetting the closing of so many go go bars. A crime against humanity. Where the hell are Amnesty when something important happens?

Back in the day sitting in the Corner Bar with it's mine host par excellence Michael we laughed as we imagined two forum members sitting in the bar, hurling insults at each other onlune and occasionally offering a mutual scowl across the pool table.

Fuck I miss Pattaya.My iPhone is smart enough (and clearly smarter than an English language teacher) not to use “it’s” when “its” is what’s required.

[arsenal]

Jolly good.

[Moggy]

Get a GSM jammer they are a great solution
https://www.perfectjammer.com/protable-signal-jammer-mina-2g-3g-gps.html

[a447]

You make it sound as if there are money boys known to you who don’t have a smartphone.

Well, I have met a few in the past.

The cynics among us might suggest they pretended not to have one in the hope that I'd buy one for them.

Maybe, but I don't think so. They certainly never asked for one.

And I'm with Dodger when it comes to my own phone. I never take it with me when I go out and I don't even have any data - I need WiFi to use the internet. I much prefer my ipad with its bigger screen.

I once went to the Apple Store in Central Festival with my Pattaya friend in tow. While I was getting a screen protector put on my phone I noticed him browsing the phones. When I offered to buy him one he refused!

WTF??

"I beg your pardon. What such you say? You don't want one?? You don't want a new iPhone?"

He said he didn't need one because his old phone still worked!

Just to be clear, as a rule I don't go around offering to buy the guys new phones.

[goji]

And I'm with Dodger when it comes to my own phone. I never take it with me when I go out and I don't even have any data - I need WiFi to use the internet.
One of my Khmer regulars doesn't have mobile data either. I presume this is an economy measure.

[Nirish guy]

My iPhone is smart enough (and clearly smarter than an English language teacher) not to use “it’s” when “its” is what’s required.

Is there any need for that, what does it add to the board. FFS try to stop it frequent, it's doesn't impress anyone and it's You who ends up coming across looking like a knob not the other person. :-(

[francois]

And I'm with Dodger when it comes to my own phone. I never take it with me when I go out and I don't even have any data - I need WiFi to use the internet. I much prefer my ipad with its bigger screen.



You must be a Luddite, a447! 555 I never leave home without my phone; its my woobie.:heart:

Its used to infuriate Mr.Know It All.

[a447]

Not really a Luddite. I like to be up to date with the latest version of everything.

When I was living in Japan that meant I was constantly throwing stuff away and replacing it with the new model. It wasn't only me - everyone was doing it. No doubt it was great for the Japanese economy!

I ended up with stereo amplifiers, for example, packed a bewildering array of buttons, half of which I never got around to using before I bought the next model 3 months later!

I had a top of the range whiz-bang vcr player (remember those?) and it was only after I'd upgraded that I discovered it had a feature I knew nothing about - you could set it so that when recording, it automatically skipped the advertisements. Think of the time I could have saved fast-forwarding through all those commercials. Lol

Most of the features on my phone go unused.

I've got a home full of all the latest technology but I don't really bother with it. And my car has way too many features to ever fully learn how to use them. So many modem cars are now like that.

But it's nice to know all that tech is there if I ever need it.

[Dodger]

I'm constantly blown away when I see a couple sitting at a table in a restaurant, and Dickhead is totally glued to the screen on his smartphone, while his partner is left to sit in silence staring around the room hoping a picture will fall off a wall just for some excitement.

Just as bewildering is when they're both glued to their smartphones simultaneously. At least in this scenario they're showing mutual disinterest in each other, and if a picture did fall off the wall, none would be the wiser.

Plus. the prices of smartphones are getting way too ridiculous.

If my boyfriend falls and I hear something crack, I'm hoping it's a bone

[dinagam]

Plus. the prices of smartphones are getting way too ridiculous.

If my boyfriend falls and I hear something crack, I'm hoping it's a bone

The latest Nokia 5.4 is now available for less than £200.
On the other hand fixing a broken bone could cost you an arm and a leg.

[francois]

The latest Nokia 5.4 is now available for less than £200.
On the other hand fixing a broken bone could cost you an arm and a leg.


Pun intended? Very funny.

[Blueskytoday]

Damn that gave me a good laugh...

[StevieWonders]

Is there any need for that, what does it add to the board. FFS try to stop it frequent, it's doesn't impress anyone and it's You who ends up coming across looking like a knob not the other person. :-( Is there any need for that, what does it add to the board? FFS try to stop it frequently, it doesn't impress anyone and it's you who ends up coming across looking like a knob, not the other person.

[wingnut]

Get a GSM jammer they are a great solution
https://www.perfectjammer.com/protable-signal-jammer-mina-2g-3g-gps.html
Where can I get one in the UK?

[dab69]

Last trip a friend had an awesome big Samsung phone we used at the bar to communicate/translate.
I hadn't gotten a Sim card for local service and data.

Damn bars should have wifi.

[StevieWonders]

Plus. the prices of smartphones are getting way too ridiculous. Kind-hearted soul that I am, I recently bought an Oppo A12 in Powerbuy, Thailand's popular electrical goods store, for less than 4,000 baht (3 fucks). Oppo is a very popular brand in Thailand even though it is Chinese rubbish and uses the Android insecure operating system. It was for one of the harem's mother upcountry so he can keep in touch. However I know quite a few boys happy to have an Oppo phone almost all of which are around the 5 or 6 fucks price

https://www.powerbuy.co.th/en/catalogsearch/result/?brand=OPPO&q=Oppo

[cdnmatt]

Smart phones aren't expensive if you don't want them to be. I just bought both, myself and Gohn new phones recently.

Mine's a refurbished iPhone 7 from Amazon, which was only $220 USD. I only really need it for WhatsApp, Zoom, phone calls, et al.. so no need to spend $1200 on one. I'm not using my phone as a computer, which many do nowadays. Then not even sure what kind Gohn got, but I know his was about $240 USD.

[Ruthrieston]

What really annoys me is walking behind someone only to find they have stopped suddenly, focused entirely on their mobile phone. Then to see elderly farang couples sitting together in a cafe or a restaurant fixated on their mobile phones and not talking at all. Lastly (I promise I will shut up after this one), seeing young parents giving a mobile phone to their little baby/toddler to watch cartoons or something instead of actually talking to the child themselves.

[Dodger]

The latest Nokia 5.4 is now available for less than £200. On the other hand fixing a broken bone could cost you an arm and a leg.

I miss my old Nokia. It cost a whopping 700 baht...worked flawlessly for years...then became obsolete when Thailand went to 4G. I got drunk one night at Corner Bar and left it sitting on the bar when I staggered out. I went back the next night and Michael handed it to me and said nobody wanted it.

My boyfriend has a later version IPhone...IPad...and PC, and, on a serious note, his bones are much more important to me than any of his techno gadgets. He's a certified techno wizard...and uses these gadgets extensively in his work (fashion design, pattern making, photoshop, marketing, etc.), but, fortunately, he knows how to separate his work from his play. When it's our "together time" all of his techno gadgets are neatly tucked away....my guitar is slid back in its case where it gently weeps...and we enjoy being connected without all the virtual distractions.

[snotface]

Just as bewildering is when they're both glued to their smartphones simultaneously.

A while ago I was eating in Pan Pan in Jomtien and at the next table two Thai guys were both talking on their mobiles while one Thai girl was sitting there impassively. I caught her eye and did a little mime as if to ask 'Are they talking to each other?', which produced a faint smile. (I think she got the joke - alternatively, she might just have thought she was humouring a madman).

[Oliver2]

Thirteen months ago- happy days- P and I were dining in one of Terminus 21's Thai restaurants. A noisy group (perhaps fifteen or so) Chinese men were on some sort of business trip when, suddenly, the place went silent. Or almost. All but two of them had taken out their phones and were fixated on them. It must have been a pre-arranged phone-break. Bizarre. Perhaps something to do with financial markets?

On the other hand P is well- trained. That same trip, we took an old mate of his to dinner in Central. This friend, half -way through the meal, took out his phone and started during phone-based things that are beyond my comprehension. I saw P. grimace at him to put it away. And he did.

[Daveuk]

During my last trip I woke up at about 5 am looked around seeing a dull grow from underneath the bedsheet accompanied by a sort of chirping noise. My off boy was playing some sort of game on his smartphone, he said Candy Crush. I was really annoyed as by then I had had only 4 hours sleep and I knew that I probably wasn’t going to get any more. I said that I ought to tell him to get dressed and go with short term money. He apologised and was crest-fallen so I just got up and made a cup of tea. Returning to bed he tried to show me how to play the game, but that quickly turned into nipple play and 69 etc... I did eventually get back to sleep until nearly 10 and took him to breakfast during which I constantly ribbed him about candy crush with him replying that other customers had not minded.

[Moggy]

Where can I get one in the UK?

Try these people or look on ebay i bought mine at Tucom a few years a go it keeps every one quiet on busses and trains
[[censored]]

[cdnmatt]

[QUOTE=Moggy;274966]Try these people or look on ebay i bought mine at Tucom a few years a go it keeps every one quiet on busses and trains
[censored]


I hope you're joking. Do you really sit on a bus / train with one of those things, and ham everyone's phone?

[christianpfc]

...seeing young parents giving a mobile phone to their little baby/toddler to watch cartoons or something instead of actually talking to the child themselves.
Mobile phone use amongst my dates is much less spread in Cambodia than in Thailand. It recently occurred to me that I'm dating the last generation of boys (20-25 year olds) who had a childhood without mobile phones (when they were children, their parents didn't have a mobile phone or wouldn't give it to them to play), whereas Thailand is a few years ahead. I think there are studies somewhere that show that prolonged mobile phone use (more correctly: social media and online gaming) alters brain structure and creates addictions similar to alcohol, nicotine and hard drugs.

[gerefan2]

I think there are studies somewhere that show that prolonged mobile phone use (more correctly: social media and online gaming) alters brain structure and creates addictions similar to alcohol, nicotine and hard drugs.

Funny that. In the 1950s we were told television a.k.a. “The Goggle Box”, “The Box” or the “Idiots Lantern” did the same thing...!

[a447]

I think there are studies somewhere that show that prolonged mobile phone use (more correctly: social media and online gaming) alters brain structure and creates addictions similar to alcohol, nicotine and hard drugs.

The same can probably be said about wanking. Lol

[goji]

Candy Crush

Having googled it, that appears to be the game that one of my regulars is playing all the time. This cannot be good for mental health.
Candy Crush might be even worse than excessive posting on chat boards. Something I must watch.

[Daveuk]

Yes it looks like Candy Crush is popular throughout the world - I’ve just googled it too.It’s apparently available from the App Store for iOS. I must get it and practice so as to play with Asian boyfriends during my next trip, whenever that may be. Perhaps it’s what the boys are doing when we see them staring at their phones.

[goji]

Yes it looks like Candy Crush is popular throughout the world - I’ve just googled it too.It’s apparently available from the App Store for iOS. I must get it and practice

Don't tell Dodger !

[Dodger]

Funny that. In the 1950s we were told television a.k.a. “The Goggle Box”, “The Box” or the “Idiots Lantern” did the same thing...!

Yeh...and look at us now...LOL

[Dodger]

Yes it looks like Candy Crush is popular throughout the world - I’ve just googled it too.It’s apparently available from the App Store for iOS. I must get it and practice so as to play with Asian boyfriends during my next trip, whenever that may be. Perhaps it’s what the boys are doing when we see them staring at their phones.

I just checked it out on Utube (see below).

This would be great to have around if I ever had date with a 9 year old...LOL.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Lsz6FK0uIM

[wingnut]

Not heard of Candy Crush??!!! I'm rolling around on the floor laughing. Have you heard of Angry Birds? Please say no!

[wingnut]

Try these people or look on ebay i bought mine at Tucom a few years a go it keeps every one quiet on busses and trains
[[censored]]It looks a bit obvious to carry into a bar. Battery life 1.5 hours.

[StevieWonders]

Not heard of Candy Crush??!!! I'm rolling around on the floor laughing. Have you heard of Angry Birds? Please say no!As a Forum sage has recently posted:
Is there any need for that, what does it add to the board? FFS try to stop it, it doesn't impress anyone and it's you who ends up coming across looking like a knob, not the other person.

[Zebedee]

It looks a bit obvious to carry into a bar. Battery life 1.5 hours.

You could always carry some extra batteries...just sayin' .

https://www.eastlothiancourier.com/news/19101501.colette-kerr-claire-buchan-accused-putting-batteries-mans-backside/?fbclid=IwAR0UsCcmD9YmBdbHk0Ya3b_sUORKQy9F-0BuH30V6p5iEC7iPwheMG1wXxg




It gives a new meaning to the term power bottom!

[arsenal]

frequent wrote.
"As a Forum sage has recently posted:"

A new obsession. Add it to the list.

[StevieWonders]

frequent wrote.
"As a Forum sage has recently posted:"

A new obsession. Add it to the list.
As a Forum sage recently posted:
Is there any need for that, what does it add to the board? FFS try to stop it, it doesn't impress anyone and it's you who ends up coming across looking like a knob, not the other person.

[arsenal]

Yep.

[Moggy]

The site I gave you was just an example the one I bought at Tukcom cost 1800bht and fits in jacket pocket

[Moggy]

It looks a bit obvious to carry into a bar. Battery life 1.5 hours.
The site I gave you was just an example the one I bought at Tukcom cost 1800bht and fits in jacket pocket works for about 15 meters

[Moses]

Try these people or look on ebay i bought mine at Tucom a few years a go it keeps every one quiet on busses and trains
[censored]

It is criminal to jamm phones and GPS unless you are working for state agency. Also it is illegal to import such devices to almost all countries.
https://www.fcc.gov/general/jammer-enforcement

I will remove URL

[arsenal]

Moses wrote.
"It is criminal to jamm phones and GPS unless you are working for state agency. Also it is illegal to import such devices to almost all countries."

Oh dear. Another bete noire of our most anally retentive member. Illegal activities. He's going to give himself a chocolate cigar by telling us all (again) that prostitution is illegal in Thailand.

[Moses]

Moses wrote.
"It is criminal to jamm phones and GPS unless you are working for state agency. Also it is illegal to import such devices to almost all countries."

Oh dear. Another bete noire of our most anally retentive member. Illegal activities. He's going to give himself a chocolate cigar by telling us all (again) that prostitution is illegal in Thailand.

If you mean me, then I never pointed to legality of prostitution, because it mostly is business btw 2 adult persons.

But with GPS/phone jammers you may end up in prison just because you jammed signal of robo-taxi right in front of red signal of traffic light. Maybe even at time when you are crossing road right after buying jammer in Tycom - then story will be very short. Or maybe you will jamm your or your neighborhood's cardio stimulator. There are a lot of vital electronics around us....

[arsenal]

Moses wrote.
"If you mean me, then I never pointed to legality of prostitution, because it mostly is business btw 2 adult persons."

Moses. Of course I didn't mean you. You're not the one who wants to continually tell us about the illegality of Thai prostitution.

[Dodger]

It is criminal to jamm phones and GPS unless you are working for state agency. Also it is illegal to import such devices to almost all countries.

Absolutely.

To your point, It is a federal offense in the U.S. (and most countries) to sell them, import them, or use them.

The guy in the link below won't win any prizes for his presentation skills - but he explains things very well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goZ61hOWhX8

[latintopxxx]

arsenal...rhymes with arse hole...pity thats its associated with sometyhing that has provided me with so much pleasure..

[Oliver2]

What a pleasure to see usage of the estimable Anglo-Saxon word "arse" that served our forebears so well for a thousand years, instead of the American term which, for some reason, confuses a part of the anatomy with a donkey.

[christianpfc]

Funny that. In the 1950s we were told television a.k.a. “The Goggle Box”, “The Box” or the “Idiots Lantern” did the same thing...!And does it?

I read somewhere that when the railway was introduced, people who were against it said that passengers would get crazy from the speed, and cows would give sour milk.

On the subject of mobile phone use during family meals, there was a funny clip that I can't find any more, and anyway for the benefit of our blind members will retell from memory:
A family is sitting at a festive dinner table. Father drops a piece of cutlery, bends down to pick it up and while his head is under the table, everyone else gets their mobile phone out and quickly types on it. [Previous event repeated.] When father drops cutlery a third time, camera moves under the table and shows him quickly typing on his mobile phone.

[Dodger]

I watched a monk nearly get run over by a motorbike this morning while walking his morning alms along Wat Chai Market. He was holding his smartphone 3 inches in front of his face instead of watching where he was walking.

I guess he was being "one with himself".

[dinagam]

Boys being boys including adolescent novice monks who are curious to find out the latest instalments in their group's social apps one should simply overlook the state of him being "one with himself". There are so many things going on...

[Dodger]

And does it?

I read somewhere that when the railway was introduced, people who were against it said that passengers would get crazy from the speed, and cows would give sour milk.

Listen to the leading experts from the Tech Giants explaining why smartphone usage, specifically social and news media, are actually destroying its users. Believe me. the railway never presented the types of concerns you'll be listening to in the video below:

This Documentary is sweeping the U.S. and now going global. When you watch it, you'll understand why. At least, hopefully you'll understand..

Social Dilemma Investigative Documentary (1 hr. 30 mins.)
https://www.documentaryarea.tv/player.php?title=The%20Social%20Dilemma

[StevieWonders]

Listen to the leading experts from the Tech Giants explaining why smartphone usage, specifically social and news media, are actually destroying its users. You are confusing the technology (smartphones) with one aspect of what it enables. It’s why I happily use my smartphone while avoiding FakeBook.

It’s the difference between SGT (a platform) and posters of varying posting quality and interests. Take goji as your exemplar - he has an extensive list of posters he ignores, analogous to my ignoring FakeBook.

[cdnmatt]

Listen to the leading experts from the Tech Giants explaining why smartphone usage, specifically social and news media, are actually destroying its users. Believe me. the railway never presented the types of concerns you'll be listening to in the video below:

This Documentary is sweeping the U.S. and now going global. When you watch it, you'll understand why. At least, hopefully you'll understand..

Well, I guess that will make AI's decision easier when the time comes.

[goji]

Listen to the leading experts from the Tech Giants explaining why smartphone usage, specifically social and news media, are actually destroying its users. Believe me. the railway never presented the types of concerns you'll be listening to in the video below
I must watch the video later, but almost everywhere I go, I see people on phones, oblivious to their surroundings. Often doing something utterly pointless like playing candy crush, or watching Tik Tok.

Of course, I'm hardly any better. I just sat down for a coffee and logged on here.
There has been some progress with content filters to screen out more of what isn't worth reading (ignore lists etc). However, there is more to do and cutting unproductive internet use and screen time would be a better objective.

Boys and smartphones are beyond our control. Our own use is not.

[StevieWonders]

Our own use is not.The whole point of the documentary is that, as far as FakeBook goes, our own use is not, we are being manipulated.

[arsenal]

Can't imagine why any boy would want to play with his phone when he can listen to steviewonders explaining the Kinsey scale, MFAS telling him how great Pattaya was in the old days, a447 giving him his 18 favourite offs that week, Christian going through his criteria for offing him or me providing many breakfast options.

[arsenal]

Christian. My apologies for spelling your name incorrectly. However it would be more gentlemanly to post this rather than barging in through the mods entrance. Most improper. Any more of that and I'll put your incorrectly spelt name in the next 100 posts.

[StevieWonders]

Christian. My apologies for spelling your name incorrectly. However it would be more gentlemanly to post this rather than barging in through the mods entrance. Most improper. Any more of that and I'll put your incorrectly spelt name in the next 100 posts.Unfortunately he’s got “form” in that regard.

[StevieWonders]

One of the (many) advantages of smartphones is that they're ... smart. One of the best recent features is Translate. Unfortunately Apple hasn't extended its Translate App to include Thai but Tim's a rice queen so here's hoping. About 12 months ago I had a conversation on Grindr which was - I realised when said Vietnamese lad (and friend) turned up - entirely conducted via Google Translate on his side.

That had been a delayed or asynchronous conversation. However it's possible to have real-time, auto-translation in LINE. There's an "official account" for many auto-translators including EN-TH Translator with which you form a group that includes your prostitute du jour and away you go. I suspect it's based on Google Translate. It's not 100% accurate but near enough is good enough.

[Dodger]

One of the (many) advantages of smartphones is that they're ... smart. One of the best recent features is Translate. .

They're only as smart as the users - which makes many of the advantages they offer questionable at best.

Google Translate has been around for 15 years, if not longer, and still sucks.

Here's Dodger Translate on a 700 baht Nokia dumb phone: "How big?...How Much?...What Time"?

[StevieWonders]

They're only as smart as the users - which makes many of the advantages they offer questionable at best.Certainly for many here.

[Dodger]

Certainly for many here.

Interesting response.

Your comment reflects a hint of illusory superiority.

Dunning–Kruger effect

[Oliver2]

He was talking about me. Making a phone call is the extent of my expertise. On a good day.

[Dodger]

He was talking about me. Making a phone call is the extent of my expertise. On a good day.

Then, you are much smarter than most.

Watch the video linked on page 8 which will explain in detail just how wise you are.