Here's What Our Smartphone Obsession Looks Like ... In 26 Photos

Here's What Our Smartphone Obsession Looks Like ... In 26 Photos

One in every five people owns a smart phone. That's more than one billion people. Our devices have become an extension of ourselves; they are company in some of the most monumental, meaningful and intimate experiences of our lives. We bring them to the bathroom. We keep them near us while we sleep. We invite them to dinner. We clutch them tightly when we meet the Pope.

smartphone

Technology's pervasiveness seems innocuous at first. A five-minute walk with the dog on a nature trail becomes a five-minute window to check email. A couple of scrolls through Instagram while Spike does his thing appears harmless, but we miss the little off-screen moments that make life better and even decrease our stress. (And sleeping with your phones is just a bad idea.)

We're only getting more hooked. Over the past half-decade, smartphone use has increased exponentially. Our reliance on these device has evolved too. Data in a 2012 report produced by the Pew Research Center revealed that 29 percent of American cell phone owners describe their phones as "something they can't imagine living without."

The way we experience all aspects of life -- from the mundane moments to the momentous -- has been changed. Our relationship with phones is a complicated one: They come with us everywhere we go, but they often lead us to be lonely or alone. They record every moment of our lives, but they pull us from living in those moments. We have yet to master the perfect balance of phone as an accessory and phone as a life source. The series of photos below illustrate the juxtaposition of life before phones were a continuation of our social identities and the unromantic present, where they seem to be just that.

President Bill Clinton leaves the White House, 1994
bill clinton
Photo: AP

President Barack Obama speaks at the Women's History Month reception at the White House, 2013
womens history month reception
Photo: Getty

Passengers ride the subway, 1970
passengers nyc subway
Photo: Getty

Passengers ride the subway, 2014
484152653
Photo: Getty

Pope John Paul II visits St. Peter's Square in Rome, 1983
104403201
Photo: Getty

Pope Francis visits Guidonia Montecelio near Rome, March 2014
479091903
Photo: Getty

A woman walks a dog, 1923
3091183
Photo: Getty

A woman walks a dog, 2014
475620349
Photo: Getty

Girls catch sight of The Beatles, Los Angeles, 1964
640818023
Photo: AP

Girls catch sight of One Direction, London, 2013
177072226
Photo: Getty

A group of women shares a meal, 1930
108432151
Photo: Getty

A group of women shares a meal, 2013
165158670
Photo: Getty

Attendees enjoy a David Bowie concert, 1973
51141069
Photo: Getty

Attendees enjoy a Beyoncé Concert, 2013
beyonce concert crowd
Photo: AP

A man walks through the snow in London's St. James Park, 2007
73090447
Photo: Getty

A woman walks through the snow in London's St James Park, 2010
107244655
Photo: Getty

Matt Lauer greets fans outside NBC's Today Show, 1999
1512053
Photo: Getty

Matt Lauer greets fans outside NBC's Today Show, 2013
163513204
Photo: Getty

A man dines alone, 1959
51239785
Photo: Getty

A man dines alone, 2014
475617091
Photo: Getty

Women sit for manicures and beauty treatments, 1971
162038281
Photo: Getty

A woman sits for a manicure, 2013
women getting pedicure
Photo: Getty

Fans stake out stars at the premiere of "Seven Years in Tibet," Los Angeles 1996
51651317
Photo: Getty

Fans stake out stars at the premiere of "The Great Gatsby," 2014
167862856
Photo: Getty

Malia and Sasha Obama stand together at the Inaugural Parade, 2009
090120039897
Photo: AP

Malia and Sasha Obama sit together at the Inaugural Parade, 2013
669205231317
Photo: AP

Before You Go

Cook Yourself Up A Luxurious Brunch

19 Ways To Unplug

Close

HuffPost Shopping’s Best Finds

MORE IN LIFE