Teen Tonic
If you thought your texting speed was something to brag about, think again. At the inaugural Mobile World Cup, held recently, a South Korean national won the title against 2.8 million competitors from all over the world by thumbing 7.25 characters a second. As
more teenagers in India get comfortable with communicating via text rather than talking, their texting speeds have also increased.
Though not all can go as fast as the champion of the world, they feel that their speed is definitely a skill that helps them out now and then. Sharon D'Souza, 19, put herself to the text test after she found out about the 7.25 winning-speed. "I took five seconds to type seven characters. I’m not that fast but I have a few friends who are. I think speed is important because you have to be fast if you're in class and you don’t want to be distracted for too long or get your phone taken away," she says.
Eighteen-year-old Keira S.’s fingers just fly across her cellphone’s keypad. "My friends are always impressed but it's not such a hard feat. I’ve had a cellphone since I was 15 so I’ve had the practice. My cellphone has never been confiscated in college because I can type and maintain eye contact with a person very easily," she says.
Keira’s brother Shawn, who’s three years younger than her, is just as quick as she is. "I made him type ‘The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog’ and he did it in five seconds, with just one typo," she adds.
The "thumb tribe" as texting teens are called today, feel that their speed also helps them get out of any confrontation about bad etiquette while with company. "My parents do not allow me to use my mobile while we’re having dinner and sometimes I get myself out of trouble by typing with one hand and within a matter of seconds under the table," Simran Gupta, 17, says.
"Today, teens can text anywhere and everywhere. I can do it with one finger, while walking — any way possible. It’s here to stay and I prefer ‘SMS’ over any other form of popular communication," says Javed Pathan, 19.
Edlyn G. D’Souza
The Asian Age
Post new comment