While we were at SxSW, Laura and I threw a Mobile Manners brunch with Intel. We gathered a group of very smart women to eat quiche and text one other about the irritating things people do with their gadgets.
Genevieve Bell, an Intel Fellow who studies how different cultures use technology, presented some of their mobile etiquette research.
During Genevieve’s presentation, I tweeted while she was talking (event hashtag, FTW), checked in to Foursquare, and texted with a person sitting two tables away from me. Afterward, I drove around town looking for a funeral parlor, because I’ve heard those are nice quiet places to make phone calls.
Everyone else was the picture of civility, even when the gift bags came out.
Now that’s some good home training.
The bags were a team effort amongst attendees, and as always we saved one for you. Maile brought her gorgeous Epiphanie Bags, and I set aside the Clover Laptop and Camera Bag in grey, which is the one I carry. Everywhere. And sometimes I spoon with it. It looks like this:
Elizabeth works for Twitter, but also has a letterpress business called Paperwheel Press. She brought everyone a couple of geeky letterpress thank you notes:
And finally, Intel threw in a copy of Emily Post’s Great Get Togethers:
To win, please leave your pinky out when you sip your tea, and leave your most profound mobile etiquette peeve in comments.
Please only enter once; I’ll leave comments open until Monday when I’ll announce the winner. I hope it’s you.
Mighty Girl 
Rambling voice mails. I’m going to call you back so hold yur britches!!
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one in a thousand chance… ok 🙂
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it annoys me to no end when you are out with someone, and they break out their phone – either to play games, or text, or even converse with someone else. my take on it – if you wouldn’t whip out a crossword puzzle in your current situation, don’t whip out your phone.
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I am annoyed with all mobile conversations in airports because apparently people don’t like to be alone, so they have mobile yell in airports. Same with the second the plane lands and someone turns on their phone and talks loud enough to communicate with air traffic control without having a radio.
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Worst behavior ever: you’re talking to someone, and not only are they texting on their phone while you’re speaking and not even making eye contact with you (how rude!), but then they interrupt you mid-sentence to show you something unrelated someone just texted them. “HA HA LOOK WHAT JOE JUST SENT ME!”
“Um. I was talking to you about my car accident.”
Seriously, people?
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The constant phone checking gets me down. When I am with my friends I want them to be with me too and not checking in on texts, emails, status, updates, tweets. Am I right? Phones are a great place for information to gather until you have a moment alone to process it.
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To those of you who mentioned people who stand at top of subway stairs blocking people with obviously non-urgent calls during rush hour, I’m with you 100%. Get out of the way, obliviots.
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Definitely texting/talking while driving. If you’ve got something hands free, great, otherwise, please stop.
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Your love life, sex life, and work place drama are of no interest to me. So please hang up and shut up while we’re crammed into this rush hour train. Hugs and Kisses. Me.
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Texting while driving! Talking & driving is bad enough, but I would prefer not to get sideswiped or rear ended thank you very much.
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Something really irritating that my mom does: she participates in a text fight with her boyfriend while she’s hanging out with me. Would she be getting herself all worked up and taking part in a verbal fight over the phone while she’s sitting right next to me? I think not. It’s just inconsiderate and immature.
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Loud or obnoxious ringtones, especially in the workplace. I only ever have phone on vibrate on my desk, and wish everyone would do the same or choose discreet tones.
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It drives me crazy when I’m in the car with someone and they’re having a conversation on their cell phone. Hello, I’m sitting right here!!
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It drives me insane when you plan a girls night for dinner and a movie out and your friend keeps pulling out her phone to answer text messages, respond to Facebook postings, and the like.
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Being on a first date with someone who has their phone out on the table the whole time so they can check messages. That sucka did not get a second date.
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I have two. I can’t narrow it down. The first and most obvious is when my students text while I’m trying to teach them how to do important stuff like use commas correctly. The second is when people are on the phone in the public restroom. Sometimes I flush twice, just to be sure and interrupt them.
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There is one thing that bugs me on cell phones that has bugged me for YEARS on landlines and that is call-waiting. Answering a call that comes through in the middle of an ongoing conversation sends the message that the first person isn’t as important as whoever else is calling and is just plain rude.
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I work for our state’s Legislature. Rude = phones ringing during hearings. Even more rude = unprofessional ring tones.
Equally annoying: Phone in bathrooms. Terrible idea all the way around.
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When you’re in the bathroom with someone and they don’t wash their hands.
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I’m going to agree with some comments I’ve seen. I absolutely hate when I’m having a conversation with someone and they spend most of the time texting. Or when people come to a gathering and text the whole night. Why are you at this gathering? Shouldn’t you just be hanging out with the person(s) you’re texting since they’re the ones you want to pay attention to?
I have a friend who does this mid-conversation all the time. I’ve gotten a little passive-aggressive as time has gone on and now I simply walk away every time she does it. It’s beyond rude to me.
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It makes me crazy when someone is chatting on his/her phone (or texting) instead of interacting with the checkout person at the grocery or some other store. Like the person working at the store doesn’t even deserve to be acknowledged! So rude.
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Pet peeve: people who talk on cell phones while in public restrooms. TMI all the way around.
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People who check their phones during a movie – the light is really distracting.
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I have a lot of cell phone peeves, but one that jumps to the front is people talking on their phones in public restrooms. Like, in the stall next to me. A) I do not want to hear the conversation that is so important that it can’t wait until after you flush. B) I already don’t like that you, stranger, can hear me pee; I certainly don’t want someone on the other end of your conversation to hear me pee. Just, yuck. Boundaries!
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A “friend” who keeps checking their phone while we’re out having drink. Someone’s gonna get cu-uht …
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If you want to talk TMI…..you would not BELIEVE the number of women who text DURING gynecologic exams……and it still leaves me almost speechless everytime.
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Loud talkers. Loud talkers make my ears cry.
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Boys that text “what’s Up?” when they should be CALLING to ask “how was your day?”. Silly boys… you will not get any nookie. 🙂
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I feel so ignored when I am riding in the car with a friend (or sister) and she accepts a call…and then talks for about 10 minutes. Okay…I really hate that.
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Texting in a movie theater. Seriously, why? Why? I don’t even begin to understand that.
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I have two that I cannot decide between: (1) texting or talking on the phone while in the company of others. If it is not an emergency, please be fully present; (2) folks who talk loudly on the phone while using public transportation.
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I hate texting at the table. And I’m guilty of it myself. Shame on me.
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I hate being on a business trip with people who won’t stop checking their email for 1 min to have a conversation when you are at a happy hour.
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I hate when my husband checks out of any social situation to check his email/texts/words with friends games.
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Leaving voicemails when it’s not an emergency! I see that you called, and I have caller id – please don’t leave me a vmail saying “hey, it’s me…call me back.” So lame.
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Thinking that the missed call on my phone is the same as your leaving a message or sending a text! If you ASK me to call you back, I will. But if you don’t, I won’t.
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When others overshare while on their cell phone,
Overhearing REALLY personal information or listening to incredibly uncomfortable discussions is soooo not cool, please don’t involve me!
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Unless the call is about someone getting hit by a bus, the actual physically-present human being should get the attention, not the damn phone. Drives me completely batty.
And I’ve stopped going to movies lest I punch texters severely about the head.
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Wow – love, love, love the bag! Many people have already covered my pet peeve – checking out at the grocery store while carrying on a conversation on your cell phone.
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I can definitively say that texting while having a conversation is the quickest way to irritate me (and hurt my feelings!) using a mobile phone.
I’m very sensitive, you see.
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Pet peeve. People saying “them trees” instead of “those trees”.
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Poeple seem to be overly attached to their phones making some people seem second rate. I love technology and outreach but not at the expense of hurting another individual. Choose wisely my friend.
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Listening to women talk on their phones while in a public restroom stall, clearly dealing with the monthly bill. Yup, really.
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I find it terribly gauche when people yak on their phones while paying for something at a store. Cashiers are people too!
ps. hope you are having a better time lately, Dear!
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So many good answers (that I agree with) already! I, personally, cringe while waiting for the stranger with the “clever” or musical ringtone to pick up. It usually takes this person quite a while to locate their phone, and sometimes even longer for them to decide to answer–meanwhile, their song plays on…
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i get all rage-y when i see people talking on their mobile (phone to ear) whilst driving. get an earpiece!
they should make the fine for that be $500, nay, $1000!
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People who think that you need to return a personal text message or voicemail IMMEDIATELY. Some space, please. My cellphone is not a 24/7 hotline. If it’s not an emergency, I will get back to you when I can. Which might not be for a bit, okay?
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i’m trying to seduce you. quit fingering your phone.
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voicemail messages that just say “call me”
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Texting or talking on the phone at the phone at the dinner table!
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