There were things to read on trains before phones. There were small portable cameras before phones. You could listen to music on your walkman before phones. People carried books, newspapers, sketch books, journals, and music before phones. We even played games before phones - when I was growing up, everybody knew how to play at least a few card games, and there was always a deck of cards to be found.

Life before phones was in many ways totally different than life now. But in others ways, we're still the same people, doing the same things, with newer tools. Everyone can make their own decisions on what tools they want to use, but I'm just not buying the argument that life is better or worse. It is different.