I Feel Like a Nokia 3210

And not in a cool, retro, nostalgia way

You know those "Which random thing are you?" personality quizzes? Well, I've figured mine out without needing BuzzFeed's help.

I am a Nokia 3210.

And before anyone gets all misty-eyed about Snake and indestructible cases, let me be clear – I mean this in the most 2025-trying-to-use-a-20-year-old-phone way possible.

Significant Limitations in Functionality

Remember when that little brick could do exactly three things? Calls, texts, and Snake? Try living your best life in 2025 with just those options.

That's me with FND, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia. Need to pop to the shops? Sorry, that function isn't available on this model. Fancy a spontaneous dance in the kitchen? Error 404: Coordination not found.

Poor Performance & Slow Processing

These days, my brain and body have a similar relationship to loading times as that old Nokia.

Ask me to process information when I'm tired? You're looking at the buffering wheel of doom, mate. And don't even get me started on trying to do multiple things at once – this phone only had 8MB of memory, and honestly, some days that feels generous.

Battery Life: Absolutely Pants

Imagine that 3210 battery now, twenty-odd years later, having been charged thousands of times and generally lived a full life.

That's my energy levels. I wake up at 5:20am (not by choice, cheers FND), already at 47% battery. By lunchtime? Critical battery warning. And unlike a phone, I can't just plug myself into the wall for a quick top-up.

No Spares Available

You can't exactly walk into a shop and get replacement parts for a 3210 anymore, can you?

Same goes for my condition. There's no quick fix, no software update, no trade-in programme. The warranty expired somewhere around September 2024, and the manufacturer (cheers, body) isn't offering recalls.

But Here's The Thing...

That Nokia 3210 was bloody well-loved, wasn't it? It might not have been fancy, but it did what it could do, and people appreciated it for that.

So yeah, I'm a knackered old Nokia in a world of iPhone 47s. I'm slow, I'm limited, and I definitely can't run the apps everyone else seems to have installed.

But I'm still here. Still connecting with people (just... differently). Still trying to make the best of what functions I do have. And occasionally, on good days, still managing a decent game of Snake.

Just don't ask me to load anything too demanding, yeah?

Sha x

Living with FND, ME/CFS and Fibromyalgia means some days I feel more outdated tech than human. But outdated doesn't mean useless – it just means I'm working with what I've got, at my own pace. Welcome to Wheely Happy Days, where we embrace the glitches. 🦋♿