Question about ... "handy" or "cell" ...

[LiamKerrington]

Hello everyone,

some dudes in a German forum want to teach me that the average American uses the word "handy" instead of "cell" or "mobile". Is this true?

In Germany we call the device a "Handy"; right; we are English-butchers all the way down; our mobile-devices are called "Handys", neither cell, mobiles or whatever ...

I know an American girl who lives near my place and who travels to the USA a lot; she lives here because she is married to a German guy. She is from LA and kepps telling me that the American-English word for the mobile-phone is usually "cell" or "mobile", sometimes "mobile device", but not "handy".

Does it change to "handy"? Please tell me, that this is not true ...
All the best!

Liam

[scbubba]

Hello everyone,

some dudes in a German forum want to teach me that the average American uses the word "handy" instead of "cell" or "mobile". Is this true?

In Germany we call the device a "Handy"; right; we are English-butchers all the way down; our mobile-devices are called "Handys", neither cell, mobiles or whatever ...

I know an American girl who lives near my place and who travels to the USA a lot; she lives here because she is married to a German guy. She is from LA and kepps telling me that the American-English word for the mobile-phone is usually "cell" or "mobile", sometimes "mobile device", but not "handy".

Does it change to "handy"? Please tell me, that this is not true ...
All the best!

Liam

Born & raised in the US, Lived here for more than 40 years, have travelled through about 45 of the states in the country and have NEVER heard a mobile phone referred to as a "handy"...

Usually it's a cell phone or a mobile phone. Cell or mobile for short. More recently I've heard folks over here use "smart phone", too.

BTW, in a lot of places "handy" can be a sexual reference...

[LiamKerrington]

Thank you, scbubba. I feel much better now.

I did some basic wikipedia-research. Looks like the Germans' "Handy' has its originis either in an early handheld by Motorala (1940ies), which was called Handie-Talkie SCR-536, while in 1992 the company Loewe released a mobile-device called "HandyTell 100". Hobbiest doin' a lot of CB-radio-communication used "Handy" as an short-form of hand-held transceiver. So, this is probably a very German special language-Kraut, I'd say ...

Really, "handy" can be a sexual reference? I thought "rubber" could be ...

edit: I just checked the urban dictionary on "handy" ... Oh my ... What did I do? Sorry.

All the best!
Liam

[scbubba]

Thank you, scbubba. I feel much better now.

I did some basic wikipedia-research. Looks like the Germans' "Handy' has its originis either in an early handheld by Motorala (1940ies), which was called Handie-Talkie SCR-536, while in 1992 the company Loewe released a mobile-device called "HandyTell 100". Hobbiest doin' a lot of CB-radio-communication used "Handy" as an short-form of hand-held transceiver. So, this is probably a very German special language-Kraut, I'd say ...

Really, "handy" can be a sexual reference? I thought "rubber" could be ...

edit: I just checked the urban dictionary on "handy" ... Oh my ... What did I do? Sorry.

All the best!
Liam

Just be real careful when asking someone on the street for a handy. Might not end well.... For one of you, anyway....

[Condor]

Born & raised in the US, Lived here for more than 40 years, have travelled through about 45 of the states in the country and have NEVER heard a mobile phone referred to as a "handy"...

Usually it's a cell phone or a mobile phone. Cell or mobile for short. More recently I've heard folks over here use "smart phone", too.

BTW, in a lot of places "handy" can be a sexual reference...

I'll second that. The only time I've heard "handy" is in reference to, well, that...

[HardKor]

More and more cell phones are being referred to as just "phones" since people are starting to get rid of landlines all together and only use their cell phones. But "cell" is still the most common term I'm pretty sure. I don't know if there are some regions in the US where "mobile" is common or not. I always thought that was more of a British term. But I never heard the term "handy" used for a cell phone until I took German in college.

[reaper239]

Cells are bad. My uncle lives in a cell. It's ten foot by twelve and he has to read the same boring, old magazine everyday. The end.

[YetAnotherBloodyCheek]

In Switzerland, a mobile / cell phone is referred to as Natel.

In general, it is a marketing thing. For Germans, the term "handy" sounds like a fancy (and appropiate) English term. Weird, is it not?