Smartphone use as a tool for social research

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to describe different experiences of mobile phone use (smartphones) as a tool for social scientists use (or possible use), not only as a device to save information but as a tool to recollect data (audio, video, image, text), transmit them and analyse them using dedicated software, all in the same machine. Although the first generation of mobile phones allowed voice and text basic functions, current versions are truly powerful computers with internet access, which in the end has changed fieldwork.