Smartphones essential for modern life?

Most people today have a smartphone. But are they really essential for the modern
life? I think there are both advantages and disadvantages.
The first advantage is the you can communicate with the other people, that is, you
are in Mexico and you can communicate with the people from the United States or
another part of the word. The second advantage is that you cand find information
faster. The third advantage is that you can take photos of special moments,
memorable days and important events and no matter how much time passes, you
can always remember them again.
On the other hand, there are also disadvantage. For example, people often do not
pay attention to the person they are talking to. Another disadvantage is that when a
test is given, students tend to cheat by searching for the answer on the internet.
The third disadvantage is that in important moments you can easily get distracted
by looking at social media and not playing attention to what is important.
The conclusion is, that smartphones are necessary for modern life, mainly for
communication, but spending a lot of time on you smartphone disconnects you
from reality.