I think phones can be a wonderful addition to travel when used as a tool, I would also be literally lost without google maps, it's so useful for booking tickets and accommodation, and letting my mum know that I'm still alive. I think the problem is when it stops being a tool and becomes a crutch, something you have to stare at any moment you are slightly bored or feeling socially awkward. Often the best things happen after you've allowed yourself to feel those things and do something to move past it, talk to someone, people watch, whatever, that's where the magic happens and that's where I think people are missing out.