I think technology is both a want a a need. Many people want new technology, but do they really need it? For example, if someone has an iPhone or iPod that works well, why is there a need to buy a brand new one? That's a technology that is a want, not a need, contrary to what you may think. However, a lot of technology is a need. Like in science or medicine. When scientists research and create new treatments, aren't they usually using technology. That type of technology is a need because it affects the well-being of people. Or even in meteorology. When meteorologists research the future weather, aren't they using technology, too? Radar is technology, and think how many meteorologists use radar! Many people want new technology, but they need to take a step back and realize how buying new technology is affecting our environment and our carbon footprint.   
Sydney K (USA)

Though I would agree that technology in the classical sense is not necissary, I feel it is important to first examine the definition of 'need'. It is my view that a need is purely fundamental. In other words, things like food, water, shelter etc. I don't think things like weather technology are necissary to the survival of all humans.

Alex, I agree the weather technology is not a necessity. I was simply giving an example that would help clear up my explanation and make it easier to explain and understand.

Alex explain how we are supposed to figure out the weather

Great thoughts Sydney! I completely agree with the message!!

There maybe a need for the new  technology like the ipad or ipod. I had the original ipad for 5 years and its operating system was very outdated. We ended up giving this ipad to my 1 year old cousin as a entertainment device. He still uses it as an art pad and game tablet. This also gave me an opportunity for me to get a new device with a better operating system which helped me with school and new entertainment.

I think that the way our society is set up currently, newer technology is a need.  People need the latest laptop, because if they have the older, slower version at work or school, they won't be able to keep up.  iPhones can also be a need.  Many jobs require you to have a certain type of phone, so that you can do things for the company even when you're not at work.  I'm not saying that I personally feel that you should rush out and buy every new product the day it comes out, but I do think that many people do that because they really need to.  You may be thinking that they simply want to have more storage to have more apps, but maybe it's required by their work.  It simply wouldn't work if you were at a meeting and everyone else had the new MacBook and could load things at the fast pace but you were still stuck waiting for the page to load while everyone else has moved on to a new topic.

I agree. I think technology is both a want and a need. People want the newest best phones because of the speed of how they work. I have the iphone four and my aunt has the 6 and i tried it and yes the 6 is much faster but the iphone 4 still has all of the programs that are needed to be able to do everything on it. For example a reason you would need an iphone is for the clock and being able to search the internet whenever you need to. All of the iphones have it so why is it so important to have the newest kind? Also I have noticed that the iphone 4 is way more durable than the 5c that i had and it broke after dropping once. I have had my iphone 4 for 2 years and i have dropped it many times and the only side that has had any damage is the back. All in all i think some old technologies can be as good as the new ones. So is it really that important to have the newest ones?