The Great Divide: Why My Smartphone's Settings Still Prefer “Colour” Over “Color”
The Great Divide: Why My Smartphone's Settings Still Prefer “Colour” Over “Color”
When you walk into a supermarket in the UK, you can usually pick up one of three punctual creatures: the grocer, the vegan café owner, and the bewildered‑but‑tolerant‑?iPhone nestled in the man’s pocket. The last of those is usually the one shouting, “Colour!” instead of “Color!” even though the city is firmly within the geographic bounds of the United States. And yet, despite our American suburbs, my phone insists on British spelling, as if it has a secret allegiance to the Queen’s guards.
A Tale of Tweed vs Tweedle
It all started one languid afternoon while I was attempting to change the language on my brand‑new Android. In the Settings under "System language," I dropped “English – United Kingdom” into the list. Instantly, the phone morphed into a proper Polite Young Gentleman: all exclamation marks replaced with "colour modulation" and "colour adjusted." Even the notification sounds were replaced by “Beep sound – classical” and not “Beep sound – pop.” The phone looked at me with a smug digital smile, as if it were saying, “Do what you will, but remember that we are British. Fend off the American draughtsman. Still, be kind.”
From then on, my screen went into a posture that resembled a lit'sy example of Westminster. The "White & Colour" toggle was replaced by “White & Colour” in a font that seemed pulled straight out of a British television ad for a cricketer’s tea. I did feel this was the most “colourful” user experience the phone ever had.
Culture Shock
What made this so hilariously disconcerting was the way it seemed to ignore the fact that I live on the West Coast – where our favourite colour pun is the same as, say, “color system.” Meanwhile, my phone follows the British standard, which still suffers through our continuous cultural clash. “Colour me confused,” I muttered as if this was a classic Easter egg or an Easter‐tide assault.
I realised that even an iPhone, known for its obvious British bias, has a slew of biometric settings that ask, “Is this image an ‘appraise’ or ‘appraisal’?” depending on the region. But whatever the reason, the photos on my phone still have a “Colour mood” – even when I am trying to think in 3D modelling software that expects “Color”.
The Moral of the Story
Everyone seems to interpret “colour” or “color” as a personal identity. I have a hundred poems about the aesthetic differences between the two, and my favourite poem is: “So little fishy, when the Apple iPhone decides to ‘colour’ me to ‘coloured’.” The result? My phone’s settings are stuck in a duel: the greatest divide of its life. If this is a reference to Shakespeare or a remnant of the British Empire, do let me know. I’ll try to switch to “colour” again and see if it self‑corrects and flips to ‘colour’.
So next time your phone decides to set your language preference, keep in mind that the divide isn’t just between 4G and 5G – it’s also a question of national pride, spelling errors, and all the fashionable tomatoes awaiting the homestreak of “colour” vs. “color”.
P.S. If you’d like to try the trick, just go into Settings -> System -> Language & Input -> Language. There will be an “apple” icon which, when pressed, will say “colour of the day!” If it’s still in USA, no worries – the phone prints: “Colour in the rain, colour of happiness - choose the color.” It’s a good option.
Happy colouring, or rather colour‑ing, friends.
