I teach high school, and cell phones are definitely a status symbol around here. Random things I see:
SmartPhones rule, of course, but "everyone" has some type of phone.
Some kids actually carry phones that are not activated (some stolen) just so they look like they're carrying a phone.
Theft of cell phones is the #1 crime on campus. Admittedly, all too many teens aren't responsible with their phones -- they leave them lying about, etc.
Ratty, cracked screen or otherwise damaged phones are borderline-acceptable, but having no phone is social suicide.
Every now and then a kid sees my old dumb-phone, and they never fail to think it's hilarious.
Used to be that at the end of the day the halls were loud with kids talking to friends, making plans for after school, walking out the door together -- now the students walk out the door in silence, all with heads bent over their phones.
I have chaperoned the prom and other dances numerous times. At any given moment, a surprisingly large proportion of the students are sitting at the tables texting. It makes no sense: They've spent money on this event, worried about their dates and outfits, WHY spend any part of the evening texting? And WHO could they be texting? Isn't everyone at the event?
Kids are so used to googling things . . . when they have to look something up in a book, they're genuinely confused. For example, when I had them doing a project that involved looking up biographies a number of students didn't know whether they should go to R for Rosa or P for Parks.
In contrast, I don't think phones are a status symbol in my social group. We all have phones, but we don't feel the need to flash them about. We don't have the latest and greatest. We don't fiddle with them 24/7. We see them as tools, not something to show off.
Will today's teens always love their phones, even as they age? That's something we'll learn in the future.