But are our smartphones actually getting in the way of real socializing? could technology be making us more alone?

Yes, technology takes away the factor of face to face. Like when a guy likes you or you like a guy. When you text each other you can't see each others emotions or reactions. If you're in person face to face you see everything. You see their reaction and their emotions. It's for sure way better in person. Smartphones take away a lot. They take our self confidence thanks to social media. It takes away from our minds, because they slowly decay our minds down. We honestly depend on our phones now a days. They also take away from the world. The beautiful nature nobody gets into. Smartphones take away from sports. They make us lazy. There's benefits but a ton of minors to smartphones.