Fighting obsolescence..... - do you REALLY use a smart phone, and if so, how?
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[Theme from Dragnet]
Join the cool kids - Come fold with us[^]
Trollslayer wrote:
[Theme from Dragnet]
I did spend the evening in the company of Connie Swail....
_________________________ John Andrew Holmes "It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." Shhhhh.... I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination.... I am still in my cave so this must be an illusion....
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So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
charlieg wrote:
$549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone.
IIRC the 549 price is without a contract, and is intended for people who just want a wifi tablet. The contact price is $300(?); but I expect that it'll be rebated down after doing the early adopter gouge or just because until they get 2.2 out it's stuck on crappy android 1.6.
3x12=36 2x12=24 1x12=12 0x12=18
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So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
I have a smart phone. It's a Blackberry, and it's smart enough to deduct $75 a month from my bank account.
Christopher Duncan
www.PracticalUSA.com
Author of The Career Programmer and Unite the Tribes
Copywriting Services -
RichardM1 wrote:
They make me feel like Christian.
Can't have THAT! Join us at Sprint and feel like Pagan. ;P ;P
_________________________ John Andrew Holmes "It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." Shhhhh.... I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination.... I am still in my cave so this must be an illusion....
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El Corazon wrote:
Join us at Sprint and feel like Pagan.
I don't want a smart phone enough to be a human sacrifice. :omg:
Opacity, the new Transparency.
RichardM1 wrote:
I don't want a smart phone enough to be a human sacrifice.
oh no! we save THAT honor for the AT&T iPhone folks....
_________________________ John Andrew Holmes "It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." Shhhhh.... I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination.... I am still in my cave so this must be an illusion....
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I have an iPhone and use it constantly for: - Email (triaging emergency emails, quick replies, and social chat only. Serious email on the desktop) - Taking, swapping and viewing pics. Far, far more than I realised I would - Reading the news (Aussie news, gadget news, weather news, PhysOrg - endless news!) - As an iPod while cycling - For directions while (often) lost via Google maps - For weather reports so I can determine how wet and potentially fried I will get while cycling - Occasionally I use the 'phone' function that I discoverd not long ago. I can talk to other people on my iPhone! Cool.
cheers, Chris Maunder The Code Project | Co-founder Microsoft C++ MVP
Chris Maunder wrote:
- Occasionally I use the 'phone' function that I discoverd not long ago. I can talk to other people on my iPhone! Cool.
Amazing isn't it??!!
_________________________ John Andrew Holmes "It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." Shhhhh.... I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination.... I am still in my cave so this must be an illusion....
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I have a smart phone. It's a Blackberry, and it's smart enough to deduct $75 a month from my bank account.
Christopher Duncan
www.PracticalUSA.com
Author of The Career Programmer and Unite the Tribes
Copywriting Services -
Trollslayer wrote:
[Theme from Dragnet]
I did spend the evening in the company of Connie Swail....
_________________________ John Andrew Holmes "It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." Shhhhh.... I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination.... I am still in my cave so this must be an illusion....
Wait, don't you mean the virgin Connie Swail? Flynn
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So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
charlieg wrote:
$549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly
I don't think so. Apple iPhones, Motorola Droid 2 & Droid X are all approx $200 with a 2 yr contract.
charlieg wrote:
Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful?
Don't have one yet. I have an iPod Touch for mobile wifi use that keeps me happy for the moment. I'm planning that in 18 months when my daughter & son are out of college, the current 2 year contract on our standard phones ends and my satellite dish contract ends that this great confluence allows me the opportunity to switch my home ISP & TV provider, cancel my landline and upgrade the wife and me to smartphones with data packages for less money. Time will tell.
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So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
Well, so far, I'm not hearing a very compelling reason to worry about smart phones (unless I want to develop an Android app). After freeing myself from the evil clutches of Verizon, I just don't want to go back to the dark side of ANOTHER monthly bill. Setting aside the statistical blip of Ennis hacking his way past a firewall ;), I like the idea of time tracking, and I guess the maps would be nice. If I needed to monitor remote servers, web access would be a benefit. Everything else seems to be a gimmick to get you into the mode of "just got to have one" come to the dark side. Perhaps it's that most of us sit in front of laptops/monitors all day. I just cannot see the need to read my email that much. Facebook, I mean, social networking sites are out of the question.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
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Wait, don't you mean the virgin Connie Swail? Flynn
Flynn Arrowstarr / Regular Schmoe wrote:
Wait, don't you mean the virgin Connie Swail?
[Theme from Dragnet]
_________________________ John Andrew Holmes "It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." Shhhhh.... I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination.... I am still in my cave so this must be an illusion....
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charlieg wrote:
$549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly
I don't think so. Apple iPhones, Motorola Droid 2 & Droid X are all approx $200 with a 2 yr contract.
charlieg wrote:
Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful?
Don't have one yet. I have an iPod Touch for mobile wifi use that keeps me happy for the moment. I'm planning that in 18 months when my daughter & son are out of college, the current 2 year contract on our standard phones ends and my satellite dish contract ends that this great confluence allows me the opportunity to switch my home ISP & TV provider, cancel my landline and upgrade the wife and me to smartphones with data packages for less money. Time will tell.
Mike, I guess my point is that people are willing to give thousands of dollars over a period of time. All for the smart phone, so I'm trying to understand the value. cg
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
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So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
I miss plain old PDAs. I don't need a phone. I have one already that makes calls and only costs me an average of $10 per month. Now, if I could get a smartphone with just the data contract, I could handle that, but I refuse to pay iPad prices for an "unlocked" phone. Right now, I have an iPod Touch (it was from my card's rewards program), which is sorta what I'm looking for, but I'd love to have a data plan with it so I can use it everywhere. Right now, it's mostly used for reading (Kindle and Stanza), and music. Sometimes a few games, but nothing major. But, honestly, I'm looking for something closer to this[^] device running either WM6.5, WM7 or Android. Of course, for the price, I could live with the limitations of WM5. :-\ Flynn
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I'm avoiding getting a smart phone... Sure, all of the gimmicks would be nice... Having google maps on hand for when I'm wandering around downtown... Having a better keyboard for text messages... For a while, I even avoided getting a camera phone, because I figured the more complex the device, the more likely it was to break before my contract expired. Now, my only reason is that I don't want to spend an ADDITIONAL 20-30 bucks a month for a data plan, when I'm already paying over 50 just for a low-end voice/text plan... Verizon is ridiculously expensive, but they really do seem to be the only carrier with decent coverage in this area.
Proud to have finally moved to the A-Ark. Which one are you in?
Author of the Guardians Saga (Sci-Fi/Fantasy novels)Ian Shlasko wrote:
Now, my only reason is that I don't want to spend an ADDITIONAL 20-30 bucks a month for a data plan, when I'm already paying over 50 just for a low-end voice/text plan...
That's a big chunk of my problem as well. The fact that I'm paying for 3 or more times as many minutes a month as I use isn't that big of a deal because the landline I didn't buy would have ended up costing that much even before long distance fees were added in. $30 for a data plan I see myself using infrequently and that doesn't come close to being able to replace even crappy small town cable internet is something else.
Ian Shlasko wrote:
Verizon is ridiculously expensive, but they really do seem to be the only carrier with decent coverage in this area.
Same here. I guess hills and sky scrapers are all the same to them. :cool:
3x12=36 2x12=24 1x12=12 0x12=18
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Mike, I guess my point is that people are willing to give thousands of dollars over a period of time. All for the smart phone, so I'm trying to understand the value. cg
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
I'm thinking it will be great to have one device that is equal parts: telephone e-mail machine SMS web browser camera GPS notebook music player video player game player book reader I travel now and again and having one device with one AC charger for all these functions would be great.
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Well, so far, I'm not hearing a very compelling reason to worry about smart phones (unless I want to develop an Android app). After freeing myself from the evil clutches of Verizon, I just don't want to go back to the dark side of ANOTHER monthly bill. Setting aside the statistical blip of Ennis hacking his way past a firewall ;), I like the idea of time tracking, and I guess the maps would be nice. If I needed to monitor remote servers, web access would be a benefit. Everything else seems to be a gimmick to get you into the mode of "just got to have one" come to the dark side. Perhaps it's that most of us sit in front of laptops/monitors all day. I just cannot see the need to read my email that much. Facebook, I mean, social networking sites are out of the question.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
charlieg wrote:
come to the dark side.
we have cookies....
_________________________ John Andrew Holmes "It is well to remember that the entire universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." Shhhhh.... I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination.... I am still in my cave so this must be an illusion....
-
So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
charlieg wrote:
Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone...
I do not own one, let alone use one.
"One man's wage rise is another man's price increase." - Harold Wilson
"Fireproof doesn't mean the fire will never come. It means when the fire comes that you will be able to withstand it." - Michael Simmons
"Man who follows car will be exhausted." - Confucius
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charlieg wrote:
Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone...
I do not own one, let alone use one.
"One man's wage rise is another man's price increase." - Harold Wilson
"Fireproof doesn't mean the fire will never come. It means when the fire comes that you will be able to withstand it." - Michael Simmons
"Man who follows car will be exhausted." - Confucius
DavidCrow wrote:
I do not own one, let alone use one.
"My dog has no nose." "How does he smell?" "He can't; he has no nose!" Is what you're basically saying. :-D
The narrow specialist in the broad sense of the word is a complete idiot in the narrow sense of the word. Advertise here – minimum three posts per day are guaranteed.
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So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
Here are some of the things I regularly use my phone for:
- GPS navigation when going somewhere new. It's especially useful for ad hoc trips - for example, you find out store X doesn't have what you need, but it is carried at a different chain, chain Y. Put chain Y into the search box and get driving directions to the closest store within 10 seconds. On our honeymoon I used Google Maps to go all over San Francisco by bus with ease, simply by telling it where I wanted to end up - no need to consult bus routes or schedules. Also I was out once and decided wanted to visit a friend I had never actually visited before. Texted him, he sent his address, and I copied it into Bing maps, and voila - directions.
- Music player - I don't even own a dedicated MP3 player, because my phone not only has a good portion of my music library, but it also has internet radio and my GrooveShark playlists.
- Instant messaging - I can chat with friends on the go, or step out to do some errands while waiting for a client to get back to me, without worrying about him getting online and finding me gone.
- Camera - good for quick snapshots at times when I wouldn't be carrying around my regular camera, or for taking a picture of a product or shelf tag that I want to look up later.
- Looking up products or facts - if I want to know if something is worth buying, I can look up reviews, or if someone asks a question I don't know the answer to, I can look it up on the spot.
- eBook and RSS reader - if I have some time to kill and am away from my computer, I can read a book or catch up on the latest from the sites I follow.
- Quick work fixes - I can RDP or Telnet/SSH to a work server to make a quick tweak without getting back to my computer.
- Agenda/lists - I keep a running list of my agenda, todo-list, and other lists on my phone, for access any time. I jot down ideas there too.
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So, I'm talking to a friend who needs to give me some source code... he doesn't want to email it, so I tell him to burn it to a CD. He gives me the :wtf: look, and asks if I have a USB drive. First I laugh, then I start to whimper. I realize I am stuck in a time warp - pre USB drive era. Now, I have 4 of them in my pack, it's not that I don't use them, it's just that I scared myself thinking 10 years ago. So..., I get CP's newsletter and see all of the flashy announcement of the Android app contest. Hmmm, sounds cool. I go out to Dell's site to look at their new Streak. Mind you, I am NOT a smart phone lover. In fact, unless it's a customer, I really don't like cellphones. But perhaps a smart phone would be useful, etc. :omg: $549 for a 5" display and the privilege of a long term contract? I'm guessing the other Android phones are priced accordingly, and I know about the iPhone. Seriously - do any of you techies actually USE your smart phone for something useful? Hell, I remember when the next big data driver for the wireless companies was video. So every phone now has a camera. The magazines I read indicate that laptops are sooo old school, and that the growth area is all in mobile apps on these little machines. So, I'm looking for some practical examples.
Charlie Gilley You're going to tell me what I want to know, or I'm going to beat you to death in your own house. "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783
Nope. No cell phone either. Hate the damn things.