All Cell Phones Should Have A Mini USB Port

If there is one thing I hate about getting a new cell phone is the fact that 99% of the time I have to use new plugs. The old ones go in the trash and fill our landfills. Why o’ why can’t all cell phones just use the standard mini USB plug for charging phones and transferring files? With the “green” theme so big these days and many cell phone companies moving in this direction why not make mini USB plugs standard? It only makes since. They are by far the easiest to use. Not only can you use them to transfer files, but you can use them to charge your phone when plugged into your computer. It’s the best.

If you agree or disagree let me know.

Old School Fridays – StarTAC

It’s Friday and that means it’s Old School Friday. Time to take a look back at an old school classic, the Motrola StarTAC. The Motorola StarTAC is famous for being the first flip phone. The first StarTAC model was released in 1996 and the cell phone industry hasn’t been the same since. I’m sure most of you knew at least someone that had a StarTAC. In 2005 PC World deemed the StarTAC the # 6 greatest gadget in the past 50 years. I would say there hadn’t been another breakthrough in the cell phone industry until the Apple iPhone was introduced with its groundbreaking touchscreen phones. The Motorola StarTRAC is turly and old school legend. Writing this post makes me want to go out and get one. Imagine seeing someone rocking a StarTAC. That would be awesome!

Best Buy Return Policy – WTF?

This post really has nothing to do with cell phones, but I guess it might in a round about way. I went to Best Buy today to purchase a Flip MinoHD camera. I thought it would be a good camera to record my video reviews and other video I plan on taking. When I asked a rep at Best Buy to get me the phone she said, “you know there is a 15% restocking fee if you bring it back”. I was like, WTF!!! I asked the lady what happens if I use the camera and I don’t like it? Here response was that since it would be an open product they would have to sell it as an open product for far less than what it would be new. I would call the restocking fee more like a “try it” fee. I might as well just pay the 15% of the camera and try it, and if I like it pay the difference of the original price of the phone.

Now I don’t know about you, but the only open box products that are sold at Best Buy are for televisions. I’ve never seen a camera open box for sale, a router, computer or microwave. Now you can’t tell me that none of these products have ever been returned by a customer after they have been used. I’m willing to bet that Best Buy sends the product back to the manufacturer, receives a replacement and pockets that “15% restocking fee”. Other electronic stores like Wal-Mart and Target have no such policy so why does Best Buy? That really annoys me. Maybe Circuit City didn’t have this policy and that’s why they went under. Make sure you know about this fee next time you buy a big ticket item at Best Buy. Better do a lot of research before making your purchase.

First Blackberry – Inter@ctive Pager 850 & 5790

Since it’s Friday I thought everyone would get a kick out of this. You’re looking at the first Blackberry. Well that’s not an entirely true statement. The Inter@ctive Pager (850) which was released in 1997 was the first device made by RIM (Research In Motion). The first Blackberry wasn’t a phone at all, as you can see from the picture it was a 2-way pager that had a full keyboard. Now you can see how RIM knew from an early point that a full QWERTY keyboard on a mobile device was the future. The Blackberry below, the 5790 was the first RIM device that was a mobile phone. Lets just call today throw back Friday.

Smartphones Can Really Be Dumb

Cell phones are getting smarter hence the name “smartphones”, but how much smarter are they really becoming? When cell phones hit the market and quite frankly up until a few years ago you could count on your cell phone to have little or no technical flaws. The phone acted just like a regular phone with a few features including an address book, contact list and limited internet browsing capabilities. Now cell phones are becoming more and more like mini computers. You can do everything from record and edit video to downloading a whole slew of applications. Of course with the expansion of what cell phones can handle means more room for error. Just think about your computer. How many times has your computer not functioned they way you though it would, froze or had a virus? Over the past two years with the advent of the iPhone we’ve heard numerous reports about malfunctions and more recently with the Blackberry Storm. I for one know first hand when I use my T-Mobile G1. There are times when I select an application and nothing happens or I open the keyboard and the screen does not rotate. These are issues that we’re all going to have to get use to. The smartphone is no longer the cell phone of the past. Maybe smartphones aren’t dumb, but they sure can be clumsy. Let’s wait and see how the next generation of smartphones handles these issues of acting more like a computer and less like a phone.

Turn Off Your Cell Phone On The Plane – Really?

I was flying today and of course when the door closed the first thing the attendant said was, “now that the front door is closed turn off your cell phones. Cell phones can interfere with the airplanes navigation and electronic devices.” Are you kidding me! Does anyone really think this is the case? How many times have you heard on the news that an airplanes electronic systems failed in flight due to someones cell phone being on during the flight, NEVER. And if you’re one of the people that thinks it has or can happen let me talk a little sense into you. Do you really think that everyone turns their phone off when they get on the plane. I for one have never done this and I’m guessing there are at a minimum 10+ people on each flight that do not turn their phones off. My guess is that the airlines do this simple for the sake of the people on the plane. Who wants to hear everyone on the plane talking on their cell phones before they loose reception. If you still think there is really any danger in having your cell phone on while on the plane I would love to hear from you. As far as I’m concerned it’s all just a myth made up by the airlines.

Barack Obama Can’t Use His Blackberry Or E-Mail Anymore

I was watching the nightly news yesterday and there was a short story on Barack Obama and his Blackberry. Throughout his campaign and I’m sure well before that Obama has used a Blackberry. The piece talked about how the secret service will not allow Obama to use his Blackberry once he becomes President. The story cited security reasons. On top of that they said he may not even be able to use email anymore. Could you imagine not being able to use your Blackberry (or other smartphone) or email for at least four years? That alone would make me not what to run for the presidency (not like anyone was pushing me to do so). This begs the questions, what would you do if you couldn’t use your Blackberry or email for four years?

How To Use Your G1 As A Tethered Modem

If you’re like me then the dream of a 3G network means that you would no longer need to have a broadband connection at home. You could simply use your cell phone as a tethered modem wherever you go. This dream is starting to become a reality. Major cell phone carriers like AT&T and T-Mobile have shied away from having phones on their network used as tethered mobiles. Mainly due to the fact that if people start using their phones as modems for their computers then the 3G networks will slow to a crawl. This may or may not be true, but the reality is, is that the carriers can’t ignore the consumers desire to use their phones as tethered modems.

In comes two of the more popular cell phones to date, the iPhone and G1. Apple recently announced that an app is in development that would allow users to use their iPhones as modems. There was no date announced for when the app may be available. When it is available I’ll guarantee that the Apple app store will get tons of hits the day it is released.

On the other side there is no app available or even announced to be in the works for the G1. HOWEVER, You can find the instructions for using your G1 as a tethered modem at http://graha.ms/androidproxy. Try it out and see if you get it to work. There is a link once you go to the instructions page which takes you to an Android forum where people are helping each other out with making it work. Good luck!

How To Convince Your Parents To Buy You A Cell Phone

With the holidays right around the corner one of the biggest questions is, “how can I convince my parents to buy me a cell phone.” This is a question that thousands if not millions of kids are asking their parents this year. Cell phones are a hot ticket item and kids want them. The biggest hurtle they run into is MOM and DAD. For as many reasons for why a child should receive a cell phone there are just as many reasons why they shouldn’t. This post is about why they should receive a cell phone. If you’re under the age of 18 then listen up. Here is a long list of reasons you can use to convince your parents that you should get a cell phone (in no particular order).

1. “I need one in case of an emergency” (using the “emergency” word usually will get your parents attention)

2. “You can easily find me at any time.”

3. Tell them that you can take a picture of the place where you’re suppose to be and you can send it to them so they know you haven’t gone somewhere else.

4. Write a list of rules about things that you won’t do and as a punishment they can take your cell phone away.

5. This goes without saying but do research on the cell phone(s) (give them some options) that you want along with the plans so they see that you’re doing your part. Don’t just go up to your parents and say “i want a cell phone”. That is a sure formula for failure.

6. Tell your parents if they get you the phone you’ll either pay for the service each month or you’ll do choirs around the house to pay for the monthly service.

6b. Tell them you will pay for the phone.

7. Tell them that they can get you a prepaid service. This means that they can set the limit of how many minutes and text you get without worrying about you running up the bill.

8. A don’t: don’t tell them that all your friends have one. Your parents could care less.

9. Tell your parents that now instead of waiting for you after events (practices that go too long, school dances, etc.) you can call them when you’re ready to be picked up. In todays busy world parents don’t want to wait in the car for a hour waiting for you to finish an event that has run over.

10. Unless you have great negotiating skills don’t ask your parents to buy you a top of the line phone for your first phone. First things first, get a phone. Ask them for a cheaper phone and once they are comfortable with you having the phone you can hit them up for the latest and greatest cell phone on the market.

11. Responsible, responsible, responsible. At your age your parents are worried that you aren’t responsible enough to have a cell phone. You’ve gotta convince them that you’re responsible enough to have one.

12. A don’t: don’t beg them for one. That will get you as far as telling them that everyone else has one.

If anyone else has any suggestions feel free to add to the list. Hopefully one or a combination of the points above will help you get your first cell phone!

GSM vs. CDMA – Which Network Will My Phone Work On

I see tons of questions asking if certain cell phones will work with certain carriers. I’m hoping that this little write-up will help answer those questions and give you a little more knowledge about the two prevailing technologies.

Lets start with Global System for Mobile Communications or GSM. GSM is a standard that was setup in Europe. GSM was non existent in the US until recently. GSM has started making major inroads in the United States recently. To help boost the speed of GSM technology EDGE, UMTS and HSDPA were created. Each standard has a higher upload/download speed then the next. EDGE has a speed of 70-140 kbps. UMTS and HSDPA have speeds of 275—380 kbps.

In order to use the GSM network in the United States you need to have a Subscriber Identity Module card (SIM card). The removable SIM card allows phones to be instantly activated, interchanged, swapped out and upgraded, all without carrier intervention. The SIM itself is tied to the network, rather than the actual phone. Phones that are card-enabled can be used with any GSM carrier. With GSM you are able to switch from one carriers GSM network to another without any problem. For example if you take your GSM phone to Europe you can automatically get connected to GSM carriers in Europe without signing up for contracts with those carriers. The only catch is that your phone will need to be a quad-band GSM phone. Meaning your phone works on 850/900/1800/1900 MHz frequencies.

The US carriers that use the GSM network are AT&T and T-Mobile.

Now lets look at Code Division Multiple Access or CDMA. CDMA is a standard that was established in the United States by Qualcomm. CDMA is always used in parts of Asia. To help boost the speeds of CDMA, EVDO was created. The download speed of EVDO claims to be about 2 megabits per second.

A R-UIM card is the equivalent to the SIM card, R-UIM cards are only available in parts of Asia but could someday make it to the United States. CDMA carriers in the U.S. require proprietary handsets that are linked to one carrier only and are not card-enabled. To upgrade a CDMA phone, the carrier must deactivate the old phone then activate the new one. The old phone becomes useless.

The US carriers that use the CDMA network are Sprint, Verizon and Virgin Mobile.

That just about sums it up at a very high level. If you have a phone that takes a SIM card it isn’t going to work on Sprint, Verizon and Virgin Mobile. On the other hand if you have a CDMA phone it won’t work on AT&T or T-Mobile. It’s as simple as that for now.

Oh yeah, one last thing. Often with GSM you hear a lot about unlocked phones. An unlocked phone means that the phone is locked to only work with the a particular carrier. If you unlock the phone then the phone will work with any SIM card on any GSM carriers network. So if you buy a Nokia that is only sold in Europe and not by T-Mobile for example, you can unlock the phone and use your SIM card to allow it to work on the T-Mobile network. Unlocked phones does not pertain to CDMA phones as noted above.