2 posts tagged “cell phones”
There are plenty of reviews out already for the Motorola Q Smartphone, so I don't want to "reinvent" the wheel. Here are some in depth reviews (not necessarily my opinion):
I bought one on Monday afternoon, as I was eligible for my Verizon new every two once again. After mail in rebate, I was able to get the $300+ phone for $79. Of course, that was before I added in a Bluetooth headset, stereo mini jack earbuds, a 512 mini SD card and a BodyGlove cover, which I felt essential, since it was one of the only covers to also cover the screen, which is essential as the Moto Q, although sharp and clear is prone to smudging and this prevents that.
Now that I've had a couple days to use it, I couldn't be happier. I need Verizon for service coverage, as where I live, most other carriers tend to be spotty. The other half has T-Mobile, which has been good, but still not quite the performance of Verizon, especially on our travels out of the country. Yeah, people gripe about the cost of Verizon's data plan, but when you compare apples to apples, the $80 (before surcharges, etc.) is really no more than anyone else's unlimited data plan (with phone minutes) when you add in all the extras Verizon bundles in with the plan.
I read all the reviews, and for my non-business purposes, this phone was "it". There was one BlackBerry in contention, but there was no camera, and I wanted to use the phone for moblogging, so that ruled it out. T-Mobile had a few BlackBerry smart phones that would have worked, but having to change my longstanding cell # for lesser service for a phone didn't seem worth it and I'm glad I didn't. That being said, a lot of folks like Cingular's Blackjack, but service coverage where I use my phone is horrible.
Anyway, for me, blogging, email, SMS, phone usage, web surfing, listening to music and watching video clips, including my own while I'm out and about made this the perfect smartphone device for me. I love, love, love it. Since Verizon doesn't partner with Yahoo!, I downloaded Y! Go Beta for my phone and now I can push email from gmail, my broadband provider and Yahoo! without subscribing to Yahoo's premium service. It also allows for maps, easy Flickr uploads and viewing and other nice Yahoo! features.
I love that I don't have to carry a phone (formerly a Moto Razr V3m, pink) and my iPod now unless I want to listen to or watch larger file size items. I can just put my music on my Moto Q, along with video clips and listen to them through the onboard stereo speakers using Windows Media Player, or I can put my headphones on and listen, take a phone call and go back to listening again. Schweeeeeeeeeeet.
This phone should help me be more consistent about blogging, even when I am untethered to my computer, as there are times as of late, I've had extended absences, but have been places I wish I had internet and keyboard access as I had time to answer mail or post.
Anyway, my Moto Q is my new toy and making me a very, very happy camper!
Most of us here who blog regularly and use other internet services probably find this incomprehensible, but I've met plenty of these people, even ones that are not senior citizens. I couldn't imagine my life without the 'net and if my connection goes down (rarely) I go into cardiac arrest. If I forget my cell, I turn right around to get it, I don't feel comfortable without it. What about you?
Nearly 50 Percent of Americans Have Little Use for Internet and Cell Phones, Survey Finds
Monday, May 07, 2007
NEW YORK — A broad survey about the technology people have, how they use it, and what they think about it shatters assumptions and reveals where companies might be able to expand their audiences.
The Pew Internet and American Life Project found that adult Americans are broadly divided into three groups: 31 percent are elite technology users, 20 percent are moderate users and the remainder have little or no usage of the Internet or cell phones.
But Americans are divided within each group, according to a Pew analysis of 2006 data released Sunday.
• Take this quiz and find out what kind of tech-user you are.
The high-tech elites, for instance, are almost evenly split into:
— "Omnivores," [I bet most of you reading this fall into that catagory?] who fully embrace technology and express themselves creatively through blogs and personal Web pages.
— "Connectors," who see the Internet and cell phones as communications tools.
— "Productivity enhancers," who consider technology as largely ways to better keep up with their jobs and daily lives.
— "Lackluster veterans," those who use technology frequently but aren't thrilled by it.
John Horrigan, Pew's associate director, said he started the survey believing that the more gadgets people have, the more they are likely to embrace technology and use so-called Web 2.0 applications for generating and sharing content with the world.
"Once we got done, we were surprised to find the tensions within groups of users with information technology," Horrigan said.
Many longtime Internet users, the lackluster veterans, remain stuck in the decade-old technologies they started with, Horrigan said. That a quarter of high-tech elites fall into this category, he said, shows untapped potential for companies that can design next-generation applications to pique this group's interest.
The moderate users were also evenly divided into "mobile centrics," those who primarily use the cell phone for voice, text messaging and even games, and "connected but hassled," those who have used technology but find it burdensome.
Mobile companies, he said, can target the mobile centrics with premium services, especially once faster wireless networks become available.
The Pew study found 15 percent of all Americans have neither a cell phone nor an Internet connection. Another 15 percent use some technology and are satisfied with what it currently does for them, while 11 percent use it intermittently and find connectivity annoying.
Eight percent — mostly women in the early 50s — occasionally use technology and might use more given more experience. They tend to still be on dial-up access and represent potential high-speed customers "with the right constellation of services offered," Horrigan said.
The telephone study of 4,001 U.S. adults, including 2,822 Internet users, was conducted Feb. 15 to April 6, 2006, and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
