Wireless Freedom
I finally bought in to the hype and got myself a smartphone.
Instead of singing praises all day long about it, I decided to list down all the things I can do now that I wasn't able to do before and hopefully get the feeling that I can justify the $20/month price tag on top of my regular cell phone bill.
1. Instant access to information, be it flight schedules, weather reports, news, wikipedia entries, item prices during sales, etc.
2. Get directions and traffic conditions via Google Maps-- beats getting lost and being stuck in traffic.
3. Send and receive emails on the fly ('nuff said)
4. IM people in my list around the world either for quick info, or just to past time.
5. Watch TV (via slingbox) while waiting in line in the grocery or post office or in the bank.
6. Book tickets online (via mobile.moviefone.com) before going to the theater and just picking up the tickets at the ABO-- saving time being in line.
7. Get restaurant information on the fly.
8. Finally cancel my internet connection at home (runs around $30 to $40 per month depending on the carrier)
9. And the killer app is.... tethering my phone wirelessly to my Mac! That in itself opens a floodgate of possibilities.
I haven't posted the blog entry I started writing when I was in Las Vegas 2 months ago, but this device will definitely position itself on top of that list.
By the way, the smartphone I bought was the BlackJack (Samsung i607) with the Cingular Broadband Connect plan (aka 3G, HSDPA). $20/month for unlimited wireless internet usage. The speeds are not that bad, 800kbps down and 300kbps up when connected via 3G and around 200kbps down and 50kbps up when connected via EDGE. I'll post instructions on how to tether the Blackjack wirelessly to the Mac as soon as I get the chance.
Instead of singing praises all day long about it, I decided to list down all the things I can do now that I wasn't able to do before and hopefully get the feeling that I can justify the $20/month price tag on top of my regular cell phone bill.
1. Instant access to information, be it flight schedules, weather reports, news, wikipedia entries, item prices during sales, etc.
2. Get directions and traffic conditions via Google Maps-- beats getting lost and being stuck in traffic.
3. Send and receive emails on the fly ('nuff said)
4. IM people in my list around the world either for quick info, or just to past time.
5. Watch TV (via slingbox) while waiting in line in the grocery or post office or in the bank.
6. Book tickets online (via mobile.moviefone.com) before going to the theater and just picking up the tickets at the ABO-- saving time being in line.
7. Get restaurant information on the fly.
8. Finally cancel my internet connection at home (runs around $30 to $40 per month depending on the carrier)
9. And the killer app is.... tethering my phone wirelessly to my Mac! That in itself opens a floodgate of possibilities.
I haven't posted the blog entry I started writing when I was in Las Vegas 2 months ago, but this device will definitely position itself on top of that list.
By the way, the smartphone I bought was the BlackJack (Samsung i607) with the Cingular Broadband Connect plan (aka 3G, HSDPA). $20/month for unlimited wireless internet usage. The speeds are not that bad, 800kbps down and 300kbps up when connected via 3G and around 200kbps down and 50kbps up when connected via EDGE. I'll post instructions on how to tether the Blackjack wirelessly to the Mac as soon as I get the chance.
posted by BigD at
12:42 PM
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