Clever Cell Phone Gadgets

Yes, the holiday season is over for 2014 but not in Asia. Besides, January is a great time to shop for bargains. Companies are looking to get rid of leftover goods and you are the one who benefits. Here are some great gadgets that you will find at reduced prices. But hurry - others will see these low prices too.

1. Multipurpose Travel Router - This router comes in handy in that hotel that is charging you an arm and a leg for poor WiFi service or a higher price for using several devices at once. Here's the Hoo Too Trip Mate to the rescue. It can also serve as a power source, a personal cloud (media sharing), and an independent WiFi source.

Here's the link to the router.

2. Selfie Accessory Kit - Today taking pictures of yourself and your friends is very popular. Remember those cameras that used to take remote photos after 5 seconds? No need to do this any more with your selfie kit. Just put your smart phone on the pole, frame or attach to a tripod (tripod not included - only the attachment). It even has a Bluetooth remote control for the shutter.

Here's the link to the selfie kit.

3. Cell Phone Waterproof Case - Like to snorkel, surf or just hang out at the beach? Great for the boat owner as well. It's padded and lined, watertight and it floats! Since most wet cell phones are toast, this is what you need for all water-related trips. Now on sale.

Here's the link to the case.

It's great to accessorize your favorite piece of equipment that everyone carries with them now. There are so many nice cases, holders and desk top stands. Please remember the cell phone holder from StarShine Products available through Amazon.com by clicking on http://net-on-the-go.com/awesomeholders and on this very website.

Cash Back on Computers and Cell Phones

Need a new computer or cell phone, maybe some accessory or other gadget that can go with your media? Here's a company that will help you out with cash back shopping. It's like shopping during Black Friday or Boxing Day - but discounts like these all the time. It's a new system called Dubli Network. It has actually been around since 2003 but it has just arrived in North America. Here's a page from the network under the category of computers and cell phones: How does this work? It's easy. Just sign up as a free, Premium or V.I.P. member and start shopping. What's this V.I.P. membership? You get cash back in three different ways: 1. Get cash back on what you buy and what the people you refer buy. 2. Get paid for referring your friends who Get Cash Back too! 3. Get a higher percentage of cash back as a V.I.P. member. Interested in finding out more? Just click here.

How Safe is Your Cell Phone?

The invasion of digital technology like smartphones and tablets in our lives has not been a gradual process. It came with a bang; it seems like overnight everyone has a cell phone. Being the most popular gadget today, it was a bit of a surprise when all the big wigs in the technology industry turned their heads towards this new device and the market was flooded with cell phones of various types supporting innovative apps, features etc. This gave the users a huge variety of choices according to their preferences. While purchasing a cell phone, a common user tends to go for one that comes with most features at the lowest price tag. However, the crucial factor that most of the users tend to ignore or simply overlook is the safety level of that phone.

With the widespread increase of cell phone usage, it was quite instinctive for the researchers to investigate the health concerns that are posed by radiation emitting from cell phones. Cell phone radiation lies in the microwave region of the radio spectrum. The IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer) has placed the cell phone in Group 2B, thus marking it as possibly carcinogenic. However, it should be noticed that with proper precaution, cell phones can be used without side effects; especially taking into account the fact that the microwaves emitted from other devices such as home appliances (microwaves, computers, televisions etc.) radiate a much higher level of radiation compared to the cell phone.

The Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) gives a measure of radiation absorbed in the human body. The standard SAR for cell phones accepted as being safe for the human body is 1.6 Watt/ kg. It is important for cell phones to comply with this set standard because high radiation levels can be quite dangerous by causing a molecular structural breakdown. It's important to use a cell phone carefully taking precautions to avoid problems with radiation.

Did you know:

1. A pregnant woman should keep cell phones away from the fetus as even low levels radiation could possibly effect her unborn child.

2. One should not carry a cell phone in a front pocket or anywhere near reproductive organs. While research is still being done here, it is possible that the phone could effect the productivity and health of these organs. Remember that cell phones emit radiation even when they are off. It's probably not a great idea to have your phone by your bed at night for the same reason.

3. The ear lobes and other parts of the body next to which the phone is placed are susceptible to a dielectric heating effect. Likewise, the corneas of the eyes are another area effected, especially with cell phones that don't conform to international standards.. Studies have also revealed an increased metabolism rate in the brain tissue which is nearest the antenna of a cell phone. Therefore, talking on your phone for long periods of time is not a good idea. If you are going to have a long conversation, put it on "speaker phone", use headphones or use hands free devices such as Bluetooth so that the phone is not so near to your body.

4. Not all cell phones are created equal. Some have all the bells and whistles while others are very simple. Likewise, some emit more radiation than others. Below is a chart with the various levels of radiation for each brand of phone. Remember that these levels can change with the age of the phone and new models are being created as well.

Currently Samsung, Nokia, HTC etc. are rated manufacturers of the lowest SAR rated cell phones.

The lowest rated cell phones include

· HTC One (SAR=0.68)

· Google Nexus 4 (SAR=0.55)

· Samsung S III (SAR=0.43)

· Samsung Note II (SAR=0.42)

· Samsung Haven (SAR=0.41)

· LG Quantum (SAR=0.35)

· T Mobile Sidekick (SAR=0.34)

· Huawei Ideos X5 (SAR=0.34)

· Samsung Replinish (SAR=0.3)

· Samsung Infuse (SAR=0.2)

The highest SAR rated cell phones include:

· Motorola Bravo (SAR= 1.59)

· Motorola Defy (SAR= 1.57)

· Motorola Droid RAZR (SAR= 1.56)

· HTC Droid DNA (SAR= 1.56)

· HTC Desire (SAR= 1.48)

· Nokia Lumia (SAR= 1.30)

· iPhone5 (SAR= 1.18)  

· iPhone 4S (SAR= 1.11)

Martin Cooper, a Motorola inventor, invented the first mobile phone in 1973.

The SAR rating of every cell phone is mentioned in the manual that comes with your phone and also can be searched online by simply entering the model of your phone. Please share this list with your cell phone talking friends so that they too can minimize that amount of radiation exposure and provide for the next generation to lead happy, healthy lives. Cell phones are here to stay and are indeed getting bigger in size. How many people do you know who have two cell phones or at least a cell and a tablet? Remember to be polite too and not use them in cramped public situations such a concerts or public transportation. You would be exposing other people to the "waves". Lastly, by purchasing only phones with low level emissions it will encourage companies to improve the levels of radiation everyone is exposed to. 

Emerging Mobile Phone Technology

Mobile phones have become indispensable and now play a big part in everyone's lives. With the current technology that has made people and nations closer, mobile and handheld devices can truly be considered great inventions and innovations. Gone are the days when one had to go home first before he could use the telephone or go to a public phone booth to place an all-important call to a loved one or business contact. With the presence of mobile phones, everyone has now gone wireless. Communication has, indeed, turned very easy for all.

Mobile phone, as the name suggests, provides mobility. It is portable a communication device. It is made possible by satellites that transmit signals for the phone to send and receive. It is very convenient as one can use it anywhere irregardless of time and region.

People everywhere have seen the evolution of communication technology,from a phone that used wires to one that no longer requires any,from the analog to the wireless. In some places, wireless phones were provided with signals by the network company. In other places, a simulated card in inserted in the phone to grab and receive signals and send as well. These phones used the concept of signal transmission and radio wave theories that enabled a two-way communication with real time and provided clearer conversation.

From the analog mobile phones that only allowed calling and voice conversation evolved the mobile phones that have text messaging features. A person may send a text message that will be received by another party. This message is sent through a signal passing to a gateway which transmits it to the receiving party.

At the turn of the 21st century, mobile phones became more of a trend and companies started to make them appear more sophisticated. Mobile phones started with big sizes which transformed to smaller ones and then became bigger again. They have developed much like computers. Mobile phones now have been created with different functions and usage which are beyond plain communication usage.

Mobile phones also serve as mp3 players and/or audio, video file storage units where users may save audio files and listen to music. Mobile phones now are also equipped with cameras that come in different pixels allowing people to take pictures anywhere and anytime. Almost all mobile phones today are designed with games, calculator, organizer, alarm clock, dictionary and many more. Some updated mobile phones may now take video clips and still photographs which may be transferred to a computer for different purposes. Many mobile phones are also designed with touch screen features where a person doesn't need to touch the keypad anymore. The screen of the phone is designed to recognize commands as the finger tip touches the screen.

Moreover, mobile phones are now used as computers. With the General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), surfing the internet is now made possible. GPRS is used to transmit IP packets which enable users to use the internet wherever they go. People also use their mobile phones in banking transactions where they can send and receive money through phone.

Several high technology features are continuously being researched and applied to mobile phones. Not long ago the 3G system was developed. It enabled users of the same networks to call each other using real time cameras. Through this system, one could actually see the person he was calling while talking to him. Many companies are now researching a higher system which is the fourth generation or 4G system. Researchers project the new system as faster with a connection speed reaching 100 Mb per second. This is seen to provide a better quality of call.

Mobile phones are not only for personal use like it was in the past. With mobile phones, reporters and journalists may now take and film news reports. Security systems and surveillance are also possible.

It is seen in the near future that mobile phones are most likely to replace laptops. With the new mobile phones coming out on the market, viewing and working on documents only found on computers is now possible. They are likely to replace entertainment devices as well with all the entertainment features new mobile phones have.

Mobile phones do not only play a big part in technology. Mobile phones also show fashion and style. Thus, to make these phones more appealing and attractive, manufacturers produce these phones in different colors, size, shape, and style.

Mobile phones are indeed one of the greatest contributions of technology. They have gone far beyond what anyone could imagine ten years ago. Now, with the emergence of mobile technology, everyone just can't live without one.

Canada Day 2014: Time to Move On from E-mail Advertising

This July first in Canada was not only a holiday but the start of a new anti-spam law. Now messages must be e-mailed only to consenting people and companies. Will this change the amount of spam Canadians receive? Probably not for several reasons: 1) Unless the recipient reports the offending spam it will continue to be sent. 2) The amount of spam is astronomical and impossible for any country to control 3) Most importantly - e-mail is now "old technology" with social media in various forms taking over and instant messages being faster than e-mail anyway. E-mail has already been replaced. I personally have younger relatives that rarely check their e-mail.

In a recent article written by Leah Eichler entitled, "E-mail has had it day. It's time to move on", she agrees with this point of view that e-mail is now passe and not as useful. Here is part of her article.

E-mail can be described as the “grandfather” of workplace productivity tools, but today, most of us experience a love-hate relationship with it. I can’t stop checking my e-mail accounts but then I take so much delight in deleting incoming messages that I often purge my inbox of important e-mails.

There are 108.7 billion e-mails sent and received a day, according to Radicati, a technology market research firm, and the majority of traffic comes from business accounts. They also report that the number of worldwide e-mail users is expected to grow from over 2.5 billion in 2014 to over 2.8 billion in 2018.

The average employee spends 40 per cent of his or her time dealing with internal e-mails that have little to no impact on their business. Think about that next time you scroll through your inbox, feeling harassed because you have too much to do in too little time. The productivity losses are nothing short of astronomical.

To read more click on this link.

So what is replacing e-mail? For those of us with smart phones (and even some "dumb" phones), instant messages is the way - faster and not so wordy. No quotations, no long paragraphs with useless information. However, not everyone embraces mobile devices.

Enter social media. There are an incredible number of forms and types, all that have appeared in the last 10 years. If Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, LikedIn, Google+, Pinterest and StumbleUpon were not enough, there is Delicious, Digg, MySpace, Bebo, Mister-Wong, Reddit, Wanelo, Orkut, Xing, Buffer, Evernote, Pinboard, VK, Springboard, Buffer, Flipboard, AIM, Yahoo Messenger, Arto, Plurk, Deaspora, Blogger Post, TypePad Post, Box.net, Kindle It, Baidu, Netlog, CiteULike, Jumptags, Netvouz, Diigo, Bib Sonomy, Blog Marks, StartAid, Khabbr, Memeame and Yoolink. Do you think this is a lot of sites? Believe it or not, this is only half the list. I got tired of typing all of them

You may wonder who actually uses all of these sites. I can see some words from other languages besides English. Are they targeted towards certain demographic groups? I don't think anyone knows but I'm sure some smart online marketer will invent an app, widget or plugin that will let us know. However, one advantage of using Facebook for advertisers is the ability to target very closely to people who might buy. Another good under-used advertising media is Google+ as it is tied into the many other forms of Google, including YouTube now.

Interestingly enough, one of the suggestions in Ms. Eichler's article is that we go back to using post cards, sent out to former customers. I guess the rationale here is that past customers are more apt to buy again. However with the Canadian postal rates what they are (twice as high as the US), it seems doubtful that postcards or letters will be the next big viral fad. What do you think about e-mail advertising? Please leave a comment below.

Safety Features for Your Cell Phone

Mobile phones are getting so complex these days they can almost make you breakfast and tie your shoes. Using you phone to navigate across town, take a picture, figure out your accounts, send several kinds of messages, play music, watch movies, set an alarm and record a voice message are all common functions. However, here are a few things about your phone that you may not know.

• Dial an emergency call using 112. This is the international emergency number and can be used everywhere on GSM (Global System for Mobile) phones as long as there is reception for your phone. In some places it will work even if your battery is dead. However, it should not be something you try out.

The message also includes the ill-conceived suggestion that recipients should actually try out the 112 number. As at least one commentator has pointed out, testing 112 - or any other emergency number - just to see if it works is simply irresponsible. Tying up emergency call workers with such useless calls could result in delays in response times for real emergencies. In emergency situations even seconds can make a difference. Emergency call services already have to contend with enough time-wasting prank calls as it is without having to field calls from recipients of this message who have heeded its advice to try the 112 number for themselves.
To read the original click here.

• Record your IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) in case your phone is lost or stolen. If you call this number into your service provider, the phone can be disabled, thus making it useless to the thieves or finder. There is also an international data base called the “blacklist” that will keep the phone from being reregistered, even if the battery is changed.

The black list is a list of IMEIs that are associated with GSM or 3G devices that should be denied service on mobile networks because they have been reported as lost, stolen, faulty or otherwise unsuitable for use. Previously know as the Central Equipment Identify Register (CEIR), the IMEI DB acts as a central system for network operators to share their individual black lists so that devices denied service (blacklisted) by one network will not work on other networks even if the SIM card in the device is changed. Read the original here.

To find your IMEI, either take out your battery and you will find it written underneath or dial #06# on your phone. The IMEI will be displayed on the screen. Write it down and store it in a safe place where you will remember it.
One of the most important reasons to carry your cell phone is in case of emergencies. Having the phone lost or stolen is another emergency, so keep it close in a car holder, your desk or in your pocket. For more information about phone holders, check out the article on the website, Universal  Mobile Phone Holder for Sale.

How Does Cloud Computing Effect Mobile Phones?

What is cloud computing? It's a way to organize and utilize all your technical devices. According to Wikipedia, "End users access cloud-based applications through a web browser or a light-weight desktop or mobile app while the business software and user's data are stored on servers at a remote location." Click here for the original quote
 Here is a short video that further explains it.

 How does this relate to mobile phones? They are part of the link, especially when it comes to giving remote directions to other devices. It's sort of like having your own world wide web for you and your associates. Storing data from a cell phone or iPad by using cloud storage has several advantages. First it saves space by not taking up valuable data space on the phone. If the phone is lost or stolen the data has been saved. It's a more secure storage rather than sending data by e-mail or text through the airwaves where it could be intercepted. Lastly as with the other devices in your platform infrastructure (see diagram above), the data will be easy to access from any other source. According to a recent article by Lindsey LaManna published in Business Innovation from SAP  "Thousands of businesses are making the switch from on-premise to the cloud. According to recent research, almost 60% of companies are already in the cloud and an additional 20% are planning to do so within the next 12 months."  One last comment - how secure are the cloud storage locations? So far I've not seen anything written about preventing cloud hacking. Where exactly are these clouds? It seems to me that if multiple companies are storing data in one place it could be disaster as well as a good thing.