2014 TECHNOLOGY TODAY LINCOLN DAILY NEWS.com September 30, 2014 page 5
You can text your friends, and LOL at their funny
replies, and you can ask Siri to tell you a joke that
really isn’t all that funny.
And finally, you can, like Raj on the Big Bang
Theory, “dress” your phone to match your outfit,
or suit the occasion.
Seriously though, the phones do have value in
today’s rushed society. The various modes of
communication packaged into one small hand-
held device can be an asset to business people on
the go, parents who need to keep track of kids,
travelers who are in unfamiliar territory, and to
those who are in emergency situations.
The phones offer a connection to people who
are far away, can give you an opportunity to see
that new grand-baby in real time, and provide
you with a certain amount of security and safety
when you’re stranded in a broken down car on the
interstate.
The phones though, and the plans that come
with them can end up being costly, so before
you invest in your next one, it might be good to
stop and consider why you have the phone; what
components you actually use; and what features
you really don’t need. Why pay for a smart phone
when all you want is something you can use to
call home when you’re running late, or a tow
truck when you’re broke down?
Also you might be well advised to talk to friends,
family, and business associates about what
phones they have. There are benefits to using
phones withthe same capabilities as the people
you interact with regularly, and many service
providers have package plans that give you
discounted rates if you have your own “network”
of phone users. Each plan has its own snappy
little name, but look for “free talk and text”
between similar phones, or something that allows
you discounts when talking to specific people.
And though we made fun of the designer “skins”
a paragraph or so ago, having a protective cover
is not a bad idea. Like many other products
in the world, these covers come in a variety of
designs and levels of protection, and are priced
accordingly.
The middle of the road cover seems to be the
one that claims it will protect your phone from a
five-foot fall onto a concrete surface. If you carry
your phone in your hand, that protection could
be good for you. More costly skins boast better
protection and could be of benefit for people
involved in manual labor jobs, and for kids who
might be a bit clumsy with their phones.
Even with protection though, phones can break,
and that can be a costly and irritating process
to get them repaired. Many companies offer
insurance protection on their smart phones, and
it may be worth considering. But even with
insurance, once the phone is broken, there are
going to be some out-of-pocket expenses, and
there is going to be a period of time you have no
phone, while it is being sent off to the company
for repair.
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