I have a tendency to leap-frog with my technology.  I may be a nerd at heart, but over the years I’ve find I’m much more a pragmatist now.  I just want things that work, I don’t care how “cool” or uncool something is, just work doggonit!

I don’t talk on my cell phone much, so have been using a disposable pre-paid phone for the last 2 years and it’s been great.  Cheap (averaging < $10/month), easy, it worked.  But, as time has passed and my business has grown, I really could use a phone device that can handle email.

The Apple iPhone and AT&T was out because I refuse (and I mean REFUSE) to sign long-term contracts.  I’m also against providing my social security number for such things.  Sorry, I’m in the computer biz, we have so very little privacy left I try to value and promote what little I have.

Luckily T-Mobile, as of late 2009 started, has pre-paid plans for all their phones.  Awesome!  So I picked up a T-Mobile MyTouch phone with the Android operating system on it.  I pay $60/month for more talk than I even use and unlimited data, all pre-paid month-to-month, and no contracts or SSN needed.

I wanted the phone to do 2 things:

1. work like a phone (my my bluetooth works great)
2. let me access my email (both gmail and my website emails)

Although based on those two criteria I’m (mostly) happy, I’ve been surprised at what the phone can’t do.

• no way to add a default signature to website email accounts
• can’t play iphone formatted videos (actually, I haven’t been able to play a video yet other than youtube)
• can’t open zip files
• most all apps have NO WAY to close them!  Very easy for the phone to be get bogged down
• can’t go 1 day on 1 battery charge if you’re actually using the phone
• the “auto-correcting” of my bad typing drives me insane
• the touch-screen keyboard is heat activated, so my chubby fingers have a hard time hitting the correct letters

Please, don’t bother posting a bunch of hacks or programs I can load to do these things – I’ve been a full-blown nerd since 1985, I’ve figured them out… just annoyed that I had to in the first place.

There are some very cool things I do like on the phone I didn’t plan on:

• Google Maps and GPS Navigation is remarkably good
• Ties into Google Voice well
• I can listen to Slacker Radio – a very, very neat feature — and probably why my battery won’t last a full day. 
  (and yes, you can listen to Pandora Radio too.)
• I can use it like as my MP3 player
• Decent device for listening to the couple podcasts I follow.
• There are a few games that keep me entertained when needed (solitaire, sodoku – I know, boring to most)
• Barcode scanner and shopping sherpa

Yes, I’m keeping the phone, no changes on the horizon.  Just have to wait as the “Android” phone operating system goes through a few more revisions.

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Cheers,
Kelly
Beaverton Web Design

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