Technology is part of our everyday lives now, and with that we have to accept that accidents do, and will, happen. Cellphones are probably the number one casualty in electronics accidents. Water, Dirt, Drops, shock, all those things we, as people, may run into every single day and since cellphones are right there with us, they can fall prey to such enemies of electronics. Besides being here to help with getting you a replacement phone, we’re here to help possibly save the phone, or other electronic device, you already have. Here’s a list of accidents, and reactions, that may help you save your precious device.
Oct 31
The day of costumes and candy are here again, which includes hordes of children going door to door for their candy treats. Younger children are almost always accompanied by parents or older siblings, but what can parents do to feel better about letting their children out on their own. Well, if your child owns an iphone, Android, Blackberry or Windows phone you’re in luck. On all of these smart phones there are GPS location apps that can help you keep track of your little trick or treaters.
Oct 25
When the first iPad came out I was already an anti-tablet fan. I found them over priced, under powered and just an over sized smart phone that doesn’t make calls. I suppose that is more true for the iPad as it’s design is almost identical to their phones… But it isn’t true anymore. I have been eyeing up the Kindle Fire, patiently awaiting its release so I can jailbreak it and have a very cheap, light android tablet. Engadget released an article today that actually surprised me. Not because it is so obvious, but because I completely forgot about netbooks. It seems more tablets have been shipped than netbooks, which means probably one thing, netbooks are on their way out.
Oct 20
Now that I grabbed you with that headline let me say that this isn’t a true versus match. I won’t say who is “wins” or who I think should just give up and go home. No, this is more of a “who is better at this, as oppose to this company being better at this”. Each of these OS’s have their strength and weaknesses, this is just me having a jab at each of them and seeing what they’re best at. So lets get start shall we?
Oct 03
So it seems some department stores are already hanging up their Christmas decorations, and you know what that means! That’s right, new gadgets being announced and released rapid fire for the next couple months. We here at TheBlueDot.net are passionate about all things electronic, so we wanted to show off the few new goodies we are keeping our eyes on.
Kindle Fire
The iPad has been dominating the tablet market even though there are dozens of other cheaper tablets to choose from. The problem was there wasn’t a big marketable name slapped on to the other tablets to compete with such a powerful brand. This is where Amazon and the Kindle Fire comes in. Touting the Android OS, the Kindle Fire (priced at a comfortable $199) may actually shake things up a bit in the tablet world. It has the Kindle brand behind it, and the price point is two fifths the price of the iPad. Why spend $500 on a tablet you may or may not use when you can get one for $200 that may do the exact same thing. It only boasts 8GB of storage, but with the ability to sync your data online it may not matter. We here at TheBlueDot can’t wait to get our hands on it and give it a whirl.
iPhone 5
Of course Apple has something around the corner, they always do. Apple has yet to announce the iPhone 5, or even release many details on their new phone. But everyone has been making guesses on what it may have, and what it probably will have. A better camera, better screen, Near Communication Technology and much much more. We don’t have much information on this up coming phone, like everyone else. But we will be keeping a close eye on the official announcement. Before the announcement, and after, you cantrade in your old iPhones to TheBlueDot to help with your new iPhone purchase.
Microsoft updates
though these are separate things, they are both much needed updates. The Kinect has been a hot buy for the XBox 360, even though it lacks a library. The biggest fault though is in it’s lack of interface with the 360 dashboard. The Kinect Dashboard is incredibly limited, leaving almost no reason to wave at your device and use it over a controller. But that may soon change within the next few months. Massive updates to the software will add more menu options and , hopefully, better video control.
The other update coming out of Microsoft is Mango for the Windows phones. That’s right, there is another smart phone OS choice out there, just not one that has made any waves, until now. The Mango update has an alleged 500 feature additions, which is just too many to list here. The biggest change is to it’s better social media integration, which is a must have in the smart phone world. Reviews are already starting to spill out, so give them a look and consider the Windows OS phones when looking for a new phone.
Ice Cream Sandwich
No, not the dessert, the OS update for Android. Well, not all Androids. All Androids released this past year (and a few beyond) will be getting the much anticipated update by Google. Ice Cream Sandwich hasn’t been released yet, but leaks have made their way to the general public. Most f the updates seem to be superficial, but there are a few menu updates and multitasking updates that many will be happy to see. We’ll wait for a bit more information, but so far none of the Google updates have let us down.
We’ll try to keep you all updated as more and more news trickles out on all these devices and updates.
Sep 28
I remember when I was in middle school and I got my first cellphone in 8th grade. It was an old Nokia with a green and black interface, fat antenna on top and was barely able to fit into my pocket. Best of all it had “Snake” built in! I was 14 at the time and seeing a 14 year old with a cellphone back in 1999 was out of the ordinary. During the late 90′s and even the early 00′s, cell phones were considered an adult device. It had the stereotypical attachment to businessmen and soft top sports cars. Now anyone with a few bucks and a prepaid card can get a cellphone from Walmart and be connected instantly. Of course children can’t just go ahead and do that, but the visual of a teenage with a cellphone is now common place.
According to a report done by The Republic, more than 75% of teens going back to school have cellphones and that number continues to grow. but one market is growing even faster, and only recently became an officially named demographic, “Tweens”. Tweens are the ages between 9 and 12, not quite a teenager but not a child either. This market was exploited by businesses the most, with boy bands, MTV and, more recently, romantic vampires. With cellphones getting cheaper, not to mention having gps tracking features, parents are giving their children phones earlier and earlier in life.
But does your child “need” a cellphone? You only need to ask yourself a few questions to know for sure. Do you want to be able to contact your child 24/7, and vice versa in case of emergencies? Can you trust your child with a phone? Or will he or she lose it? How much do you want to spend? Do you want to get a smart phone with GPS tracking and several bells and whistles? Or a simple clam shell phone only for calls. Perhaps buying a used or refurbished cell phone? The National Consumers League has a guide with some of these questions they want you to keep mind when deciding on what phone to purchase for your child.
Next you’ll want to decide on some ground rules. Do you want to set up a limit of texts per-day? Or just accept teens, and tweens, text more than adults and just purchase the unlimited texting plans? You’ll want to explain the dangers of “sexting” and riding a bike while on the phone (just as, if not more dangerous, than driving your car and doing the same). You’ll want to explain strict rules when bringing their phone to school, not just by you as parents, but by the schools rules themselves. Some phones even allow you to set limits to incoming and outgoing phone calls.
The age for cellphone use is only going to get younger and younger. Our phones are turning into more than “just a phone” and soon enough, seeing tweens with cellphones will be just as commonplace as seeing a teenage or adult with a cellphone. The best advice we can give you is to go phone shopping with your child. Just like an adult, you want to be sure they can use the phone, handle it correctly, and like the phone they’ll be getting. Everyone has different opinions on when a child, tween or teen is ready for a phone. But they are your children, so make the decision yourself, and keep the questions above in mind. Happy shopping!
