Apr 20

Cell Security in the New Business Age

By Chris Samaras Interesting Phone Stuff, Phones In The News 1 Comment »

It seems like a lifetime since the casual–though clumsy–portable or cellular phone generation switched to Smart Phones. Everyone from the average citizen to the global corporate CEO utilizes a small pocket device for practically every aspect of their lives. But how secure are your Smart Phone interactions?

Many new and refurbished Smart Phones are equipped with some kind of rudimentary security device and it seems that most people are either comfortable with that, or simply feel that browsing the web from a phone is more secure than from their PC. Have they been lulled into a false sense of security, or are Smart Phones worthy of all of our faith?

According to |, the Apple iPhone lacks some basic but critical features when it comes to overall security. It’s operating system can be compromised due to corrupted downloads, it lacks over-air updates, and it has relatively no device encryption.

Windows Mobile phones covers a majority of basic security requirements for corporate and personal use along with the iPhone‘s full VPN support.

RIM Blackberry phones offer better consumer coverage; solid security, traffic routing, and almost flawless encryption. But how do Blackberrys hold up to the Android and Symbian?

Both the Android and Symbian phones have a very open nature when it comes to third party access; however, installed software is “theoretically unable” to do any major damage to the device without being traced to the source.

Android and Symbian users are asked permission to utilize certain protected features–and anyone who accesses these features do so with a protected private key.

If you want the ultimate in Smart Phone protection, however, be prepared to pay for it. The Sectera Edge (sold for about $3350) offers military-grade encryption and was offered to President Obama as the alternative for ditching his Blackberry.

But what does all of this mean? Well, other than the old “if it’s good enough for the President, it’s good enough for me” argument, new and refurbished Blackberrys seem to have the highest rated and most user-friendly security aspects amongst Smart Phones.

No matter what device you choose, you should always be wary of your phone’s security settings and overall management. Proper routine maintenance of your technology is crucial to a happy and long-lasting relationship with whichever device you choose. So, remember to choose your Smartphone wisely, but also take care of it–after all–it takes care of you.

Sources: General Dynamics | TechSpot

– Alex

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Apr 20

Smart Phone Etiquette

By phonemanandy Cell Phone How To's, Cell Phone Tutorials, Interesting Phone Stuff 1 Comment »

We’ve all been quite attached to Cell Phones for a while now. It’s time for us to learn some of the rules–or commandments–of phone etiquette. Phones have changed. People have changed. It’s high time for the two to be in sync with one another to a degree at which we can all be comfortable.

You should all know the key rules by now:

Speak quietly in public, avoid extremely personal conversations, avoid a call while in mid-conversation with another human being–and if you must take the call, let them know before you pull the phone out of your pocket. Avoid texting when you’re talking with someone face-to-face as well.

Put your phone’s ringer on silent when in a theater or restaurant. Or better yet, just turn it OFF. Accessing your phone in a dark theater makes everyone else cringe.

Here are some more recent etiquette ideas to think about when customizing your social networking existence:

Some phones and software allow you to control the picture that appears on other devices when you call.

Avoid embarrassing profile pictures through Facebook, Blackberry, AIM, or Twitter.

Don’t look up answers to debates or questions on Google. We’re all guilty of this, but some people find it both annoying and pretentious. Companies like KGB and Cha-Cha offer a fun way to ask anonymous questions that may produce interesting results. Try them instead.

Only use call screening for business. Close friends and family shouldn’t have to go through a Google Voice or business filter to get to you on your cell phone. It’s inconsiderate, and they may disown you.

Don’t play the blame game with dropped calls. Chances are it’s either nobody’s fault, or it could be yours. Blaming the other person for a dropped call is ridiculous–so stop it.

Lastly, compensate for delay. We live in a world of instant gratification now, but with some advancements in technology come minor inconveniences that we have to live with for the time being. Many new and refurbished smart phones have a slight (or perhaps significant) delay that may cause some awkward moments during conversations. Always pause for a moment to give the other person time to receive your voice or text before beginning to speak again. Believe me, it can work wonders–and bring an end to frustrating overlapping conversations.

Following these simple steps will not only bring you into a peaceful and civilized 21st Century of technology, but also make you a much better person for it.

–Alex G. (The Blue Dot)

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Jan 19

Anglican Church Blesses Smartphones

By Chris Samaras Interesting Phone Stuff, Phones In The News No Comments »

2010.01.11vicWell this is something I’d never think I’d see. While most congregations frown upon heavy uses of technology, especially during mass, England’s St. Lawrence Jewry, which is a church that dates back to the 17th century, is now embracing and actually blessing new and refurbished cell phones.

Rev. Canon David Parrott recently placed a blessing upon a pile of computers and smart phones because he feels that they are “our daily working tool, and it’s a technology we should bless.” He even encourages the use of mobile phones during mass as long as they are set on vibrate mode.

Parrott has chosen “Plow Monday,” a traditional ceremony that once involved the seasonal blessing of farm equipment, as the day to celebrate technology. Plow Monday is said to date back to Medieval Times when, on the Monday after Twelfth Night, farmers would bring their plows to church to be blessed. Apparently, on this Plow Monday, Parrot said, “May our tongues be gentle, our e-mails be simple and our websites be accessible.”

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Nov 03

Reading Books on Your Mobile Phone

By Chris Samaras Interesting Phone Stuff 1 Comment »

demoimage3I just found a website called tx2ph that if you enjoy reading as much as I do, you’ll love. The cite works with pretty much any phone that can access the Internet, but it works best with smart phones with faster connectivity and larger display screens.

The site is a source to download electronic books (e-books) in order to read them on your cell phone. Now your first reaction might be that a cell phone is too small to read an entire novel on but when you think about it, especially if you have a phone with a large display like an iPhone or a Blackberry, reading a book on your phone is actually quite easy. Your phone has its own backlight, so you can easily read in bed, and tx2ph allows you to adjust the font settings of the novels to make the text as easy to read as possible. You can also choose to rotate the text 90 degrees so that that it displays the text long-ways (meaning you have to turn your phone sideways to read it.) The site has hundreds of books to download, ranging from classics to contemporary favorites, and the best part about the site is that it’s free to join!cell-phone-flash-cards

Once you’ve signed up with the site, you don’t have to download or install any software. You simply download the pages that you are reading. The site allows you to choose how many pages you’d like to download at a time, so you use hardly any memory storing pages. Another cool function of the site is that they also have downloadable e-flashcards for learning other languages. You can choose to be shown words in your native language or you can choose to have the words shown in the language you are trying to learn, and the program will filter out the words as you learn them so you are not repeating unnecessary cards.

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Oct 30

Google Releases Free Navigation System for Cell Phones

By Chris Samaras Phones In The News 3 Comments »

google_logo_3On Wednesday, Google released a free GPS navigation system for smart phones. By releasing the free navigation system, Google intends to offer a free alternative to traditional, stand-alone navigation units such as those offered by Garmin.

Google’s navigation system offers many of the features from traditional navigational systems such as 3D map views and turn-by-turn voice guidance. The Internet-connected system “allows navigation using voice search in English, provides live traffic updates, includes satellite imagery from Google Maps and features ‘street view’ – real ground-level pictures of destinations.” You can also search along your route for things like gas stations, restaurants, and hotels.

This free navigation system is currently only available for cell phones running on Google’s Android operating systems such as T-Mobile’s “Google Phone,” the HTC “Hero,” and Motorola’s soon to be released “Droid.” Making the navigation system free for Android devices only is obviously a strategic move in order to gain ground on Android technology’s main competitors: Blackberry and the iPhone. If you don’t see yourself parting with your Blackberry or your iPhone any time soon, you’ll have to stick with your Garmin.

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Oct 20

UK Police Outfitted with Blackberrys

By Chris Samaras Interesting Phone Stuff, Phones In The News No Comments »

16oct09_britishpoliceEarlier this year, over 1,100 of Bedfordshire’s frontline police force were outfitted with Blackberry cell phones. Sir Ronnie Flanagan of Police Review feels that for the first time, Bedfordshire police will be able to submit written (typed) documents in from the field as well as access data bases and other systems like their crime management system, intelligence database, warrants, Police National Legal Database, and its custom-built briefings application without the need of a computer. The idea behind the program is to decrease the need for the officers to be at their desks and increase their visibility in public.

Before the program was launched, a research team spent time with several Bedfordshire officers on the front lines in order to identify the specific needs of the officers in order to maximize efficiency and meet the officers’ daily demands. A spokesman for the department estimates that the program is currently saving the average officer a half of an hour to an hour of time per day. An hour a day saved multiplied by 1,100 officers equals significant savings, especially during such a severe economical situation as the UK is currently facing.

The significance of the program is being compared to the implementation of walki-talkies to the police force. Bedfordshire police Inspector Jim Hitch says: “I liken this to the change from Police boxes to Police radio. That was a huge step and quite expensive and had its doubters who asked why we needed radios. What we’re moving to now with these devices is a similar sort of scenario. There are people doubting and asking why we need them but I think that will become clearer and we will depend on these devices more and more and wonder how we ever did without them.”

Equipping police with smart phones seems like a no brainer, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see something similar to this come to police forces in the US in the near future. Let’s just hope the smart phones come with a block on Facebook.

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