What if you could tap a special code into your cellphone to unlock a reserve of battery power for those desperate moments when you need to make just one more call before your phone dies?
“Total nonsense,” said Richard Windsor, an analyst with Nomura in London, who specializes in cellphones and cellphone equipment.
There is the one that says that if you lock your keys in the car and you have a remote keyless entry system, you can unlock the car by having somebody beep your spare remote over a cellphone if you hold the phone near the car door.
There are a host of functions that are explained in user manuals, which could be useful but are either too confusing or too time-consuming to learn for most people.
“The manuals for mobile phones tend to be very comprehensive, even though they are fairly incomprehensible,” said Windsor, the Nomura analyst. “Many phones can do e-mail, for example, but most people don’t bother because it’s too complicated to set up.
What features are worth having on a cell phone? Which ones aren’t?
My favorite thing with a cell phone is having it be able to maintain a call without cutting out when I’m by the window on the 28th floor. I wish t-mobile would come up with a phone like that.
It would be really neat if a cell phone had a display that was legible to those with over-40 eyes.
A life expectancy of >2 years would be a neat feature.
I would like to be able to ditch my cell phone. I am on call 24/7/365. My idea of vacation is dropping my phone down a well.
I had a cell-hone that had a flash light on it…. that was quite handy.
I think every cell phone should be able to:
1. Make phone calls.
2. Tell the time
3. Have a flash light
4. Have swiss-army knife style can opener
5. Bottle opener
6. Guarenteed 10 year lifespan.
7. SMS (text) messaging
8. A tape measurer
Everything else, especially features that make you batter run out really quickly, should be ditched.
#1 Janky-o
I have a t-mobile dash. I have to say it work perfectly (4 bars) everywhere I go except 1 place. It is a building that has 14 inches of concrete and rebarb in the ceiling, walls and floor. (no it is not a prison) I have yet to see a phone that works properly in that building. My Dash works ok. I don’t blame t-mobile for this problem though.
A big problem is that many times much of a phones functionality is incompatible or handicapped by the wireless provider. My Sony Ericson is supposed to be able to be used as a wireless bluetooth modem but that would compete with Cingular’s business plan so they don’t allow it on their network.
Little known fact though is that you can still call a 911 operator even if the phone has no subscribed service.
I like the idea of holding the phone up to the car door to open it, but why do I have to have my spare key. Why can’t I just load the key’s signal into my phone’s memory? How about the same with the garage door opener?
Using the phone to unlock the car is a good idea, but why call someone with another key? Why can’t I load the key signal into my phone”s memory? How about the garage door opener too?
Hey it works to have someone open your cardoors with a cell.No kidding I just did it this A.M.
2. I’m with you. The day I quit my job at TRW, (also 24 X 7 on call) I was going down the interstate and at around 80MPH, it inexplicably jumped out of my hand and committed suicide by asphalt. Happiest day of my life. Good Times.
Hey it works to have someone open your cardoors with a cell.No kidding I just did it this A.M.
A cellkey? Cellbrick? Celltorch? Cellslimjim?
Otherwise, you’re kidding, right? Because if you’re not kidding you’re retarded.
I want my cell phone to whiten my teeth and eliminate bad breath.
Venom Monger, you are the retard.
It seems unlikely that it would work, but I’ll guess you’re one of those people that thinks they’re smarter than they really are. (sorry, everyone knows you’re not) You obviously have not tried it. Maybe because you are indeed retarded.
I couldn’t believe it at first, but I’ve seen this work.
Dee Dee Dee to you, tard.
I want what everyone wants – a built -in massager that I can turn on when
it’s in my pocket.
Venom monger look up car door opener on how stuff works.It is a radio signal that your car locks respond try it if you own a car.Shmuck
The “total nonsense” comment by the analyst is total nonsense. It may be true that present cell phone programming does not allow this, but it certainly could. All battery monitoring and cut off decisions have to have a guard band. They pick a battery voltage to shut off where they know ALL of millions of phones will not screw up above that voltage. But the fact is that many phones (but not all) would work at a lower voltage, Also the battery will hang in longer if it’s not cold. But if they tried to push the low battery cutoff threshold too close to the edge, some phones would screw up, reset, or do other ugly things. Still, if you’re life depended on it, it would be worth it to risk damaging your phone to see if you could squeeze out a another call. I agree that you can’t do that today, but it would not be “nonsense” to allow this.
8. Youre correct, its a radio signal, but how exactly do you transmit a radio signal over a cell phone signal? It doesnt make sense.
My favorite slap-the-forehead-and-groan myth is that during a lightning storm, you should not use your cell (or cordless land) phone. Idiots.
#Mac Guy “My favorite slap-the-forehead-and-groan myth is that during a lightning storm, you should not use your cell (or cordless land) phone. Idiots.”
See:
http://tinyurl.com/2zauwo
The most useful function on a cell would be to auto turn off in restaurants and an the movies.
Another would be to discharge a small amp, hi voltage current when the user speaks at loud volume.
… not to mention bullshit detector.
5, mark — check this out, a cellphone just might fit in a blender !! Although BlendTec says ‘don’t try this at home’, I’m very tempted.
http://www.willitblend.com/videos.aspx?type=unsafe&video=crowbar
There was a Mod for a sencor in a car…you could code it and car to open your doors.
Options can be a pain…
Just becaue a Cellphone has a certain OPTION, dont mean its available from your service.
3, there is a way to fix that…IF the building owner would let you.
You can attach an antenna wire into the rebar, from the roof… It would turn the whole bulding into an antenna.
14 – still need a decent signal getting to the building. I’m only a quarter-mile to the nearest cell tower – but, it’s just over the brow of the hill to the valley where we live.
We put a short antenna up on one of the plumbing stacks and a feed to a repeater in the center of the house. Works well enough.
I saw a phone (can’t remember where) that could drive a car via bluetooth. That was kind of neat.
18,
Its a cellphone Mod in the car… Recieves a cal, and you send a code, and it opens the doors.
27. I understand that ECA. But in the article it makes it sound like you could put your cell phone up to the door, have your friend remotely use the fob over his phone to unlock the car. That, I think, is impossible.
Comprehensive cell phone manual? You must not have gotten your phone from Sprint. They print out some junker manual made for idiots who don’t know how to dial a landline phone. And then – why do we have to buy the phone from the phone company? That’s how it was in the olden days when AT&T ran the whole show! Read my blog post on the topic and sign the petition to make cellular carriers permit other phones on their networks.
# 1. I have T-Mobile so I feel your pain. 2007 and I not only do not have my flying car but my cellular service sucks! Argh!!!!
28,
anything would be better then the Finger print device, when a crook finds that they chop off your finger or hand…How about retina, and looseinf your EYE…
I would NEVEr have it depnedant ON my 1 cell phone… A lost phone would make the thing NOT work.
In the END, wouldnt it be GREAT to have just a decent reception and Quality… I know I live in a RURAL area and we have LOTS of Bad spots..
But, All I would want in a phone is a DECENT phone… If I loose it, I dont want to loose, my DATA, phone numbers, pictures, or computer data.. I want a phone with decent POWER, decent signal, and the person SOUNDS like whom Im talking to.