Don White wrote:
"Boater" wrote in message
...
Does anyone actually use all those "extra features" that come with a cell
phone?

Last time I used the "camera" in my cell phone, I think, was a couple of
years ago in Hawaii. All I want from a cell phone is a telephone with
speed dial, easy to use keys, long battery life, enough volume in the ear
speaker to hear it outdoors and a "face" you can see in the sunlight.

Most cell phones are lacking in the last two attributes.

But all the rest of the features? Why? Happened to be at the Apple store
yesterday and was watching for a few minutes a demo of the Apple phone.
It'll do everything except have sex with a McCain voter (but of course
nothing will do that), but why would you want such an overprice phone? And
it doesn't even have cover over its face to prevent scratches.

IT's not the only phone like this, of course. Most of the phones being
featured these days are packed with extras that do not improve its utility
as a phone.

I want the best cell phone, the one that works the best as a phone.
Nothing else about cell phones interests me in the least.

I just picked up a new cellphone in September and changed my provider to
Virgin.
We were at COSTCO where a company had a booth selling plans from three
different companies.
Picked up a Motorola KRZR on the advice of the salesman that it was a
durable reliable plane jane phone.
The camera is crummy but I do like the speaker on occasion.
Only extra feature is Caller ID. With the 'MyTime25' plan, I get 200
anytime minutes and 1000 nightime & weekend per month.
I only use a small fraction of this.




That's what I want...a VIRGIN cell phone carrier!

My carrier has a special "hardened" cell phone now that is supposedly
perfect for klutzes like me. No camera, but...water resistant,
droppable, et cetera. Might look into it.

"Boater" wrote in message
...


My carrier has a special "hardened" cell phone now that is supposedly
perfect for klutzes like me. No camera, but...water resistant, droppable,
et cetera. Might look into it.


My cell phone account is really a secondary user on Mrs.E's. account and
originally had "the works" for services, but I never used them. When the
original phone died I bought a simple one (still has more features than I
use) and canceled stuff like Internet access and things I just didn't ever
use.

It does have a camera though, which I find handy once in a while. Some of
the phones actually take halfway decent snapshots and mini-movies, although
obviously the image quality doesn't compare to a real camera with decent
lenses.

I have a little bit of personal interest in the camera feature. We
(meaning my company) designed and built several Optical Coating Systems
(vacuum deposition systems) and the tooling required, for a small company
originally located in Rochester, NY. (This company was eventually acquired
by JDS Uniphase or JDSU.)

The systems applied a multi-layer, anti-reflective coating onto the small
plastic lenses used in cell phone cameras. At the time, we were contracted
for the systems, we were also subject to a severe non-disclosure clause as
to the purpose of the systems and the end product. Obviously this was about
a year before the built-in cameras in cell phones became available.

Eisboch