2012-02-17 Mobile phones are terribly cheap today %u2013 they can be even offered a penny a phone, depending on the model of the phone. At those prices, it would mean there is a cell phone surplus, due to the fact that every month or so, new models come out. And it can get pretty annoying too %u2013 the phone you bought last month may have been the latest model, but the technology is so fast and the competition so great that a newer model is sure to come up soon enough. And what is so wasteful about this is that all you need a phone for is really for calling and text messaging%u2013 all its other functions are just icing on the cake. Sure you may want 3g access to the Internet, but all the rest are just luxuries %u2013 a phone that can make and take calls and texts are all you need. If you feel the same way, you might want to take a look at some pay as you go phones if all you need is to call and send SMS. The Latest Smartphones Some of the latest smartphones offer you a virtual assistant equipped with voice recognition. While the technology is really fantastic, voice recognition still has a long way to go before it can be considered truly useful. Social media networks are filled with voice recognition fails that can be extremely amusing, but these failures just emphasize the fact that voice recognition is still a young technology, and is in no way reliable enough for serious applications. And then there are smartphones with pressure sensitive touch that could reasonably be useful to a niche market, but certainly not to all smartphone users. There are phones that can function just as well if not even better than tablets, and while it is a testament to the future of cloud computing, it is just a phone, after all. Older Mobile Phone Models The older models of mobile phones function perfectly. Even if they can only function as phones, if you do not need anything else but its basic functions, those older models will do fine. Especially if you are not really hooked on phone applications, and prefer more productive activities than playing Angry Birds for hours, maybe you should look at prepaid phone plans. A Fully Functioning Phone Some prepaid phone deals offer smartphones as part of the package that they have, and you can opt for these if you really cannot do without phone applications. But the older phone models are perfectly suited for prepaid plans too so as long as you have paid upfront, anyone can call or text you. And at the end of the day, that is all you really need to stay connected %u2013 a handy phone and a phone number that someone else can use to call or text you. |