What’s the most important thing about your phone
Entertainment for down time. Games and such. It’s what I use my phone for 90% of the time
What do you wish your phone could do
I miss the actual keyboard. It’s been about 5 years, but I still hate the virtual keyboard. When I had a blackberry, I could type on that (while driving, course) without looking down. it was boss!
I wish my music was better integrated with my media collection. Its’ probably doable, but too much work. Think of having your DVD collection on your phone as easy as it is to have your CD collection
What do you think your phone will be able to do in 5 years
The things it does now, but more fully integrated into entertainment and lifestyle. At Sprint, years ago, we had a campaign calling your phone your ‘third’ screen. Actually, we had a better vision that we did accomplish. You used to have go to a phone store for everything. Our CEO (the wildly likable guy from our commercials, Dan Hesse. Met him and have chatted with him. He was the real deal in person, and CRAZY tall.
Anyhow, he made the analogy of banks. He said ‘remember banks? You had to go to them for everything. Now, the buildings are nearly obsolete. I do everything online. Can’t remember the last time I walked into a bank. Let’s make the cell phone buying and repairing experience the same’. We did that.
Also, I can control my home thermostat from my phone. What would I use that for? Well, if its particularly cold out when I am headed home, I turn up the heat now. When I get home, the house is toasty. It also tells me what the temp is inside the house right now. This is useful because years ago I was out of town for Xmas. The heat went out, and had been out for days… in the middle of Winter. When we got back, almost all my fish were dead. Another couple days and we would have had frozen pipes and all kinds of badness. I didn’t have a fancy online thermostat then, but I went out the next day and bought (and installed myself, thank you) a fancy online one now. Now, if the heat goes out, I literally get an email from my thermostat.
Are you loyal to a phone or brand? Why?
I am quite pleased with my last few Samsung Galaxies. Had, and have, some charging issues with my last 3 phones… but they were all replaced quickly and freely. And, it’s the 5… and they are on the 8 now. Phone works great, just doesn’t charge for shit. Its not worth $600 to replace it, though.
But here is something super cool my phone does. My tv is also Samsung. I can beam whatever is on my phone right to my TV (and so to my really nice hifi). Here is a specific way that was really useful. I wanted HBO, but don’t have cable. You can get stand alone HBO… but it’s complex. There are 2 kinds. Go, and Now. One of them is for people who have cable, but not HBO. That one is bundled into my TV’s apps. The other one, though (I forgot which was which) is for people with NO cable affiliation (us). That one is not bundled into my TV. This means I can watch HBO on my phone, but not my tv. First world problem for sure!
HBO has really great documentaries. Not so great, though, that I get home from work and want to watch on my stupid tiny phone third screen. With this simulcast thingy, I play the HBO show on my phone, and then beam it to my TV. It comes on the TV in full hi-def, and surround sound through my bose hifi. That was pretty cool. It was. Until HBO jacked the price up from $9 a month to $15.95 a month. Didn’t need it that bad. We don’t watch Game of Thrones.
Point being… whatever my next phone is… I can’t see it being anything other than a Samsung Galaxy. Great product. Plus, since everyone on earth has one, there is excellent access to accessories for it.
Lemme tell you another reason why I LOVE this phone, and haven’t upgraded since. The ‘sport’ model has a teeny tiny imperceptible ‘bumper’ that goes around the screen. This means you don’t need a phone case. I have dropped my hundreds of times… nary once a single crack. I don’t like the cases because it not only makes it bulky… it makes it tough to keep in pocket. They make the cases, for good reason, ‘grippy’… so it doesn’t fall out of your hand. However, it also grips to your pockets when you try and fish it out to answer it. Of course, I have a little plastic laminate screen protector, too. Samsung doesn’t make this phone anymore. In fact, they have gone the other direction and made the edges smooth with the actual screen wrapping around it. For my lifestyle (a rather droppy, bitey one, if you must know)… that would be the worst possible product.
You have left the house, you are ten minutes away on your way to work. Just realized phone is home. Turn around and get it? What is your cut off point to return for the phone.
Ten minutes? No. 5 minutes… prolly. Odds are, I wouldn’t get that far. When driving, I always listen to either podcasts or books on tape. Always. So, I am plugging in my phone the second I get in the car. Yes, plugging it in. Why not blu-tooth? Well, when I do that, it interferes with my blu tooth watch, and headphone ear thingy.
I just love my watch, Check this out. Is this my watch? Or… is this my watch? Wait… how about this? I can, and do, change the face every day to match my outfit or mood. Totally unnecessary… on every level.
Yes, these are douchey first world problems. After nearly 20 years in the cell phone business, I am pretty hopped up on technology.
If you haven’t had the chance to hop over to this page, let me proselytize real quick. You need to be doing audiobooks and podcasts on your drive. You learn, you are entertained… and it’s cheap or free. FREE? Yes. You can borrow books from your library right to your phone. No need to even step foot into a library. It’s all borrowed, listened to, and returned… from your phone. You need this app (which is free) and your library card. Listening to your music is fine and all, but ever wished you spent MORE time driving? That is the difference a good podcast or audiobook can make in your life.
I was saying something about my watch, wasn’t I? Oh yeah, it interferes with the car’s blutooth.
I am Correct 
