iPhone/Smartphone stuff
Bill McGonigle
bill at bfccomputing.com
Mon Aug 4 13:40:33 EDT 2008
On Aug 4, 2008, at 12:32, Warren Luebkeman wrote:
> What do people think about their cell phone coverage area? We have
> Sprint now and it seems to be alright, but AT&T seems to have
> better coverage, as well as Verizon, especially for roaming.
I checked into coverage in my area using the online tools, and there
was no coverage at my house, spotty off the major highways around
here. If the online maps are to believed, anyway. It would be great
if somebody could write a tool that would record GPS and signal
strength in the background and collate that information to a server,
for real, automatic coverage maps. But Apple's SDK License prohibits
that kind of application (and many more). It's worth noting that 10
miles west of both of us, AT&T won't even sell you a contract due to
coverage problems.
I decided that I needed an open smartphone that I could actually
install software onto (especially scripts I'd written), use as an
remote access device, had a usable browser, etc. And found that one
I'd like didn't exist. So, I got a decent little flip-phone that
actually has great sound quality (yes, my Treo650, I'm looking at
*you*), and I use a Nokia n810 via Bluetooth for Internet work. Yep,
it has the two-widget problem, though I expect to get rid of my iPod
at some point by using the n810 instead. If WiMAX were real, their
WiMAX model would obviate the need for the phone, but, oh, well. I'm
sure a converged model I'll love will be developed at some point.
It's worth noting that if you have a Mac and want painless sync,
don't need more apps than they're selling, and don't stray from
highways much, the iPhone is going to be much easier! Just depends
on your requirements.
-Bill
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