Back when I first got this stupid cellphone (as part of my arsenal of broadcast equipment) I wrote here about difficulties in learning how to use it. I am still having a terrible time figuring out how to use it as a phone. There are so many SETTINGS that I can't get a clear idea of how to make it do what I want to do.
What I may do is toss it as far away as I can throw except that I can't throw. When I was in grade school I was accused of faking it when i was unable to throw the ball; they thought I was trying to undermine the baseball game but not even my tom-boy girlfriend could teach me to throw, so if I pitched this phone it would land right down there, only a few inches away.
My tom-boy girlfriend dumped me when she found one of the circulars I printed with my toy printing press which said "Carl Loves Nancy". You see, the girlfriend's name wasn't Nancy. To make things worse Nancy hated me and didn't appreciate the cards. Point is, I was able to have a frustrating life without a cellphone, so I wish I didn't need the phone to make my life less frustrating.
Are you getting any of this? What business of yours is it anyway?
Seems Carl, the smartphone is making it more frustrating not less by the sound of it.
How long has it been now since you got it? Can't remember, last summer? Life was so much simpler before. I think I get it.....the phone isn't doing what you expected and you could have a frustrating life without it. Not a more frustrating life with it.
You don't have to throw it far, just drop it somewhere where you can't retrieve it. No turning back.
Like down the sewer manhole on the street.
My next door neighbour was wanting to show me something on a phone and I couldn't see it good so I said give it to me for a minute but when I touched it it all went haywire. Well I touched this and that. So delicate. That was enough for me.
I am glad you understand, Mark. Yes, simply touching the phone makes it do unwanted things, except for the times when I intentionally touch it and it refuses to respond. I think my fingers are not the right temperature or properly staticly-charged, whatever it is that triggers the screen.
It's probably against the law to drop things down a manhole, and if I was arrested I'd need the phone to call a lawyer.
When it does work I am worried about the x-rays sent by the phone to the nearest cellphone-tower. A person could get Smartphone burns.
@carl-blare The manhole thing was just a metaphor of somewhere you can dispose of it with no turning back. Yes it's illegal to throw things in the sewer.
Another thing not allowed in manholes is women.
All cell phones have their strengths and weaknesses.
There are some inherent issues with the standard slab cell phone, including accidently touching the screen (can you say pocket dialing?).
As for Android settings, while there are indeed many, there are only a few that are important. Sounds (volume, ringtones, etc.), display (brightness), etc. Many can be ignored until you need them (such as TTS, which is a godsend if you're into audiobooks).
I get rid of and disable everything on my cell phone that I don't use on a regular basis, such as Facebook, Youtube, etc. I only install apps that I use frequently. That ensures that things run smoothly, with no unexpected behaviors, and gives me the maximum storage.
I've stated here in the past that I prefer the folding smartphone form factor. I personally use an older Samsung 1650 out of Korea. It has a single, smaller touch screen, a physical dialing keyboard and the display is protected from damage and accidental touch. While it runs an old version of Android (Nougat), it does everything I want it to do, runs every app I need, and cost very little. It has 4G and is supported by every carrier here in Canada.
There are newer folding phones available, but they rely on folding glass and/or plastic screens, and have dubious reliability. They also cost a great deal more, and I also like the limitations that a small screen puts on potential use. You're not going to watch a movie on my phone, and if you do, you will really have to want to. No playing around to waste time.
And yet you can read books on it (with a lot of page turning), listen to music and/or audiobooks, and play internet radio (such as Artisan Radio). With various apps, it supports virtually any video and audio format available, including H265 and Opus (with VLC and Foobar). I have a 1TB micro SD card in it, and carry around virtually my entire audiobook/music library on it in compressed form (Opus), as well as some highly compressed H.265 videos (in case I really get the urge). I use Foobar to play Artisan Radio through my car radio via bluetooth while I'm driving and I'm out of range of the over-the-air signal (which is practically everywhere).
I have to admit that Android needs more attention and care than IOS. For those having difficulty with an Android phone, you can always spend a lot more and get an iPhone. They're much easier to use at first. But that comes with a price - a highly controlled, i.e., restrictive, environment in which you sometimes can't do what you want to do. And no SD card storage.
As with any technology, you just have to pick your poison.
Hello Artisan and all. Your comments about the complexities of cellphones give me the assurance that I am not alone in finding them perplexing. And I am finally pleased to announce that I have finally figured out how to place a plain phone call without being steered into baffling side-branches and mazes.
I held a cellphone conversation with my sister and told her it was amazing that this flat chunk of metal and plastic could connect through the air to a cellphone tower two blocks away. Sher replied, "No, you can call anywhere in the world on it."
The Humping is Over
Yes, we are over the hump of deciphering our slab phone, and are now able to do two things: we can make phone calls and something new, it can act as a pocket radio and actually be used to hear KDX Worldround Radio with enough acoustic penetration to be clearly audible from the pocket, better for outdoor work than any of the bulky radios. All this just in time for Easter. Help yourself to the snack table.
@carl-blare Yes I see the benefit of a smartphone being able to listen to your station with it anywhere you are but since I don't stream it wouldn't help me. It could also be done with an internet radio(not sure exactly the proper name) which is just a radio, with no phone, that receives on line radio streams. Sangean make a couple of models. But I think you have to get a paid subscription specially? Couldn't do it on my home internet. A small tablet would do it too. And they also come in Windows OS. But an internet radio also has good audio like a good regular radio would.
Something you might think about Mark is a private stream that cannot be accessed by the general public. It's easy to do using the B.U.T.T. (Broadcast Using This Tool) Encoder and Ice cast Server (both free). One checkmark in the setup is "Make Public", which determines whether your stream is private or public. No royalty fees apply to a private stream.