Why cell phone users are reverting back to landlines

The explosion of cell-phone technology has been a major area of growth. Cell phones have become ultra smart. They emulate computers. They are able to show videos in high quality and stream television programmes.
The latest models include GPS navigation, document editing, handwriting recognition and email processing. They allow you to view the latest you-tube videos or go to your facebook page at the click of a button.
Then there is the cell-phone as camera. The best of these are good offering up to 12 megapixel resolution!
The growth of the cell-phone industry is almost without parallel. People have become dependent on their mobile phones and in a sense are almost enslaved by them.
Cell-phone technology has also heralded the birth of the videophone. Formerly a part of science fiction, video calls have not really caught the imagination of the world. Transmission is just to slow to use the technology effectively. The voice and picture are never in synch.
Landline phones, by contrast have remained phones. You may be able to see who is calling, or view the last few calls, but it is still a phone.
There is only one aspect of cell-phone technology that hasn't improved much since their introduction. The one aspect gives a landline phone the edge is the network and call quality. Coupled with the failure of the cell-phone networks to reduce their prices, the landline is fast becoming a more attractive option.
It is hardly surprising that many cell-phone users are using the landline to make calls. Apart from the clarity of the call and the stability of the signal, the cost is a fraction of the mobile variety.
But it is not only cost and call quality that affects the popularity of cell phone call usage. The police and intelligence services have the technology to tap and intercept landline calls. Interception of cell phone calls imposes an even greater risk.
Internet access is similarly affected. A DSL landline connection is fast, stable and cheap. The cell-phone companies seem addicted to super-profits and charge massive rates for broadband Internet access. Even if you decide to use VOIP - or the Voice Over Internet Protocol - the cost (and probably the quality) will be better from a fixed line.
Perhaps cell-phone users are re-evaluating the value of the cell-phone. They are great for quick and immediate communications. They are not ideal for long discussions. Perhaps the focus has been on better and better technology for everything other than to make calls. That must be why cell-phone users are rediscovering the landline.

Free International calls on your cell

My latest cell phone includes a connection to a wireless network. I can now browse the Internet and read my emails without incurring the high data call charges levied by the cell phone service providers.

The availability of this technology suggested the possibility of realising a long time dream - using VOIP over my cell phone. That has become a reality. Skype have not managed to produce a Symbian version of their software. But an alternative is available. Fring. Fring allows you to use your Skype, Google Talk, MSN, Twitter and other VOIP applications over your cell phone.

The problems associated with using your cell phone over a 3G connection is the latency of the system - an annoying delay in hearing the response. Then there is the problem of the data charges for using 3G.

Many of the new generation of cell phones now have the ability to use a WLAN. Connect to your wireless DSL or similar internet connection and you have the best of both worlds. Free international calls from your cell-phone. Skype without being tied to a computer. Cheap international calls using Skype-out. And all this from a cell phone where even local calls cost the earth.

Fring can be downloaded directly to any phone that uses either the Symbian or Windows Mobile operating systems. Try it - it's free!

Talking and driving - Hands free cell phone kits

Driving onto the highway a couple of weeks ago, I was pulled-up by the Metro Police. I had answered an urgent call on my cell-phone. My hands free cell phone kit was not in the car. I was in for a hefty fine! By some stroke of luck, I was let off. But this served as a graphic reminder of a recent article that I wrote about cell phones, hands free kits and driving!

Cell phones used by the driver of a vehicle while driving presents a danger on the roads. Even when a hands-free device is used a phone conversation is distracting.

Many drivers are aware of the danger, but are unable to let a ringing phone ring. Others are the totally unaware. In their minds they are able to not only conduct a full conversation on their hand-held phone while driving, but they can read, write and send text messages at the same time. They can multi-task - or so they think.

The problem with multitasking is that 60% of the attention goes to the call, 40% to driving. Have you ever tried to conduct a conversation with a multi tasker who is busy completing and signing contracts or marking exams?

The first problem with cell-phone driving is that one hand is occupied holding the phone to the ear. The other hand has the responsibility of steering, changing gears and signalling.

The physical constraint is not the only danger. When conducting a conversation over a phone our attention is drawn away from the driving towards the conversation.

Minimum driver reaction times are roughly one second. This reaction time is increased - multiplied - by fatique, alcohol and drugs even in minimal quantities. At 120 KM per hour a car travels 33.3 meters per second. In three seconds the car travels 100 meters. A cell-phone presents a similar danger and will slow reaction times.

Interestingly, conversations with passengers in the car have been demonstrated to slow reaction times. But an in-car conversation can pause when hazardous conditions occur or manouvers are required. The person at the other end of the cell-phone conversation has no idea of the driving conditions and no pause is possible. Poor signal quality may demand extra attention from the driver to follow the conversation.

The danger is at its worst when these elements are combined. The driver's attention is elsewhere and only one hand is available to manage to vehicle.

Hands-free devices do not totally solve the problem. The driver may still be distracted, but will at least have two hands available to cotrol the vehicle. Although illegal to use a hand held cell-phone while driving in many countries, thousands continue to talk and drive. It will never be possible to ban cell phones from cars, but a mandatory hands-free kit in every vehicle would go a long way towards reducing this problem.

Which brings us to the next problem. Shouldn't all cell-phones be able to connect to a standard hands-free device in a car?