New toy

[randy_byers]

So I have finally leaped into the new millennium by buying a smartphone. It's an Android -- a Samsung Galaxy S II. I got it through Credo, which is a company that donates some of its profits to progressive causes. (Denys and I have had a long distance service from them for many years, going back to when they were called Working Assets.) They don't have their own network and are a reseller of Sprint's service.

I've long wanted a mobile internet connection, and we'll see if it's worth the cost. I only activated it yesterday, so I've still got a lot to learn. I'm interested in app suggestions from folks who use Androids. I'm also interested in hints and advice for a newbie. How do you use your smartphone? How do I get the best bang for the buck? (For example, how often do you use wifi rather than the phone network?)

Honestly, I'm so new at this that I don't even know what questions to ask yet.

Comments

[johncoxon.livejournal.com]

If you can use Wi-Fi, that's usually a much better option than going mobile. Also, now you have a smartphone, getting the LiveJournal app (and possibly the Twitter app if you're feeling adventurous) is a good plan.

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

Thanks, John. I suppose I'll have to think about Twitter now, but I think I'll take my time thinking about it.

So if you make a wifi connection, does that automatically take precedence over the mobile connection?

[johncoxon.livejournal.com]

I presume it does, because that's how it works on my iPhone - it means you get faster speeds and use less data.

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

Yes. But increasingly in UK you get wi fi netwks that need a passwd - so it doesnt get you Net but you have meanwhile blocked 3G (phone signal) Internet. Pah. So then I have to turn off wi fi. Your phone may be cleverer than this tho. also it used to be at least that you had way more unsecured wi fi in the US than we tend to, you lucky dogs :-)

My major tip is that if you start really using a smartphone you'll find battery life TERRIBLE. So download an app called Advanced Task Killer and periodically let it kill everything - helps. Also turn off location unless you're actively using maps. And don't ever turn Blue tooth on as far as I'm concerned..

I use FB and Tweetdeck apps loads. I don't really read LJ on phone odd ly - too long form..

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

I'd been thinking the same thing about LJ, although I may get the app just to see what it looks like.

[voidampersand.livejournal.com]

Not an Android user, but my understanding is that power management is a big challenge. Use wi-fi where it's freely available and you will save $ on data charges. But turn off wi-fi when you don't need it, otherwise it will keep scanning for wi-fi base stations just in case, and run down the battery fast. It helps to carry a charger with you and keep the battery charged up — modern phone batteries last a lot longer if you never run them down all the way.

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

Credo/Sprint has an unlimited data plan, so $ shouldn't be a problem, but battery drain, yes. I'd wondered that about keeping the charger with me. Probably a good idea.

[janetl.livejournal.com]

When I got my iPhone, I thought that I wouldn't want any apps. Ha!

I also bought a charger that I can use in the car. Nice for car trips -- especially since I listen to podcasts and audio books from the phone for hours while driving.

There are apps for Twitter, LJ, Facebook and Google+. None for Dreamwidth, though.

Fandango has an app.

There's an excellent app for Portland's Trimet mass transit system -- I use it all the time. I assume most cities have something similar.

I subscribed to McSweeneys on my phone. It's great for having short things to read while waiting in line or sitting on the bus. It doesn't need an active connection while you're reading (when it's got a connection, it downloads and saves for later). It's this sort of content: http://www.mcsweeneys.net/tendency

The Wikipanion app is better than trying to use the regular website in a tiny browser window.

You can download the Kindle app for free, and then download free books to read. I'm not one to read a full book on a phone, but poetry and short stories work, and P.G. Wodehouse and Mark Twain are long out of copyright!

I upload photos to the Flickr website, and the Flickr phone app lets me show people pictures without having a bunch actually on my phone. I'm sure there's an app for any other photo-sharing site.

Timer Plus is great for stretches -- it's got an interval timer that will make a soft wood block sound every X seconds. (I never actually hold a stretch for 30 seconds or a minute without this. I can say "one mississippi" to myself at warp speed.)

When traveling, NPR finder will find your nearest station. If you've got decent WiFi, NPR News will let you stream the NPR station you like. That's handy if you find yourself on a business trip in Texas and not interested in listening to the current oil prices on the local NPR news, just as a wild example.

My credit union has a good app, which lets me see my balance, transfer money, etc. Good when traveling.

If you're a Dan Savage fan, I recommend the Savage Love Letter of the Day app.

The iPhone has a Find My Phone app, and I know there's something similar for Android. Get it now! When you can't figure out where you left your phone, you'll be glad to be able to locate it on a map, disable it, or whatever. I set up a phone in Gmail, so when I can't find my phone at home, I can call it and listen for the ring. That didn't work so well when I left my phone at my local pub. (I did finally figure out where I left it, and they had saved it behind the bar.)

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

What a bunch of great practical suggestions! The Find My Phone app reminds me of a time I couldn't find my old phone and called it. It was in my pants pocket, just not the pocket I usually put it in. D'oh!

[janetl.livejournal.com]

Dan Savage is so practical! For the truly impractical, get the Star Trek Communicator app, or Cat Paint. ;^)

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

By the way, what do you use to clean your iPhone screen?

[janetl.livejournal.com]

When I got my first iPhone, a 3G, I bought the screen cover thingies. I found it a very fiddling, irritating process to get one onto the screen, but one protector did last a long time.

When I got my iPhone 4, I also tried to apply a protector plastic thing, and failed spectacularly. I couldn't get one on without it looking like hell, so I decided to be brave and not use a screen protector. I think it's been about a year, and there are no scratches on the glass screen (yet).

How do I clean it? I breathe on it to form condensation, then rub it on my clothes, or polish it with a Kleenex. Never used anything fancy on it.

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

I'd forgotten about those protectors. I think my nephew uses one of those. But I like the sound of the simple approach.

[janetl.livejournal.com]

Note on that whole not bothering with a screen protector thing: I never carry my phone in the same pocket as coins or keys. When it's in my purse, it's in a separate pocket from my keys. YMMV.

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

oh yeh another practical one - LookOut scans apps for viruses. Increasingly necessary..

Layar is fun to play with for 10 mins to pretend you actually live in a cyberpunck world then you'll never use it again..

I live and breathe by having Google Mapson phone these day. Oh lord I'll bever be lost again!

[holyoutlaw.livejournal.com]

My suggestions are before: Evernote, which you can install on any number of computers and sync between them.

We use Journey Tracker as our journey tracking app, but there are others. MyTracks allows you to add details to waypoints. Neither allows you to adjust the rate of getting a GPS location, and that can be a battery drain on long walks.

MyCarLocator free is also a good one, but I've never used it. I have a dictionary app and a wikipedia app and use them both.

I use the calendar a lot, more all the time.

[randy-byers.livejournal.com]

Thanks, dude. What's the name of the bus app you use?

[holyoutlaw.livejournal.com]

OneBusAway. I can help you figure it out if you want. It drove me nuts for a while, but now I find it very useful.

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

Oh yeh, god, syncing my Google calendar to my phone has also trnsformed ny life. I gave up a paper diary entirely this year and haven;t missed it, to own amazement.