I Hate Telephones

[nw_hunter]

Damn! I'm sick of trying to find a real person to talk to on the phone when I need information or help! "I hate automation" Press 1 for this or 9 for that, and then if I do get a real person, they are in Bangladesh or India.Almost always a female with a high squeaky voice that speaks English with an accent that sounds like a parrot taught by a three year old from New Delhi.

I've had to buy three new phones this year, and a 50# box of drywall mud, to repair the holes from the phones going through. .

I'm also sick and tired of hearing............This call may be recorded for  BLA, BLA,BLA.
Telemarketers don't have that problem "NOT AT ALL" They call you at 7:00 PM. Just when the Monday night football game is on.They know how to reach and Pi-- off a REAL person.

I don't think it will happen, but after 45 years of marriage, if my wife should suddenly decide to leave me.
I'll let her go, but only if she'll take the Damn phone with her.

I feel better now! Rants over I did find a web site that can help people like me. http://gethuman.com/

[Stillkickin]

I'm with you.  Seems like you can't go anywhere without running into people with their ears stuck in do-everything phones:  on the road, in doctor offices, in elevators, at sporting events, in restrooms.  Feeling the need to be immediately available to somebody's beck and call is the result of two possible situations:  either you are that gosh awful important............or you are a slave.  I am neither.

While driving last week, I was stopped at a stoplight controlled intersection with a four lane highway.  A young woman went past me and into the intersection with BOTH HANDS texting.

[Sourdough]

I know a young man who ordered one of those Cell Phone Blockers.  I love it, and sometimes borrow it just for the fun of it!  Some movie theaters install them, and they have been installed in some prisons.  They are in use all over Europe.

Sitting at a traffic light and you notice everyone is on their phones.  Push the button and suddenly everyone is looking at their phones.  Then they try and recall the numbers they lost.  No reception, they are still fiddling with their phones minutes later when the light changes and I set down on the horn.  It's so funny to watch people driving down the highway on their phones.  I drive by and their phone goes dead, then they a weaving all over the road trying to redial, paying more attention to their phones than to their driving.  I don't use it in heavy traffic, could cause an accident. 

Last spring one woman driving a big Ford SUV was trying to get her phone to work when the guy behind her started blowing the horn.  She looked up saw the light had changed to green, and stepped on the gas.  At the same time she dropped her phone out the window.  In the middle of the intersection she stopped to get out and retrieve her phone, almost causing several accidents.  Only the inconsiderate XXXXXXX behind her had ran over her phone.  At that point a City Cop pulled into the intersection and informed her to pull forward onto the median, so the people could clear the intersection.  Don't know what happened, don't care.  She should not have been using her phone while driving anyway. 

Cell Phones make a satisfying crunch under the tires of an S-10.  Have heard that sound twice.  I agree with the wife, I'm getting crotchaty in my old age.   

[SHOOTALL]

so how much and where do ya order them ?

[Old Syko]

so how much and where do ya order them ?

+1  everyplace I've looked says not available in North America due to FCC restrictions.  So where and how?

[saddlebum]

I hate phone companies. My cell phone is 3yrs old and not working as good as it used to. When I looked at my options online today I found that I could not get a regular phone. You know, a device to make audio communication possible. All the ''phones" available to me with Verizon are i-phones or something and require a data package that cost at least 30.00 a month extra on my bill. I know they will fight me if I try to activate an old phone I have lying around for a spare. I don't want to carry a computer in my pocket and I don't want to pay for it either. I also noticed that the contract default charge has gone up to 375.00 from 175.00  I'm sick of being ripped off!!

There's my rant for the day, I hope!

[MGMorden]

so how much and where do ya order them ?

+1  everyplace I've looked says not available in North America due to FCC restrictions.  So where and how?

They're not available because they're illegal here.  You're only going to get them via the black market.  It it really worth it for some cheap giggles?

Anyways, for telemarketers: I HIGHLY recommend getting on the "Do not call" list.  If you're on the list and you get an unsolicited call, you can take action against them.  It's generally pretty effective.

As to "Press  1 or 2 or 3" etc, there's a nice little trick.  Most of them have some level of voice recognition built in now.  You'll notice that a lot of them don't just say "Press 1" anymore, they'll say "Press or say 1".  Some don't even have the option of pressing anymore (as pressing a key is a big hassle on touch screen phones - most people are transitioning to using electronic address books for dialing now - I don't even know most of my friend's numbers - they're just in my address book).  Anyways, with the voice recognition in place, MOST of them will take you to a real person if you just say the word "operator". It works 60-70% of the time.  Give it a try .

[MGMorden]

I hate phone companies. My cell phone is 3yrs old and not working as good as it used to. When I looked at my options online today I found that I could not get a regular phone. You know, a device to make audio communication possible. All the ''phones" available to me with Verizon are i-phones or something and require a data package that cost at least 30.00 a month extra on my bill. I know they will fight me if I try to activate an old phone I have lying around for a spare. I don't want to carry a computer in my pocket and I don't want to pay for it either. I also noticed that the contract default charge has gone up to 375.00 from 175.00  I'm sick of being ripped off!!

There's my rant for the day, I hope!

Exaggerating just a 'lil aren't we?

There are plenty of regular old phones still available.  The following two are free with contract renewal and neither requires a data plan:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/controller?item=phoneFirst&action=viewPhoneDetail&selectedPhoneId=4427&capId=&phoneTopRated=
http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/controller?item=phoneFirst&action=viewPhoneDetail&selectedPhoneId=5150&capId=&phoneTopRated=

Also, the $375 contract cancellation penalty only applies to smartphones.  Standard cell phones like the ones listed above still have the old $175 cancellation fee.

Oh yeah - if you want to activate an old phone you can do it online without even getting a service rep involved.  Go to your account management page, activate a new device and type in the device's ESN #.  It'll start working within a few minutes as long as it's not ANCIENT (like, black and white display type ancient).  I carry a spare phone in my glove box in case I accidentally leave mine at home and literally switch them back and forth for the day if I forget my main phone.  Only takes a few minutes.

This message brought to you by your resident phone geek (yeah, I'm one of those people ).  

[Old Fart]

http://gethuman.com/

Thanks for the link.

[saddlebum]

Nope not exaggerating! The options they showed me online for an upgrade to a new phone showed all smartphones with the mandatory 30.00+ monthly charge. They were probably just trying to make me take the bait.

Thanks for the info. on activating the old phone. It is not that old and should work. I'm not too worried about the cancellation fee cause I let my contract run out a year ago and just go on without a contract. I figure on using my old phones up before I get a new one and get stuck in a contract again.

Thanks again for the info.!!    

[MGMorden]

Nope not exaggerating! The options they showed me online for an upgrade to a new phone showed all smartphones with the mandatory 30.00+ monthly charge. They were probably just trying to make me take the bait.

I think you probably misclicked a link.  The smartphones are standard phones are displayed in different categories of the web store, so if you misclicked on the smartphone link for upgrade options then you'll only see the smartphones, which would show the $375 cancellation fee and mandatory data plan. 

That said, I will throw in a "don't knock it till you've tried it" here. I personally carry a Droid Incredible for my personal phone and a Blackberry Storm 2 for my work phone.  Once you get used to it having net-access pretty much anywhere is INVALUABLE.  Go into a gun shop and think that the asking price is unfair?  Well you can pull up MSRP or Gunbroker prices and show the sales clerk right there on the sales floor.  Leaving work and need to know if the UPS guy dropped off that package you were expecting so that you can head home or head towards the UPS office?  Whip out the phone and check on the status.  Hear a song you like and want to know what it is?  Pull up Shazaam and it'll identify it for you through the phone's microphone.  Need directions and don't have a dedicated GPS?   Pull up the phone's GPS nav software, type in your destination address and let it direct you to exactly where you want to be.

I'm personally at the point where I'd give up the phone part of my "phone" long before I'd give up the data portion .

[squirrellluck]

Some of us carry cell phones because we have too not because we want to.I could care less if it can sing or dance all I want it to do is make and recieve calls when required. Mine is a work tool and nothing more. Now if I could get 1 that reads voltage,temperature,and pressures ... 

[blind ear]

The telephone companies are ripping us off almost as bad as the cable and satelite TV broadcast business. The cost of cell service is dirt cheap. The access offered by Magic Jack proves that.

Satelite and cable should be broadcast free and unscrambled dirrect to our sets like old antenna programming was. With all the junk that is sold between 2am and 5am you know the cost is nothing. The advertiseing should pay the freight.

When cable came about in the 60s they promoted it as "you pay to watch what ever you want whenever you want and no advertiseing", OK.

All the country would have to do to get back to free TV is quit paying cable and satelite fees. We are too weak and gullible for that to ever happen. Same with most of our political lives also, afraid to do what makes sence because someone might say that isn't the party line. God forbid that we buck the party.

On top of paying monthly fees on top of advertiseing, the bands freed up by going digital TV, (which was sidestepped and run out from under, HDTV dirrect broadcast that is), are likely to end up sold to broadband services as side cariers in not dirrect transmission bands. They will have more services to sell.

 The problem is phone service and cable service are like insurance policies and IRS forms, they don't want us to understand the plans because we could save ourselves some money, besides selling us stuff we don't want or need like ipod, ring tones, internet access and cameras, still and video, etc. By choice, OK, not forced. We all need to get magic Jack or as cllose to it as we can.

We a smart bunch ain't we?

eddiegjr

PS: I am sure we have your problem solved now, call me back if you need more help. I am Joe in Bangladesh.

[Land_Owner]

For some the cell phone remains a convenience and is TURNED ON to make a call and TURNED OFF when not in use.  Forget the "connectivity".

I go to Wally World and purchase a cheap Go Phone.  Put my SIM card from the broken phone in the Go Phone, call the service agent (you have to have an existing plan), tell them the phone IMEI number, and they make the new phone active.  Fifty bucks and I am back.  Has happened twice.

Wally World is now offering a $49 unlimited text and calling annual plan with no contract, no activation fee, quit any time with no cancellation fee, and $25 to add another phone on the plan.  Listen to me.  I am advertising for WW.  Will someone take me behind the barn and adjust my thinking...

[scootrd]

Some of us carry cell phones because we have too not because we want to.I could care less if it can sing or dance all I want it to do is make and recieve calls when required. Mine is a work tool and nothing more. Now if I could get 1 that reads voltage,temperature,and pressures ... 

+1

[MGMorden]

The cost of cell service is dirt cheap. The access offered by Magic Jack proves that.

Apples and oranges there.  Cellular access is essentially a wireless communications infrastructure onto which you can piggyback data (be it native data or voice).  Magic Jack is a voice over IP (VOIP) solution that piggybacks on an EXISTING infrastructure - your internet connection.  Your connection itself - be it DSL or Cable Internet - PLUS the cost of Magic Jack is more comparable to cellular access, and even that is harder as a hardwired connection is easier to install and support.  With cellular towers they have to have those same hardwired connections to the towers themselves and THEN all the radio equipment on top of that.  Not to mention the need to get faster and faster data access which requires constant running of faster connections to the towers and the installation of new equipment on those towers.  I know some people are stuck in their ways, but realistically cell "phones" are not just about making calls anymore.  You can do that sure, but in today's world data services are as important or MORE so than voice services.  Just as the people who continued to prefer matchlocks over flintlocks, smoothbores over rifles, and muzzleloaders over cartridge arms - you can like what you want but the rest of the world will progress regardless.

Now don't get me wrong, cell service is somewhat expensive, but part of that is that it does cost more.  The other part is simple economics: something is worth what the market will pay for it.  If people will pay $75 per month then that's what they'll charge.  Ideally competition will drive prices down but not necessarily so if there's collusion between the various providers (which could be remedied, but then you invoke the whole "big government"/regulation debate).

[Pat/Rick]

I use phones minimally. Will not get a landline because I do not want to pay for 500+ ft of line and ditch.,only use a cell and it can only be used out on the porch. Seems deer and other critters like "listening in"  .  Another reason for no landline is all the taxes and fees they charge. But to the topic title; I hate phones as well. I would rather call someone when they don't want to be bothered, than have someone call me when I don't want to be bothered. Not very fair is it? 

[saddlebum]

I apoligize for getting off the topic of the original rant with my rant. I too hate the automated calls when you need to talk to someone, and the telemarketers. Is it just me or has anybody else gotten alot of robo-calls and political survey calls in the last year? I have got to the point that I don't answer the phone unless the caller is identified by the caller ID on my phone. Sometimes I'm curious about the strange caller so I look up the number online and find out they are a political survey company or political party. VERY ANNOYING!!

[nw_hunter]

For some the cell phone remains a convenience and is TURNED ON to make a call and TURNED OFF when not in use.  Forget the "connectivity".

I go to Wally World and purchase a cheap Go Phone.  Put my SIM card from the broken phone in the Go Phone, call the service agent (you have to have an existing plan), tell them the phone IMEI number, and they make the new phone active.  Fifty bucks and I am back.  Has happened twice.

Wally World is now offering a $49 unlimited text and calling annual plan with no contract, no activation fee, quit any time with no cancellation fee, and $25 to add another phone on the plan.  Listen to me.  I am advertising for WW.  Will someone take me behind the barn and adjust my thinking...

I use a plan called Straight Talk for my Grandson. I purchased it from WW (Yea I know! Me too) lol!
For unlimited calling, Internet, and text, it's just 45.00 per month. No taxes at all, if you buy the time every month. I have it paid auto every month from my checking. I pay a tax of just over a buck. I haven't found any cell phone plan that beats it. They teamed with Trac and Verizon, My original cost with phone was 80.00 for the first month. They also have a plan for 30.00 for 1000 min.

The 1000 min plan works for me.