Techalyzer

What do you do after you spill coke all over your cell phone or drop it inside your toaster oven? According to an article in The Toronto Sun (a newspaper from Canada) not too many people are choosing to fix any gadgets that they are breaking. Instead they are opting to just buy a new one as it less fuss or muss.
Experts also say that many of the tech companies know this and they have planned obsolesce because it much more expedient and less expensive to buy he latest gadget rather than fix the new one. A good example is last year’s iPod. Although it was flawed because it was the first generation many people did not opt to take it in for repairs. Instead they just bought the new one. This is why this generation of consumers is being identified as part of the disposable gadget society.
However not everybody opts to throw out their gadgets. There has actually been a boom in the last few years of shops that cater to fixing phone and iPods. With any luck you can get up to 18 more months out of products like iPhones that are really only designed to last a year or two. There is a shop in Toronto, Ontario (in Canada) called Tech-Know Space which is a great example of hits type of fix-it shop. It specializes in upgrading, integrating and repairing digital technology.
The owner of this store, who talked to journalist Lorraine Anthony of the Canadian Press, says that a lot of the time the equipment can be saved and that quite often people are just a little too careless with the device.
The problem here is ethical. Is it really that green to buy from companies that design their stuff as junk? Should we buy from any company that is claiming to be very modern yet at the same time keeps putting out a new and improved product once a year?
It is also not necessarily to anyone’s benefit to dispose of a phone and buy a new one, especially if the contract on the phone is not expired.
Still it seems that people are so nuts for the newest technology or latest design that they will do anything to get their hands on the latest gadgetry. Another ethical question is that given how many the electronic parts and plastic parts in these kinds of gadgets can pollute the planet once they are thrown out — should we be ignoring the possibility of repairing them at all? Should the phone, for example, be a fashion accessory that simply goes in and out of style with no regard at all for how they are rapidly filling up our landfills?
According to the article the most fixable technology includes laptops, Blackberries and all phones. That means there is no excuse for not getting your broken gadgets fixed so you can save the landfills from filling up.

There is a kind of cachet about carrying an expensive cell phone and there are some real beauties out there on the cell phone market if you actually have the bucks to spend.
The fashionable company Dolce & Gabbana has become one of the most prolific producers of luxury phones. Motorola RAZR fans can choose between a Diamond Edition Dolce & Gabbana V3 that features 855 diamonds encrusting 24K gold flip shell that weights in at 3.8 carats. This comes in a platinum or a gold color.
There is a silver version that costs $750,000 and that is not shaped at all like an ordinary cell phone. The sides curve out alternately in an elegant way that makes it look more like a jewel encrusted evening bag.
This phone is clearly one of the most sought after status symbols. One of the key designers of these phone is Peter Aloisson who works for Dolce & Gabbana. He is responsible for the beautiful gold phone that Dolce & Gabbana was marketing as a limited edition a few years ago. This jeweller from Austria decided that he needed a gold phone to go with his gold sunglasses and wristwatch. He has made a great living refitting various mobile phone models with gold casings, and many of them are studded with diamonds.
This premiere designer of luxury cell phones fits gold faceplates in various gold carats to the phones in order to cover the ugly plastic casings that are usually part and parcel of buying any standard cell phone.
Do you have a million dollars to spend on a phone? If so then you might want to consider a Vertafish phone which has 120 carats of high grade diamonds. However despite the fact that it practically does cost a million dollars it has no WiFi !
Yet another pricey phone is called a Black Diamond. It costs $350 grand and comes with a 400 MHz processor, SIP technology and a 4MP camera. That is so the celebrities that can afford it can get even with the paparazzi by taking pics back at it. If you really want one of these phones you need to call and book your order way in advance because only five of these Black Diamond phones are made a year.
A little hip phone among celebrities is called the Skylink Ubaquim U300 which has 29 diamonds. This is a black phone with a graphic of a horse on it that is studded with 29 diamonds. The company originates from Russia where cell phones are a really big deal.
So what is the worst thing that can happen if you buy one of these phones? Obviously it is a disaster if you lose it unless of course you want to get insurance for it.

Why is it so important to be hands free lately? Well first of all many states have made it against the law to talk on your phone while holding a headset. You may now only use a handsfree device like a Bluetooth headset in order to drive a car.
There has been a lot of developments in hands free gadgetry lately. This is a $45 gadget that features a pivoting microphone that provides noise reduction and can be positioned several ways to improve the sound. It has one touch controls that can help you adjust the volume or mute the conversation. It is not a Bluetooth device, but rather connects directly to the phone. It is a good looking device too that is cube shaped and very discreet looking.
The Motorola ROKR T505 is an in car speakerphone and an FM transmitter. You can stream music from a compatible Bluetooth phone or MP3 player to your car’s radio – or use your car’s speakers to hear your phone calls as clearly as possible.
Jawbone II is a noise elimination technology that has been developed for the material. It is a very elegant looking Bluetooth headset with sensors in it that actually allows you to distinguish your voice from background noise. It is stylish black rubber and was created with athletes in mind as it is both water and sweat resistant.
Another stylish black headset is the JayBird JB-200 which does more than just make phone calls. It is designed for music lovers and Bluetooth cell phones and when you play it you can listen to streaming stereo music a the same time. It too is water and sweat resistant but a bit pricey at $130.00.
Setting up a Bluetooth Headset with a cell phone is pretty easy. The procedure is called pairing. As there are a variety of different headsets on the market, the pairing steps often differ from phone to phone so you need to consult the set up guides that came with your phone to verify that your steps will work. All in all it should only take about five minutes or less to pair up your phone or headset.
Before pairing you should make sure that you have a Bluetooth compatible phone in the first place. Most phones are as it is considered a standard feature but if you are using an older phone this may not be the case.
You should also make sure that your phone is charged before you try pairing it with a Bluetooth device or the pairing with the headset will not work. Usually it is simply a matter of turning on your phone’s Bluetooth feature by setting up the connection between headset and phone. This typically means navigating to a screen where you can adjust the settings.