Are Smart Phones Really That Smart?

Darci LaRocque

Swirl Solutions offers iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry and Microsoft training so we know a little bit about how smart your phone is.  Our tag line says it all with: “You don’t know what you don’t know”.  True, right?   Are Smart Phones Really That Smart?   I believe that people and organizations have to take some responsibility to understand a few things before they venture out to a conference or even a vacation.

CALL THE CARRIER!

1.       Do you have the latest PRL?

a.       A preferred roaming list allows the phone to choose the best roaming roaming partners with whom your home Carrier has a cost-saving roaming agreement.    There may be cases where missing or corrupt PRL’s can lead to a customer not having service at all!

b.      How do you get the latest?

i.      You can call your Carrier

ii.      You can google how to do it yourself or try *228 on your phone and follow the instructions.

c.       The trick is that you MUST download the latest PRL before you go on your trip!

2.       Are you on the right plan?

a.       I suggest that you call your Carrier at least 2x a year.  Plans change ALL the time.  The plan you picked 2 years ago might not be the best plan for you now.

b.      Are you travelling somewhere that is outside your current plan limits?   Let’s say you have an unlimited national USA texting plan and you go to Canada for a week.  Does that mean that it will include all your texting in Canada?  Probably not!  You need to ask the Carrier if it would.  I have seen bills as high as 17,000 from people not understanding these kinds of things while travelling.   Please be careful!

3.       Do you understand and use WIFI?

a.       WIFI: Smartphones that are WIFI capable allow you to access the Internet when you are in range of a WIFI(wireless) network to which you have authorized access. Wi-Fi networks or hotspots may be private such as a home or enterprise network, public such as a library or commercial such as a coffee shop or hotel.   Here is Blackberry’s info on WIFI.

b.      Why not use a WIFI network for free rather than the Carriers cellular network?   Always purchase a smartphone that has this ability.  That means that all data, everything but voice and texting, can use the WIFI network.  If you can gain access to the internet on your laptop or netbook then your  WIFI capable smartphone can as well.

Here are some terms which might help out in starting to understand what is what in the confusing smartphone area and I hope that this information will save you a bit of money in your travels.

Darci LaRocque, Owner, Swirl Solutions.



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