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Smart Ways to Use Your Cell Phone
Teach your phone to make free 411 calls, save photos, and back up your data.
I'll bet your smart phone isn't so smart. I have tricks for saving money, downloading digital pictures instead of e-mailing them, and more. Stay on the line....
Free 411 Calls
The Hassle:I hate paying $1.25 to call 411 from my phone. Any advice?
The Fix: I have two quick workarounds. First, try 1-800-FREE411, a toll-free information service. Sometimes when I tried the service, I talked with a live operator; other times I got an automated voice. The only cost is spending about 12 seconds listening to an ad--and often, there isn't an ad at all. (Use FREE411 on your landline as well.) Don't like that idea? If your phone can browse the Web, try go2.com, a free service that offers listings of local information, including driving directions.
Saving Phone Photos
The Hassle: I just bought a camera phone, and I would like to download photographs to my PC without having to e-mail each one.
The Fix: Many new phones come with the necessary paraphernalia--cables and software--or have built-in Bluetooth or infrared adapters that can do the job.
If your phone didn't include a way to make the transfer, or if you're unhappy with it, you can zap your phone photos to your computer with Susteen's DataPilot Individual Kit Software. Prices range from $30 to $70, depending on your phone model. The tool uses a USB cable that matches your phone; you can also sync and back up your phone book, as well as upload videos and MP3s.
Quick Tip:Use Pix2Fone, a free add-on, to send photos--for logos or screen savers--from your phone to supported phones and services.
Smart Backups
The Hassle: The DataPilot is cool, but all I want to do is back up data in my phone. How about it?
The Fix: I get the feeling you like kvetching. If your phone has a SIM card, you may be able to use a SIM reader (priced at under $13) to back up your phone's data. Vavolo's USB Universal SIM Card Reader and Writer looks like a flash drive and works the same way. Just plug it into a computer's USB port, and it will read SIM cards; it works on any GSM SIM card. No SIM card? Then try the $30 BackupPal, a no-frills backup device that connects directly to your cell phone.
Magnified Display
The Hassle: I'm not young anymore and can't read my cell phone's display.
The Fix: You and me both. Try the Phone Monocle ($10), a lens that slips over your cell phone's display and magnifies the image.
Tool of the Month: Retrieve Recent Files (and Apps)--Fast!
Not a day goes by when I don't need immediate access to files I've worked with in the previous couple of weeks. I used to have a trick: I would right-click and drag My Recent Documents to the desktop and select Create Shortcuts Here. (The folder is at C:\Documents and Settings\username\My Recent Documents.) But with RecentX, I can get quick (and easier) access to recent files and folders as well as to programs and Web sites. It docks practically anywhere on my desktop, and I can configure its transparency level. I've set it to clean up unused items after two weeks, too. I know--free is best. But $20 isn't bad for such a handy tool. Get a 30-day trial.
Steve Bass
Contributing Editor Steve Bass writes the Bass Blog and is the author of PC Annoyances, published by O'Reilly. Contact him at hasslefreepc@pcworld.com. Read his previous columns and newsletters.
I'll bet your smart phone isn't so smart. I have tricks for saving money, downloading digital pictures instead of e-mailing them, and more. Stay on the line....