Are Flagship Smartphones Worth the Money?

We live in the era of smartphones and stupid people.

Anonymous

Let’s face it; we’re almost all addicted to our smartphones. They’ve become an appendage. And, sadly for many people they’re a more important form of communication than human contact. How many times have you been in a restaurant and observed two people sitting across the table from each other, interacting only with their smartphones? Doesn’t it make you wonder why they went out for dinner in the first place?

But I digress… My beef is with the cost of flagship smartphones, not that they exist. In fact I was an early adopter and bought the first “phablet” on the market. The current crop consists of the new iPhone, Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and the Google Pixel 2 XL. They’re all priced within a hundred dollars of each other – in the $1,300 - $1,400 CDN range. This is ludicrous for a smartphone! It seems as if these makers have banded together and realized that as a group they control the market and the pricing. The end result is that they have a stranglehold on the market and the ability to fix pricing.

I prefer to buy my smartphones outright and there’s no way that I’m spending this kind of money on a smartphone. But, thanks to my techie friend, I learned about www.oneplus.net. It’s a flagship smartphone made in China and sold only directly from the company – no advertising, no middlemen, no retail outlets. The latest model is the OnePlus 5t and it cost $649 CDN – half the price of the others. I just bought the OnePlus 5t and I’m more than impressed. My phone was delivered 5 days ahead of schedule – this company under promises and over delivers. What a refreshing change!

For those of you who think you’re getting a free phone on a 2 year contract, think again. Firstly, they’re giving you old models and $25/month of your plan pays for your phone. So, in two years your “free phone” actually cost you $600 for an old model while I bought brand new technology for $50 more. If you’re in the market for a new smartphone, have a look at the OnePlus 5T.

Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.

Warren Buffett

Make someone smile today.

Geri

Free of the Hostage Tax at Last!

I finally realized it. People are prisoners of their cell phones. That’s why they’re called cell phones.

Spirit Science

Canadians pay among the highest cell phone rates in the world because we’ve been held hostage by the Big 3 - Bell, Rogers and Telus. These bandits operate as a cartel, supported and sanctioned by the CRTC. Not only are we ripped off on our cell phone plans, but on the actual cell phones themselves.

In Canada all cell phones are locked to a certain carrier (unless you get a Google phone). There’s no such thing as free enterprise when it comes to the cell phone industry. You can’t just go out and buy a phone in a competitive market and go to any carrier and get a plan. If you’re on Bell, you have to buy a phone that’s locked to the Bell network. And I’m sure you guessed by now that the cartel also controls the prices of cell phones which are astronomical. If you want to change carriers, you have to pay a $50 dollar fee to unlock your own phone. It’s legal extortion! This fee is affectionately referred to as the Hostage Tax or Ransom Tax.

The CRTC has finally come to the aid of the consumer, and over strenuous objections from the cartel, are removing the hostage tax. As of December 1, 2017 the hostage tax will be gone and all cell phones will be sold unlocked from that day forward. For those of you longing for a time when you could shop around for a deal on a cell phone, your day will soon be here. I can’t wait to see retailers offering legitimate sales and specials on cell phones. Bye bye hostage tax. Hello free enterprise!

We live in the era of smartphones & stupid people.

Keywordssuggest.org

Make someone smile today.

Geri

Why Isn’t Anyone Interested in Sex Anymore?

I haven't trusted polls since I read that 62% of women had affairs during their lunch hour. I've never met a woman in my life who would give up lunch for sex.

Erma Bombeck

I just read a HighSpeedInternet.com/Google Consumer survey that quite frankly shocked me (and there’s very little that shocks me).

Question: What would you rather give up for 6 months? The Internet or physical intimacy?

Answer: Nearly 50% of those ages 18-24 surveyed said they would rather give up sex than Internet. Just under 30% of those ages 45-64 would give up sex for Internet.

After the initial shock wore off, the survey answers actually made sense to me. For the younger generations, smartphones and tablets function as an appendage. Typically you see young people sitting side by side, each interacting with their own electronic devices, not each other. What's worse is that this type of behaviour is not restricted to our youth. In restaurants I frequently see couples sitting across the table from each other on their smartphones, not talking to each other. What a pathetic excuse for a date!

I find it quite sad that electronic and virtual communication have become more important than human contact. And, an overabundance of testosterone is being wasted on young men who would rather play with a smartphone or a tablet than have sex. What a world!

The only time a woman has a true orgasm is when she's shopping. 

Joan Rivers

Make someone smile today.

Geri