Lose The Laptop Challenge

I’ve always been a technical type of user, and I love to find ways to stretch my Smartphones in unorthodox directions that might not be immediately obvious.  Take the HTC Tilt2 for example.  It makes an excellent phone, certainly, with an excellent keyboard and high-resolution display whose angle is adjustable.

The combination of Wi-Fi and 3G capabilities within its sleek chassis means that I am only a single step away from being able to utilize both at the same time.  Specifically, to make use of the Tilt2 to pipe Internet access over to Wi-Fi only devices such as the iPod Touch. (Laptop’s left at home, remember?)

This was precisely what I did on a few occasions, allowing me to download RSS news onto my iPod Touch for some reading.  Based on my usage, I estimated that a full charge is sufficient for at least four hours of Wi-Fi usage, no small feat considering that both 3G and Wi-Fi radios are activated and constantly processing data.

As you can see, the Tilt2 lends itself well as an ad-hoc MiFi appliance for Internet tethering of laptops, netbooks, or even the Wi-Fi only version of the iPad.  It is possible to support all of them via Wi-Fi without splurging the money for a new hardware appliance or signing up for yet another data plan.

The best part is that because it’s on 3G, you can continue to make phone calls or send text messages in the interim.  Oh yes, the software I used to enable the above functionality on the Tilt2 is called WMWifiRouter, and it installs in trial mode for you to try out.

Paul Mah is an independent tech writer who covers a range of topics ranging from enterprise hardware to consumer gadgets.  You can find his personal blog at www.thetechblogger.comor follow him on Twitter @paulmah.

July 28, 6:28 pm

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Today I had several appointments - one right after another.  I left my house this morning on my way to the first appointment--I was halfway there when I realized I had forgotten my phone at home.  Drat!  I have two cellphones - my Tilt2 and the older phone I was using before the LosetheLaptop.com contest.  Luckily, I had my Tilt2 with me but I left my other phone at home which had the details and the phone number of the person I was going to meet with.

Hmmmm, I wondered, how am I going to manage this one.  If neither one of us were late to the meeting or got lost on the way there, forgetting my phone wouldn't be a problem.  But reality ranch is, the day I forget my phone would be the day I needed it the most.

Fortunately, two weeks ago I received an invitation (after signing up for it 3 months before) from Google Voice to activate an account.  I remember how excited I was to finally be able to check it out.  Google Voice is a great free service that acts as your voice-mail system and transcribes every message you receive into text and sends the message to you via e-mail and/or text.  It's like having your own personal transcription service!  The transcription is not perfect - but you get the gist of what the caller was saying.  You can also record personalized messages for specific callers who call you.  Pretty slick!  Google Voice can be attached to any phone number.

However, to take full advantage of the  Google Voice features, I recommend you sign up for Google Voice with a Google number.  I chose this option.  You can create a new phone number within your area code or any other area code across America.  What I liked about this process is that you can choose a customized vanity number.  For example, I chose a phone number that ends in CNCT which works well with WellConnectedMom.com and theWellConnectedHome.com. 

Even better, if you choose the Google number option, you can hook up all of your phones to Google Voice so that no matter which phone number a caller uses, all of your phones will ring.  I have my home phone and my two cellphones hooked up to Google voice.  So, any voicemail I receive  is transcribed and texted to my both my cellphones and my e-mail account.  To learn more about the two versions of Google Voice and many other great features, watch these Google Voice features videos.

So, getting back to my day.  Guess what happened?  The person I was meeting with was running late and he tried to call me using the Google Voice number I had given him.  I, unfortunately, was in a relatively new area of town with limited cellphone coverage, so I did not receive his call.  But thanks to my Tilt2 with data coverage and Google Voice, I received a text message with his message and phone number transcribed.  I walked out of the building I was in and gave him a call to let him know I would wait for him.  Phew!  My reputation was saved - I could still live up to my name as The Well Connected Mom, despite leaving my cellphone at home!

I have great news for you!  Google Voice just opened to the public - so you no longer need to receive an invitation to join!  Visit Google Voice  soon to snatch up your vanity Google phone number and become "well connected" today!

Lori writes about making technology simple for busy moms and can be found at WellConnectedMom.com.  She also writes about technology for the home at theWellConnectedHome.com.  Follow Lori on Twitter @wellconnectdmom and @wellconnctdhome.  Please vote for Lori for your own chance for $5,000!  The more votes you give this month, the better your chances of winning!  Good luck!

July 12, 2:41 pm

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You know the one where you are looking for something and someone knows where it is and says, "you're getting warmer....warmer....warmer, wait, colder...." as you annoyingly search for it?

Yea, it's a fun game, for about 2 minutes. And then you just want to know where it is!

Hot and Cold is a game we used to play with a laptop as we drove up and down the New Jersey Turnpike.

You know those, 'special' videos I wrote about the other day? In the past, my husband and I would spend an hour getting off onto this exit or that exit looking for a Wi-Fi hotspot so that we could download one of those videos, check email, and otherwise check-in for work.

Does this sound familiar?
"Wait honey! I think there's a Starbucks at Exit 8!"

I'm happy to report that thanks to the Tilt2 and AT&T Wi-Fi Hotspot Locator, you won't find us aimlessly driving around the great state of New Jersey...as much as I love it, and love to Bump It.

You can see from the photos I took, the Hotspot Locator gives you a choice of venues (Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, McDonald's, and more) and allows you to search on city, state and ZIP. Add in my mother's personal favorite, the AT&T Navigator application, and you'll be able to follow the trail to HOT quicker than you can say 'Marco Polo'. But that's another game, and another post.

Janine Nickel is a freelance marketer, blogger and mother of twins. You can find her at Twofermom.com and tweeting as @Twincident.

 

July 9, 6:55 am

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My husband watches 'special' videos.
Please, not THAT.
This is a family show people, I know that.
But the videos he needs to be able to watch are special in that they are hosted on a very private site.

Again, NOT that.
He's involved in the thoroughbred racing industry and he has to go to special member-only sites to be able to watch race results.

He can't do this from the Tilt2, we've tried.
And he has to have special software on his laptop to do it.

But...when we can't get to a Wi-Fi signal, he CAN use the HTC Tilt2 to access the web from his laptop!

Genius.
This means he has no work excuse when it comes to road trips to my mother's house.
You're with me on this one, right?

 

July 6, 1:37 pm

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So you have packed your bags, they are in the cargo hold, and you are 30,000 feet over the glistening ocean, and you start thinking...did I pack the [fill in the blank]? Suddenly you get that big hole in your stomach and you know that you didn't hit an air pocket. It's an "oh crap" moment.

Let's face it, I have it pretty easy. With a family of 5, my wife handles all of the packing for 4 of the 5 family members, not that we go on many trips. Most of these are road trips so we have the luxury of over-packing the minivan and taking almost every conceivable item possible. My wife is good at packing, really good. The kids have all their items carefully itemized and packed into their individual bags.

I'm usually on my own when it comes to packing so I have no one else to blame. What's my task aside from organizing my own bags? Well, I'm also tasked with packing all of the technology items, mainly because I'm the gadget addict of our family. I would expect the other members of my family could survive without the "tech", but I can't. So when it comes to a road trip, I have a big bag dedicated to all of the battery powered or electronic devices.

When it comes to a plane trip, however, and the fact that you have to pack light or get charged for extra bags, my tech packing becomes strained and a monumental task...that of picking and choosing just the essential devices to bring.

I'm not going to bore you with the crazy events leading up to going on a trip like packing toothpaste or clean underwear. And you can usually buy sunscreen at your destination. What I am talking about is the assembling of the special luggage that contains:

power cords

batteries

camcorder

cables

camera

chargers

headphones

wifi devices (I have a travel wifi router)

portable DVD player

portable gaming devices

iPod

Oh, and of course, my life-blood, my laptop. I mean, how could I even think about going on a trip without taking my connection to the world. Who knows when I might want (need) to check my email, read some blogs, record a movie of my family on the beach, send a tweet, post photos to Facebook, check in to Foursquare (hey robbers, I'm not actually on a sunny, tropical island somewhere, I'm really sitting in the dark by the front door with a shotgun in my hand just waiting for you - KIDDING!), write a blog post, listen to some music or a podcast, take a bunch of photos, watch a movie, play a game or just surf the web! And, gasp, what if I were to actually "lose the laptop" on the trip!!! I would be crippled. 

Ok I really did a good segue there didn't I! Wouldn't it be great to be able to pack much if not all of the functionality listed above into a much, much smaller bag and device? I'm thinking that the HTC Tilt 2 can do it! Here's why:

Email- use the native Outlook app which is part of the Windows Mobile 6.5 professional

Internet Explorer- yep, you can read a bunch of blogs in portrait or landscape format

Opera- but wait, there's more, you also get the super optimized Opera browser

Twitter- er...well, I hate to say it, there really isn't a "killer" Twitter app yet for Windows Mobile (hint hint, hey WinMo developers, there is a HUGE opportunity here, especially with Windows Phone 7 around the corner) but I did find a few Twitter apps that I can use.

Facebook- the Facebook app is actually not too shabby either...and you can do something that you can't do on the iPhone (for example), upload videos to Facebook, now THAT you need to be able to make all of your friends jealous!

Foursquare- hmmm, need to check that...yep, looks like there is a beta app

Blogging- well there are lots of ways that I can do that, using Pocket Word 2010, for example or Evernote

Music- you wouldn't believe how many mp3 files you can put on an 8 GB microSD so no need for an iPod

Photos- the Tilt 2 comes with a 3.2 Megapixel camera

Movies- if you shrink down your movies, you can put those on the Tilt 2 as well, and you can film some family movies too!

Gaming- the Windows Marketplace has a bunch of games - load up on a few before you hit the road, or just download them over the air

That means that with one gadget, you can leave a bunch of other ones at home. Packing light is key, packing smart, or for example, packing a Smartphone is critical. I'm throwing my HTC Tilt 2 in the bag first, to be sure not to forget it!

Oh, and I do have some travel adventures planned for April so be sure to ride along!

I'm hoping that you will help me "Lose the Laptop" by reading, sharing and voting for me!

April 5, 11:23 am

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