How To Article Feeds

Holiday Gift Guide

Tue, 9 Dec 2008 06:05:00 PST

How to set up T-Mobile Hotspot @ Home

Tue, 7 Oct 2008 13:10:23 PDT

T-Mobile Hotspot @ Home lets you do more than save on your home telephone bills. It’s also a way to create a wireless home network that you can use to surf the Web with all the computers in your dwelling, make unlimited calls, get caller ID from a cordless phone, and best yet, extend the coverage of a Wi-Fi-enabled cell phone--all for $10 a month. It might sound complicated to set up, as if you might need to call a tech guy, but if you can plug a phone line into a jack, you’ve got all the skills required.

Back To School Guide

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:08:25 PDT

How to Get Music on Your BlackBerry

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:07:16 PDT

BlackBerry has built its reputation on being an easy-to-use smartphone that handles e-mail extremely well. Not one to rest on its laurels, RIM has teamed up with Roxio to provide a media manager solution in its Desktop Manager software that makes getting music on your BlackBerry seamless and easy. In just a few simple steps, you can get the music stored on your computer onto your smartphone. You will need a MicroSD card to store all that music on your BlackBerry. Once you have music on your BlackBerry, you can even save it as a ringtone. That’s a pretty cool feature. What’s the best part about the Roxio software? It won’t transfer any media file from your computer that the BlackBerry can’t play back.

How to Use Your 3G AT&T Phone as a Modem for Your Mac

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 09:06:03 PDT

We’ve all heard about the potential of 3G, but did you know that with HSPA 3G, you can use your cell phone as a wireless modem for your laptop and still take a call? It’s true; you won’t even lose your connection when you finish the phone call. Now with a 3G HSPA smartphone from AT&T and an unlimited data plan, you can pair your handset with a Mac via Bluetooth and use the cell phone’s high-speed data service as a modem when you’re on the road. This type of connection provides cable-like speeds, so you’ll have no problem surfing the Web or listening to streaming music on your Mac. The one caveat is that you need to be in an area with support for AT&T’s HSPA network (the service is currently available in over 270 markets); otherwise, you’ll be surfing over EDGE networks, which typically deliver downlinks in the 100-130 kbps range – about twice the speed of a dial-up connection.

Note: We did this how-to using a Samsung SGH-A737 cell phone; however, it’s best to use one of the smartphones listed on the side.

Bluetooth Headset Buying Guide

Mon, 2 Jun 2008 14:05:11 PDT

Bluetooth has been around for about 10 years, but it’s only been in the last few years that Bluetooth technology has appeared on more and more cell phones. When cell phones first sported this feature, it was typically found only on high-end and smart phones that could use Bluetooth to send files, seek out other cell phones with Bluetooth activated, and of course with a headset. Today, just about all new cell phone models have Bluetooth, and at the very least, they can be paired with a headset for hands-free calling, though some can do more. For example, some can even be used with stereo Bluetooth headphones or, if they support Stereo Bluetooth (known in technical circles as A2DP), stream music stored on your cell phone through a portable Bluetooth-enabled speaker system.

What is Bluetooth anyway?
In short, Bluetooth is a wireless technology in which one Bluetooth device can pair (or connect) with another Bluetooth device up to 30 feet away. In order for the technology to work, both Bluetooth devices – say, a cell phone and a headset – must have the feature activated, be visible (meaning other Bluetooth devices that are also on and within the 30-foot range can find it), and support the same protocol. When it comes to basic Bluetooth headsets, cell phones and headsets pretty much work together. Even if you have an earlier-version headset and a newer cell phone, chances are the phone will be backward compatible with the headset, and making a connection shouldn’t be an issue.

What kinds of Bluetooth headsets are available?
Like anything else regarding cell phones, there’s a large variety. They come in all price ranges and have loads of different features. You can get a Bluetooth headset, such as the Jabra BT135, for as little as $25. This is a basic headset that’s not too intrusive. Or you can get a headset, such as the Plantronics Voyager 520, that can connect to two different Bluetooth-enabled cell phones so that you can take calls from either phone without having to swap out the headset. Of course, a headset with that many features will run you closer to $70. Really, when it comes to Bluetooth headsets, choice is not the problem. Rather, it’s knowing which model is right for you.

What should I look for in a Bluetooth headset?
As noted above, Bluetooth headsets have a lot of features, but how do you know which features you want? That’s easy: check out the list below, identify the top 4 or 5 features based on your needs, and pick a headset that rates highly in all those areas.

Comfort and size: Remember--this is something you’re going to put in your ear, so comfort and size should be at the top of your list. Along these lines, you’ll want to look at the overall size and weight of the headset. This number should be fairly low--for example, 9 grams is just 0.29 ounce. Not enough perspective for you? Consider this: A silver dollar weighs just under 9 grams.

Style: Like many other accessories, when it comes to headsets, there isn’t just one style or color from which to choose. Some headsets have loops that you can use to help secure the headset around your ear. Maybe you prefer a headset you don’t need to keep in your ear constantly; no problem, there are pendant models that you wear around your neck and insert the earbud in your ear when you receive or make a call. Physical styles aren’t the only things to consider; of course, there’s always a fashion statement to make. In that case, you might want to look for headsets that come in different colors such as red, pink, or blue (instead of basic gray or black). Maybe you want something that will match your outfits on a more daily basis; check out a Bluetooth headset that comes with changeable faceplates. Yep, just like there are faceplates for handsets, some headsets sport this chameleon capability too.

Battery life: A Bluetooth headset typically has longer life than your mobile’s battery (anything listed at 6 or more hours of talk time should fit your needs). Still, it’s best to be conservative when reading the battery life numbers. For example, if the battery life is rated at 10 hours talk time, you’ll likely get about 8 or 9 hours of use before needing to recharge. About recharging: See if the headset comes with a car charger or has a charger similar to the one you already have for your handset. The fewer chargers you need to tote around, the better. There are even some models powered by batteries – no need for Bluetooth headset – either by using your voice to instruct the headset to answer or end a call or by pressing its dedicated talk button. However, that’s not all you can do with a Bluetooth headset. If you've set up voice-activated calling on your handset, you can also use it with some headsets. It will even dial your 10 contacts who have dedicated speed-dial numbers. Other headsets will even provide caller ID information for incoming calls, so you can decide whether you want to answer.

Noise/environment controls: These are particularly popular headset features, and of course, to identify them is to know their acronym. One popular acronym you may see a lot is DSP, short for Digital Signal Processing, which is a fancy way of saying a headset that has this technology is working hard to filter out external noises so that you can ultimately hear callers better. This feature is found on many high-end headsets. However, there are other technologies as well; some are proprietary, such as Jawbone’s NoiseAssassin, which is designed to separate voice from ambient noise, thereby making it easier for you to hear callers and for callers to hear you. In short, if you’ll be using the Bluetooth headset primarily in a convertible or while walking on busy streets, get a headset that comes with noise canceling technologies.

Additional features: Depending on what you want to do with the headset, there are other options available as well. For example, you can get a stereo Bluetooth headset; if your phone supports stereo sound, you can listen to music through the headset, and when a call comes in, you can take the call in stereo, then resume playback of the song when the call is over. Additionally, some headsets can pair with multiple handsets simultaneously. This feature is particularly helpful if you use two different cell phones often and need to take calls from both handsets. Unlike many headsets that can be paired with only one phone at a time, these advanced headsets let you have two active paired devices simultaneously.

How do I make a connection?
It’s true not all Bluetooth headsets are created equal, and there’s no universal way to get them to work. One thing is certain before pairing any cell phone with another Bluetooth device (i.e. a headset): Power off the Bluetooth headset, then power it on to get it into pairing mode. Also, don’t throw away the manual; key instructions for making a connection can be hidden in those pages, especially with more feature-rich headsets. In the meantime, these 5 tips should help you get started:

1. Figure out if you have a Bluetooth cell phone. Although most cell phones these days support Bluetooth, you should first check to see if your cell phone works with Bluetooth. There’s no need to mess with a manual; you can find this information in your cell phone. Depending on the cell phone you have, there may be a Bluetooth option in the main menu. If it’s not there, check under Connectivity, Settings, or Tools to find an option to turn on Bluetooth.

2. Deciphering when Bluetooth is activated in your cell phone. In order to make a pairing, you’ll need to activate the Bluetooth feature on your cell phone. The good news is that when Bluetooth is activated, the Bluetooth logo (it's a B) will appear in the cell phone’s display, typically next to the battery meter or the network strength logo.

3. The key is in discovery. Just because the logo appears in the corner of the display and Bluetooth is activated doesn’t mean you can pair it. To keep your cell phone safe from other Bluetooth activity, it automatically defaults to nondiscoverable mode, which means it can’t make a connection with another Bluetooth-enabled device. In the Bluetooth menu, often in Options, you can choose to make the cell phone discoverable. Typically, the cell phone will stay discoverable for just a few moments so that you can pair it with another device.

4. Make sure your Bluetooth headset is fully charged. Before pairing a Bluetooth-enabled headset with a Bluetooth-enabled cell phone, charge the headset, then turn it on. Once the headset is on, you’ll need to press and hold down the talk button until the blue light either flashes quickly or stays illuminated in order to pair it with a Bluetooth-enabled cell phone. (Note: This really varies among headsets, but when you see a regular flashing light, you probably won't be able to make a connection.)

5. Password clues. Making a connection is great, but sometimes a password is required to complete the deal. The password is almost always 0000 (four zeros), and in some cases, it can be 1234. Typically, though, it's four zeros.

How to Turn Your Smartphone into a High-End In-Car Navigation System

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 08:03:31 PDT

Are you the kind of person who doesn’t want to stop and ask for directions? Or maybe you know where you’re going, but don’t always know where to find a nearby gas station, movie theater or even ATM machine when you’re on the road. Perhaps you’ve even been considering purchasing a separate GPS unit for your car or upgrading your car to one with an installed GPS system. Well, before you check out the in-car GPS units you might want to see how your smartphone and a GPS accessory can fill the bill. The Motorola T815 combined with a compatible smartphone can easily be all the GPS you need and better yet you can take it with you in whatever car you’re using.

Camera Phone Buying Guide

Fri, 7 Dec 2007 06:12:02 PST

Smartphone Buying Guide

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 10:11:47 PST

Music Phone Buying Guide

Wed, 10 Oct 2007 12:08:56 PDT

How To Turn CDs Into Tunes for Your Phone with a Mac

Tue, 9 Oct 2007 10:10:21 PDT

If you're like us, you always have your cell phone with you... so if it can play music, why carry around that iPod too? One of the hottest trends is people replacing their MP3 players with music-capable cell phones, which make up in convenience what they sacrifice in capacity. Cell phones that play MP3s typically hold up to 500 songs on a 2GB memory card -- more than enough to get you through a week of gym workouts and commutes.

There are a few ways to get music onto your cell phone, and a number of different sources, but when it comes to getting the job done quickly and easily, nothing beats transferring music you've ripped yourself directly onto your cell phone via a USB cable or via a MicroSD storage card (see the PC version of this tutorial). We used a Motorola Razr for and a Mini-USB-to-USB cable for this How To, but it will work with any music-enabled cell phone that has a USB cable connection.

How To Turn CDs Into Tunes for Your Phone with a PC

Mon, 8 Oct 2007 14:10:56 PDT

If you're like us, you always have your cell phone with you... so if it can play music, why carry around that iPod too? One of the hottest trends is people replacing their MP3 players with music-capable cell phones, which make up in convenience what they sacrifice in capacity. Phones that play MP3s typically hold up to 500 songs on a 2GB memory card -- more than enough to get you through a week of gym workouts and commutes.

There are a few ways to get music onto your cell phone, and a number of different sources, but when it comes to getting the job done quickly and easily, nothing beats transferring music you've ripped yourself directly onto your cell phone via a USB cable (see the Mac version of this tutorial) or via a MicroSD storage card. We used a Motorola Razr 2 for and a MicroSD card for this How To, but it will work with any music-enabled cell phone that has an optional storage card.

Which Motorola Razr is Right for You (AT&T, T-Mobile)?

Thu, 13 Sep 2007 07:09:38 PDT

September 13, 2007
Uyen Phan

If a stylish, modern design is what you want from a cell phone, the Razr is a no-brainer. With all the different models available, picking the right Razr is a little more difficult then just choosing the right color. So before you plunk down your money and sign that contract, you may want to take a look at all those slim handsets under the Razr umbrella. Though they all share the same striking good looks, the cell phones in Motorola's line of Razrs are not created equal.

No matter which Razr you choose, you can look forward to enjoying a number of features from this cell phone. All Razrs come with a camera and a speakerphone, as well as games, MPEG-4 video playback capabilities, compatibility with MP3 ringtones, and messaging features. They also boast Bluetooth, but if you want to do more than pair your phone with a headset, you may have to check to see if your service provider has restrictions in place.

Dig a little deeper, though, and you'll start to see the differences. Whereas the first Razr model, the V3, was equipped with a simple VGA camera and 4X zoom, subsequent versions upped the ante, boosting the resolution to 1.3 megapixels and 8X zoom. The last Razrs, the V8 and V9, gives stand-alone digital cameras a run for the money, with a 2-megapixel camera that also offers autofocus and red-eye reduction. Want to take even better pictures? Check out How To Take a Better Picture with your Camera Phone.

Perhaps you prefer audio to video; if so, the Razr can help out there as well. With the exception of the debut V3, all Razrs can play MP3 and other audio files, which you can store in the phone's internal memory. If that's not enough space for you, you can also save your tunes on removable media.

Take a look at the chart below of the available GSM Razr models; surely, you'll find one that's the perfect fit for you.

	Razr V3	Razr V3i	Razr V3t	Razr V3xx	Razr2 V8	Razr2 V9
What's different about this Razr?	This Razr is the model that ignited all the excitement.	Upgrade to the original Razr and boasts an improved camera and video playback.	T-Mobile's latest Razr that includes removable storage and MyFaves.	Upgrade to the Razr V3i that includes support for a higher capacity memory card.	The newest Razr with external display touch sensitive controls with the largest internal memory, but can't expand it.	The newest Razr with touch sensitive controls on the external display with HSDPA for the fastest data/web experience.
Expert Rating	4.3	4.0	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Carrier	AT&T, T-Mobile	AT&T	T-Mobile	AT&T	T-Mobile	AT&T
World phone	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Camera	VGA camera with 4X digital zoom	1.3 megapixel with 8X digital zoom	1.3 megapixel with 4X zoom	1.3 megapixel with 8X zoom	2 megapixel with 8x zoom	2 megapixel with 8x zoom
Video	MPEG-4 playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback; H263 playback for 25fps
Music - supported formats	n/a	MP3 and AAC files	MP3 and AAC files	MP3 files	MP3, WMA and AAC files	MP3, WMA and AAC files
iTunes	n/a	Yes	Yes	n/a	n/a	n/a
Internal memory	5MB	12MB	5MB	12MB	2GB	45MB
Memory card; included?	n/a	64MB MicroSD card included	Accepts up to 1GB card; 128MB MicroSD card included	Accepts up to 2GB card; not included	n/a	Accepts up to 2GB card; not included
Supported Bluetooth profiles	Dial-up networking, headset, hands-free, file transfer, imaging, printing	Dial-up networking, headset, hands-free, file transfer, imaging, printing	Headset, hands-free, stereo music (A2DP), printing	Headset, hands-free, stereo music (A2DP), printing	Headset, hands-free, stereo music (A2DP), printing, peer-to-peer gaming profiles	Headset, hands-free, stereo music (A2DP), printing
Ringtones	MP3, Polyphonic	MP3, Polyphonic	MP3, Polyphonic	MP3, AAC, MIDI	Polyphonic, MP3	Polyphonic, MP3
Messaging	EMS, MMS, SMS, IM	EMS, MMS, SMS, IM	EMS, MMS, SMS, IM	EMS, MMS, SMS	SMS, MMS	SMS, MMS

A longtime editor in the fields of tech and consumer electronics, Uyen Phan remembers when the V60 was the hottest Motorola cell phone going.

Check Web-Based E-Mail on Your Cell Phone

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 13:04:04 PDT

Did you know that you can check most Web-based e-mail programs on your cell phone? It’s true. You don’t even need to own a smartphone, such as a BlackBerry, a Treo, or a Windows Mobile device, to do it. All you really need is a cell phone, a data plan, and of course a Web-based e-mail account.

When accessing Web-based e-mail, you typically have access to many of the features found in your online account, such as sent, new, and old e-mail, but you might not be able to access spam folders, address books, or saved messages. Additionally, you can use mobile e-mail applications on your phone just as you would on the computer. You’ll be able to send new messages, as well as reply to existing and new ones. However, what you do in your mobile e-mail account affects your online computer-based account; if you read a message, it will appear as read when you access your account using a computer.

Which Motorola Razr is Right for You (Sprint, Verizon, Alltel, US Cellular)?

Tue, 17 Jul 2007 16:07:26 PDT

July 18, 2007; Updated September 13, 2007
Uyen Phan

Dig a little deeper, though, and you'll start to see the differences. Whereas the first Razr model, the V3, was equipped with a simple VGA camera and 4X zoom, subsequent versions upped the ante, boosting the resolution to 1.3 megapixels and 8X zoom. The last Razr, the V9m, gives stand-alone digital cameras a run for the money, with a 2-megapixel camera that also 8x zoom and much richer screen for viewing photos and video. Want to take even better pictures? Check out How To Take a Better Picture with your Camera Phone.

Take a look at the chart below of the available CDMA Razr models; surely, you'll find one that's the perfect fit for you.

	Razr V3c	Razr V3m	Razr V3 Maxx Ve	Razr2 V9m
What's different about this Razr?	The first Razr for CDMA carriers including Verizon, Alltel and U.S. Cellular.	The 2nd generation of the Razr V3c, which also adds removable memory.	Verizon's latest Razr that boasts more multimedia functionality and a larger external display.	The next generation Razr boasts a new design that's thinner and a bit heavier with a much richer screen and external display touch sensitive controls.
Expert Rating	4.0	3.8	3.5	n/a
Carrier	Alltell, U.S. Cellular, Verizon	Alltell, Sprint, Verizon	Verizon	Verizon, Sprint
Camera	1.3 megapixel with 4X digital zoom	1.3 megapixel with 8X digital zoom	2 megapixel with autofocus, red-eye reduction, adjustable zoom	2 megapixel with 8x digital zoom
Video	MPEG-4 capture and playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback	MPEG-4 capture and playback. Also, you'll be able to watch TV shows when available.
Music - supported formats	AU, WMA, and MP3 files	MP3 and AAC files	WMA and MP3 files	MP3 and WMA files
Internal memory	30MB	23MB	60MB	65MB
Memory card; included?	n/a	MicroSD card; not included	Accepts up to 2GB card; not included	Accepts up to 2GB card; not included
Supported Bluetooth profiles	Headset, hands-free, stereo music (A2DP), printing	Dial-up networking, headset, hands-free, object push, file transfer, imaging, printing	Headset, input, stereo music (A2DP), file transfer	Headset, input, stereo music (A2DP), file transfer, printing
Ringtones	MP3, Polyphonic	MP3, Polyphonic	MP3, AAC, MIDI	MP3, Polyphonic
Messaging	EMS, MMS, SMS	EMS, MMS, SMS	MMS, SMS, IM	EMS, MMS, SMS

A longtime editor in the fields of tech and consumer electronics, Uyen Phan remembers when the V60 was the hottest Motorola cell phone going.