This last weekend, Jenni “JWoww” Farley lost her BlackBerry. Jenni was apparently shopping at a Lowe’s hardware store in Toms River, New Jersey with boyfriend Roger when she lost the cell phone. Jenni reported the missing BlackBerry to the police, claiming the phone is worth $100,000. Why is Jenni Farley’s BlackBerry worth $100,000? Is Jenni’s BlackBerry made of Platinum? Jenni claims it’s because of her fame. “Because of all my contacts,” she told Toms River police. According to an article written by Fabiana Santana, Actress Archives, “It’s those contacts - all stored in her Blackberry - she is worried will wind up in the wrong hands.”

Jennifer “JWoww” Farley Loses Her $100K BlackBerry

Jenni is reported to be earning $100K per episode to star on season 4 of Jersey Shore on MTV. She will soon start filming a new reality show with Jersey Shore house mate Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi. Meanwhile Jenni is seen hanging out with celebrities in both Las Vegas and Los Angeles, when she isn’t with her boyfriend Roger Williams. The couple reportedly spends a lot of time in South Jersey. “She has a house here with Roger,” a source said. “They split their time between here and Long Island where her family is. For the most part they are pretty low key. But she was very upset she lost her phone.”

A Blackberry is just a cell phone, right? So why is Jenni so obsessed about losing it, and putting such a high value on it? Perhaps it is all the candid photos that are probably on it. Should we expect a nude photo scandal about Jenni coming to the tabloids soon? This may be a little too much of a reality for the reality show starlet.

What are your thoughts on this? Should Jenni just buy a new BlackBerry and stop creating sensational headlines? Do you think Jenni’s phone is worth $100K? Is this just a ploy for attention and tabloid space? Does anyone really care about her BlackBerry? Does anyone really care about Jenni “JWoww” Farley and her reality show, now running an incredible 4 seasons? Let us know.

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Today it’s official! Twitter for BlackBerry v1.1 is finally released. A select few were using the beta version, but the real McCoy was released today. According to a post by Kristy C., Inside BlackBerry, they have “made several changes to enhance the Twitter for BlackBerry Smartphone experience, like updated graphics that reflect the new look of the Twitter brand and a streamlined layout of the Add Photo and Add Location icons on the Home screen. The next time you Retweet something, it will appear in your Home timeline as ‘Retweeted by You’, to quickly alert you that your Retweet was sent successfully.”

New Twitter for BlackBerry v1.1 Debuts Today

The official BlackBerry App Store had this to say about the new Twitter:

“Doing the things you love on Twitter® are made quick and easy using your BlackBerry® Smartphone. With Twitter for BlackBerry Smartphones, you receive a notification as soon as a Message or @Mention arrives – no matter which application you’re using. And because you’re using a BlackBerry Smartphone, you not only receive a notification, the message itself is delivered directly to your inbox making it even easier to stay on top of what’s important to you. It even works with your BlackBerry Browser and BlackBerry Smartphone camera, so it only takes a moment to post a link or upload a picture directly to Twitter. Plus, you can follow friends, search for a topic of interest, edit re-tweets, and find users quickly by typing @usernames. Easily stay connected to the information and news you care about—all from your BlackBerry Smartphone.”

Key New Features in Twitter for BlackBerry Smartphones v1.1.0.21

•Add locations to your Tweets (adds your geographical location to Tweets and allows others to see where you were when you tweeted)
•Receive immediate notifications of @Mentions (when you’re mentioned on Twitter, you get a notification)
•View your Messages in a chat-style layout
•Select previously used hash tagged words with #Topic Autocomplete (pops up a suggested word list)

Are you a BlackBerry user? Will you try this new Twitter? Seems like a win-win situation to me. You get to have that cool BlackBerry and use Twitter as well.

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A new wooden-cased cell phone is being advertised by NTT Docomo in Japan. What is unique about this commercial is not so much that the cell phone’s case is made from wood, but the commercial itself. In an age of high tech, neon-lighted, rock music, this commercial is refreshingly free of all that hype. The commercial is set in the woods of Japan and features a hand built giant wooden xylophone playing Bach’s Cantata 147, “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.”A little wooden ball drops down hitting each wooden key and actually plays the song, ending next to the new cell phone. It is simplistic and inspiring.

Unique Cell Phone Ad Uses Giant Xylophone Playing in Woods

The Touch Wood cell phone, made by NTT Docomo, Japan, is only going to be offered in a limited quantity of 15,000. According to an article by Athima Chansanchai, Digital Life Today, “the DOCOMO website gives a few more details: the phone’s case is made from Shimanto cypress and uses the Olympus’ three-dimensional compression molding technique to achieve its look and feel. It comes with a 3.4-inch screen, QWERTY touchscreen keyboard and a 5-megapixel camera.” The cell phone case is bean shaped, and actually smells of cypress wood. The cases are made from indigenous wood that is part of a forest thinning project. The default home screen on the phone is “More Trees,” sticking with the theme of the forest project. The phone will be available later this year in Japan.

The video was shot in the woods of Japan by Morihiro Harano, the creative director of Drill Inc. “We did not add any artificial music at all,” Harano wrote (though they did adjust some levels to “bring out the sound of river and nature”). His creative genius really comes through in this video. He captures the sense of the forest with shots of deer, forest sounds in the background and a general ambiance of peace. It’s such an unusual way of advertising a high tech device. I like it a lot!

I am so impressed with the video that I have included the YouTube video for you to watch here:

We should celebrate creative geniuses like Morihiro Harano. With all the hype in advertising today, it is so refreshing to see a commercial that soft plays the product. I wouldn’t care what the product (well within reason) is, I would want to buy it or at least learn more about it.

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There’s a new Million Dollar Man. Well actually, it’s a new Five Million Dollar Man. Leonardo DiCaprio has started filming his new ad for the cell phone company, Guangdong OPPO Mobile Telecommunications Corp. The ad will be appearing exclusively in Asia later this year. The actor was spotted yesterday filming his new TV commercial in Paris, France. Leo has simultaneously been working on his upcoming film J. Edgar. Now that is multi-tasking in the extreme (and making big bucks to do so.)

Leonardo DiCaprio to Earn $5 Million for Chinese Cell Phone Ad

Celebrity endorsements aren’t new. According to an article written by Joyce Lee, CBSNews, “last December, actress Julia Roberts was reportedly paid about $1.5 million to appear - and not speak - in a 45-second commercial for Italian coffee brand Lavazza.” DiCaprio is reportedly making $5 million for this 30 second Chinese cell phone commercial. (Can we assume this is also a non-speaking part since DiCaprio probably doesn’t speak Chinese?) The deal is believed to be the most lucrative endorsement contract so far for the 36-year-old, who has also previously fronted ad campaigns for Suzuki and Tag Heuer.

The set of the commercial is the Alexander III Bridge in Paris. DiCaprio is being paid an exorbitant fee to run across the bridge. Nice work if you can get it. Does anyone else feel this is just over the top? $5 million dollars for a 30 second spot commercial? It certainly does say something about value systems. Of course I shouldn’t be surprised. In a world where we pay professional athletes millions of dollars per year to do what they love doing, it really shouldn’t be a shock that celebrities are garnering millions for their endorsements of products. I personally don’t find celebrity endorsements persuade me to buy the product. After all, the celebrities are paid to say nice things about the product (or in this case, to run and not speak.) I find customer testimonials are much more persuasive to making me purchase an item. But hey, who wants to see your next door neighbor run across a bridge?

Are you a celebrity watcher? Does the fact that a famous person endorses a product create the desire for you to spend money? Or are you more of a down-to-earth purchaser? Let us know.

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The largest wireless service providers, AT&T and Verizon Wireless have announced free calling and free texting to Japan. Peace of mind is free for a limited time. In the wake of one of the worst natural disasters in history, an 8.9 magnitude earthquake and 30 feet tsunamis, the world watched in horror and worried about the people in Japan. Now with nuclear reactor melt-downs, everyone is sitting on pins and needles waiting…

AT&T was first to announce free calling and free texting to Japan. Verizon followed suit shortly thereafter. Both companies also make it easy to donate by texting to help the people in Japan. If you are calling from an AT&T phone, simply text “redcross” to 90999 to donate $10 (added to your cell phone bill) to help the relief efforts in Japan.

Verizon actually posted a list of 9 charities to text donations. Verizon customers can easily make a $10 donation by simply sending a text message and may choose from nine organizations aiding those in need in Japan, including the American Red Cross. Donating $10 is easy – simply text the specific word to the organization’s designated short code:

* ADRA Relief: text SUPPORT to 85944
* American Red Cross Relief: text REDCROSS to 90999
* Convoy of Hope: text TSUNAMI or SUNAMI to 50555
* Global Giving: text JAPAN to 50555
* International Medical Corps: text MED to 80888
* Mercy Corps: text MERCY to 25383
* Salvation Army: text JAPAN to 80888
* Save the Children Federation, Inc.: text JAPAN or TSUNAMI to 20222
* World Relief Corp. of National Association of Evangelicals: text WAVE to 50555
* World Vision, Inc.: text 4JAPAN or 4TSUNAMI to 20222

Text messages are free for customers donating to any of these organizations. Verizon Wireless always waives text-messaging fees for disaster relief, and 100 percent of each $10 donation goes to the relief organization. For Verizon Wireless customers who pay monthly bills, the $10 donations will appear in customers’ next regular monthly bill. For customers using the company’s prepaid services, the $10 donations will be taken from customers’ prepaid balance.

As with any crisis, scammers are beginning to form schemes to take advantage of people’s generosity. See my blog Avoid Donation Scams—Giving Help to Japan. My advice would be to text from the list provided above if you are a Verizon customer, or check with your cell phone service provider for their approved list.

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photo credit: Texting While Driving

Cell phone distraction is still a major contributor to auto accidents. According to the National Safety Council, 1.6 million accidents a year are caused by cell phone use. The Christian Science Monitor reports that 1.4 million crashes are caused by people talking on their cell phones, while conservatively estimated, there are another 200,000 caused by people texting while driving.

Still Texting While Driving?

“This number is huge,” says David Teater, senior director of transportation strategic initiatives at the National Safety Council, whose 12-year-old son was killed in a crash caused by a driver on a cell phone. “One out of every four car crashes in the United States is caused by cell phone distraction.”

Only 6 states and the District of Columbia have banned hand-held cell phone calls while driving. However, 19 states have banned texting while driving. Interestingly enough, texting laws are much harder to enforce than using a hand-held cell phone because it is harder for law enforcement officers to actually see someone texting. According to an article by Kevin Ransom, AOL Autos, is that the laws are ineffective. Ransom reports that a study by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) found that that laws banning texting while driving did not result in fewer car crashes. In fact, there was a slight increase in insurance claims after the bans went into effect. These statistics were based on the number of such claims filed in four states (California, Minnesota, Washington and Louisiana) before and after their texting bans. AAA of Southern California reported similar statistics.

FocusDriven is a new advocacy group just created by the US Department of Transportation. It is styled after MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Drivers) and will be working to fight distracted driving. The group will be headed by Jennifer Smith, whose mother was killed by a driver on his cell phone. US Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said, “Just as groups like MADD changed attitudes about drunk driving, I believe FocusDriven can help raise awareness and change the way people think about distracted driving. Together, I hope we can put an end to this dangerous practice.”

If the laws aren’t helping, what will help? Will advocacy groups help? How about software apps? There are some apps that virtually lock your phone from sending and receiving text messages while in motion. The apps usually respond to an incoming text message that the owner is driving and will get back to them at a more convenient (and hopefully safer) time. I have written about some text-blocking apps before. See my blog, 3 New Mobile Apps Can Block Texting and Calling While Driving. Humans are usually motivated by fear or greed. If the fear of crashing their car, or actually killing someone doesn’t stop the texting, and if the high price of tickets for being caught doesn’t deter them, what will? Perhaps the text-blocking apps will at least be a way for parents to stop their driving teens from texting. Obviously an adult would have to install one of these programs on their own phone. I doubt that will happen since they are already breaking the law and common sense. But then as one of my favorite sayings goes, “Common sense is not so very common.”

Do you still text while driving? Shame on you. Do you have a Bluetooth or other hands-free device so you can talk while driving? If not, why not? You can get a great NoiseHush Bluetooth that has noise canceling, is comfortable and light weight, and very inexpensive at batteries4less.com. Click on the link and check it out.

Texting while walking is not a good mix. Just ask the “Fountain Lady.” Over 3.5 million viewers saw Cathy Cruz Marrero, 49, fall into a fountain at the Berkshire mall in Pennsylvania. Cathy was walking and texting and obviously not paying attention to where she was going. Cathy should have had the Road SMS app installed on her cell phone. It overlays the texting screen as it uses your camera to give you live video of where you’re walking. So now you can be a texting pedestrian.

Hey Fountain Lady! Can You Text and Chew Gum at the Same Time?

Fountain Lady is threatening to sue all involved in posting the video of her. While most humor is usually based on someone else’s misfortune, it is unfortunate that Ms. Marrero was caught on video being so unconscious. I can see her point of view about being humiliated by a viral video clip, but if she had kept her mouth shut, and not appeared on nationwide TV (Good Morning America, Thursday, January 20, 2011), no one would have known it was her. The video didn’t show her face. Not only has she opened a can of worms as far as revealing her identity, she inadvertently opened herself up to legal troubles as well. Apparently she had outstanding warrants and is facing five felony counts, including theft by deception and receiving stolen property, at least according to a blog posting by Imtiaz Farooq on Gather.com.

Road SMS is a cool app that alters your reality. If you can get over the visual confusion of walking and texting while actually seeing a video of where you’re headed, the app could prove to be invaluable. It would certainly be an improvement over walking into people (or fountains) at malls. I’m not so sure about crossing streets and stepping out into traffic, but perhaps with practice you could safely maneuver such obstacles. Of course reliance on this app is only good for where the camera is actually pointing. Any peripheral activity is excluded from the video screen. So look out for the skateboarder approaching on your right.

Fountain Lady’s video has caused quite a stir. Want to view it? Follow this link for a good laugh Fountain Lady on YouTube.

So can you walk and text at the same time? Are you naturally clumsy like Fountain Lady or more adept at multi-tasking? Inquiring minds want to know.

photo credit: Green Burial

The average American household has 25 electronic gadgets. According to an article by Mickey Meece, NYTimes, a November report, “Tackling High-Tech Trash,” from Demos, a public policy organization focused on economic fairness and sustainability, cited government data showing that Americans owned three billion electronic products, with a turnover rate of about 400 million units each year. The astounding news is that the report states that less than 14% of these gadgets are recycled. We are being very irresponsible with our e-trash.

Give Your Gadgets a Green Burial

There are many ways to recycle those old gadgets. If you are moving, now is the time to sell those gadgets on CraigsList, donate or give away those unwanted electronic gadgets. Organizations that either recycle or refurbish those devices are a good way to pass along the gadget when you upgrade to a newer device. Best Buy will take your small devices for free to recycle, and only charge you $10 for a device with a screen. The good news though, is that they will give you an instant $10 store credit to spend. Slightly used items can be traded in for a gift card. Certain big TVs and appliances can be hauled away for a fee. The removal is free if the customer buys a newer appliance from Best Buy to replace the old one. Dell is partnering with Goodwill Industries to make it easier to donate used computer equipment. Most cell phone service providers will take your used phone, but there are also many places that will take them as a donation and turn them into emergency 911 cell phones programs. See my blog, Free Cell Phones for 911 Calls. Elizabeth Grossman, author of the book “High Tech Trash” (2007, Island Press), said the manufacturer take-back programs, which the coalition grades annually, should be a consumer’s first stop. “I like the idea that it closes the loop on the product lifecycle for the manufacturer,” she said.

Approximately two dozen states have passed laws mandating the recycling of electronic waste. According to the Electronics TakeBack Coalition, “All of the laws except for California’s require the manufacturer to pay for recycling. New Jersey’s law took effect on Jan. 1, while New York’s law comes into force on April 1.” It seems like we need more states to participate in the recycling of all these electronic gadgets. As responsible consumers, we should take the initiative ourselves, but let’s face it. Americans are slow to do the right thing. We need a bit of nudging.

Is a bad battery forcing you to upgrade your cell phone or camera? That is what cell phone service providers are telling you. You can buy an inexpensive replacement battery for most of your electronic devices at batteries4less.com and save yourself a lot of money, as well as the learning curve of a new device. Best of all you can drop off your battery or mail it back and batteries4less will recycle it for you.

No matter what your electronic needs are, you can act responsibly. Recycle and give those devices a nice green burial. Have green ideas to share—let us know.

You most likely carry a tracking device everywhere you go. For those of us with GPS enabled cell phones, our locations (even when the phone is powered off) are being tracked by cell phone towers. Law enforcement wants to access this information without showing probable cause, however may have to obtain your private records by showing “probable cause” standard. At least this is what the 3rd US District Circuit Court of Appeals in Pennsylvania ruled in September 2010.

Protecting Our Privacy from GPS

Not all courts agree on this decision. Even though the Philadelphia-based 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a Justice Department argument that judges are required to issue orders giving the government access to the data, and just a month or so ago, the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals denied a similar government effort in a location privacy case, it is not so in California. On January 5, 2011, Supreme Court of California granted police the right to search a suspect’s cell phone without a warrant. See my blog, Supreme Court of California Allows Cell Phone Search. Of course this is just for pursuit of a suspect involved in a crime, right? But where does the line get drawn? With different courts coming to very different rulings, where is the actual law headed? Will our right of privacy be protected or batted around like a balloon on a string?

GPS enabled cell phones can be tracked even if the phone is not in use. The cell phone location is tracked by Cell Site Location Information (CSLI.) According to an article posted by Leota Bates, zwillgenblog.com, “CSLI is data derived from signals sent between cell towers and cellular telephones that can be used to identify the location of a particular telephone. Each cell tower in a provider’s network is equipped with radio intercepts that receive signals from cellular phones. Even when cellular phones are not in use they are continually registering their location with the closest cell towers so that the provider’s system can expedite service by sending incoming calls directly to that tower. This registration information can be stored by cellular phone providers for up to 18 months before it is deleted or anonymized.” This means that Big Brother is watching you, and your privacy is at risk.

There will certainly be more court appeals to come. Our civil liberties are at stake. Several “watch dog organizations” are monitoring the events carefully. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) say they are not opposed to law enforcement gaining access to the cell phone tracking records as long as it is done with a warrant.

“The fundamental problem here is the federal law governing this area was written in 1986, when cell phones were as large as your head,” says Catherine Crump, an attorney with the ACLU. “Here in 2011 everyone is struggling … to figure out how to apply this extremely outdated statutory scheme to technology that simply wasn’t contemplated at the time.” Ultimately, adds Bankston of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the uncertainty will continue until either the Supreme Court rules on the issue or Congress steps in and clarifies the law.

This is a watch and see situation. Most certainly we don’t want to turn a blind eye to our rights. I already feel like our lives are under much too much scrutiny by the government, don’t you? Big Brother IS watching, and breathing down our necks.

Are your kids protected from sexual predators? Do your kids have cell phones? While this is a major convenience for most of us, kids and cell phones can pose many dangers. Are you concerned about a stranger texting your kids? Worried that inappropriate photos being sent back and forth? My Mobile Watchdog may be a viable solution for you and your kids.

Kids and Cell Phones Can Be a Dangerous Combination

My Mobile Watchdog (MMWD) claims to help apprehend sexual predators. MMWD is a cell phone surveillance service that allows parents to monitor who is contacting their children. It allows the parents to have an approved list of contacts on their children’s cell phones. Any time an unauthorized person tries to contact their child, an alert is sent to the parent with a copy of the exact text message, photo or phone number. According to an article by Andrew Berg, Wireless Week, “Robert Lotter, CEO and inventor of My Mobile Watchdog, says that My Mobile Watchdog has helped in the apprehension of 308 child predators, with a 100 percent conviction rate.”

My Mobile Watchdog is not spyware. The software is installed on the child’s cell phone with their full knowledge. An alert pops up periodically to remind the kid that all messages are being monitored. It isn’t so much a matter of trusting their children as it is about trusting their children’s maturity to make wise decisions. According to Lotter, as technology advances, so have the concerns about “stranger danger.” Social networking can be dangerous. While a child might not actually talk to a stranger, a 30 year old sexual predator posing as a 15 year old on Facebook might ask and receive their cell phone number for texting. My Mobile Watchdog would alert the parent with a transcript of any text sent by an unauthorized sender.

Cell phones are a convenient device for family communication. Having a monitoring service will add another layer of security and peace of mind for parents. With reports of cyber bullying, teen sexting, and anonymous sexual predators, parents need more awareness and control over their children’s cell phone usage. Another company, Bully Stop, released a text monitoring software program last year. See my blog, Bully Stop or Another Case of Big Brother Watching… . My Mobile Watchdog seems to be a more robust app than Bully Stop. According to Andrew Berg’s article “In the United States, My Mobile Watchdog is a phone-based solution that works primarily on Smartphones (iPhone, BlackBerry and Android), as well 25 Brew devices on Verizon Wireless, but Lotter says he’s already deploying with China Mobile as a carrier-based solution.” As more awareness of these dangers grows, I’m sure more apps will become available.

Is Big Brother Watching? Perhaps we should rename that “Big Daddy Watching.” Regardless of what we call it, do you feel it is an invasion of your children’s right to privacy? Is it your right to monitor their safety, or is it going too far? Do you think kids should have cell phones in the first place? Let us know what you think. Write a comment. Start a dialog. We’ll post them!