Hasbro and Glu Mobile are launching a Transformer game for your cell phone. You can battle evil by playing as the main character, Optimus Prime. In addition, fans can customize their wallpapers, screensavers and voicetones on their cell phones with sounds and images from the summer blockbuster movie.

Transformers for your cell phone

Who is the target market? I am thinking it must be middle school kids cell phone users, although there are some hard core gamers out there who may be Transformer fans. The game and content is now launching through North and South America, Europe and Asia, and will ultimately be available through more than 150 carriers and distribution partners in 65 countries. It is a brilliant marketing plan from Hasbro to promote their new movie. I predict we will see more and more marketing aimed at cell phone users in the future.

Are you going to rush out and buy the app?

photo credit: Cell Phone Causes Sterility

Carrying your cell phone in your pocket is like carrying around a mini-microwave. GQ Magazine posted a story that research shows carrying your cell phone in your pocket may make you sterile. Does this mean we have the answer to overpopulation?

Your Cell Phone May Make You Sterile

I had heard that cell phones may cause brain cancer, but not sterility. Is there a chance that carrying the cell phone in the pocket will cause ovarian cancer or testicular cancer? Just what do we know about the effect of microwave radiation? The US military is developing microwave weapons. Should we be concerned?

Europe has been historically more cautious about cell phone radiation warnings. While European countries seem to be more cautious, the US has more stringent standards for cell phones. The U.S. and Canada allow a maximum SAR level of 1.6 watts per kilogram, while Europe caps it at 2 watts per kilogram. Does this make you feel safer living in the US?

US studies of cell phone radiation linked to sterility won’t be out for another couple of years. Perhaps you should think about carrying your cell phone somewhere besides your pocket. Use a Bluetooth device when calling. Take precautions in case this really can cause sterility.

You’ve been warned! At least they are still talking about sterility and not virility…

Authorities in Iowa City, Iowa, reported that a man was arrested for “liberating” a cell phone from a gym and sending unauthorized text messages from the stolen device. In the 18 hours the alleged thief had the phone, he sent 500 text messages. That equates out to sending a text message every 2 minutes.

Thief sends 500 Text Messages on Stolen Cell Phone

Does this qualify for the stupid crook file? Did the thief not think his text messages would be traced? (See my blog Shallow end of the gene pool?) With Big Brother watching our every move and tracing cell phones through GPS chips, this was a slam dunk for the police.

Schools are looking to purchase cell phone signal jammers. The misuse of cell phones during class is causing the teachers to fight back. Not only is it a huge distraction during class while teachers are trying to actually teach, but there is also concern that cheating is more prevalent with the ongoing texting.

Check Your Cell Phones at the Door

In Des Moines, Iowa, one school board member was quoted by the Des Moines Record. “I don’t think they have a place in the educational environment. The educational environment is supposed to be about students learning and teachers teaching and teachers can’t teach over a cell phone. If a student is busy on the cell phone they aren’t learning. It’s a distraction … and we need to minimize the distraction.”

What is the solution? With the FCC controlling signal jammers as well as signal boosters, and the law limiting signal jammers to use only by federal authorities, schools don’t have much of a chance to fight back that way. (See my blog Can your cell phone be jammed?)

One reader responded to the article in the Des Moines Register with an amusing suggestion to the problem. “Oh, For Crying-out-load. Just hang one of those shoe organizers next to the door and require each student to check in their phones on entering the classroom, then they can retrieve them after class. Just drop your phone in your slot and pick it up on the way out. Hey look, I solved the problem for less than $5.”

Cell phone abuse in schools will continue to be a problem. Should schools be able to jam the signals? Should a zero tolerance policy be in place and then confiscate the phones? The civil rights fighters will no doubt have a hay day with this issue.

Apple, Google, BlackBerry, Nokia and Palm are all fighting for the number one spot. With more and more demand for content rich apps on Smartphones, the very competitive market is the driving force for these companies. So how is the Smartphone war going?

The Smartphone War

Apple has held the number one spot for the past 3 years. But the mighty Apple iPhone is losing ground. Apple’ stock prices have flattened. The iPad isn’t the fix all that was predicted by Apple. Verizon won’t be carrying the iPhone this year, which would have boosted the iPhone sales. Is Apple in trouble?

The new Android trend is catching on quickly. With new devices, new apps and new service providers, the Droid is gaining momentum. Google’s willingness to upgrade the Android when new features come out is part of the draw. HTC has several Droids with more being released. Motorola has a Droid with Verizon and Google even has an HTC Droid of its own, an unlocked Smartphone available through Google’s website.

BlackBerry, once the leader for email syncing, is losing ground. Perhaps with Google Mail being available on the Droid, the BlackBerry needs to upgrade. With all the features being offered on other Smartphones, BlackBerry needs to get on the bandwagon and offer more.

Nokia, the Finnish manufacturer, is seriously in trouble in the Smartphone market. Nokia had no new device to show off at the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona. With the trend moving towards feature rich Smartphones, Nokia better “smarten up.”

Palm is struggling to keep up. They released the new Pixi hoping to compete in the market, but sales have been weak and the lack of cash flow is crippling Palm. Palm has moved to a partnership with AT&T, which will hopefully bring in more phone sales. The analysts predict Palm is going to continue to be pulverized.

Where are you headed with your next phone? With the unlimited talk, text and web browsing options being reduced in price from the service providers, the new Smartphones are much more attractive to me. How about you?

Versace has announced that it will design and release a designer cell phone this spring. Donatella Versace created this new mobile phone with French manufacterurs ModeLabs Group SA. It will reportedly retail for more than Christian Dior’s 2008 cell phone, which costs €3,500, or about $5,000.

New Designer Cell Phone by Versace

“Before, brands couldn’t imagine that a luxury telephone was possible,” said ModeLabs Chief Executive Stéphane Bohbot. “Now, limited distribution and customized design have created a new interest for brands in telephones.”

Is this just another way for the spoiled rich to spend money? For those people to whom “labels” are everything, this is probably the best news possible. For me? Let’s just say I think the money spent obscenely on such things would be better going to charity.

An unbelievable 2/3 of the planet’s population uses cell phones. At the end of 2009, 4.6 billion people were cell phone subscribers. This is up from 1 billion users in 2002. Even in developing countries the number of cell phone users was up to 50% of the population.

67% of all people on Earth use cell phones!

The ITU (International Telecommunications Union) predicted we would reach 5 billion cell phone subscribers by the end of 2010. (See my blog 5 Billion Cell Phone Subscribers in 2010.) And according to the ITU, the cost for cell phone service has become less expensive, dropping by about 15% globally between 2008 and 2009.

Also included in this report were statistics for Internet usage. While cell phone subscriptions are rising rapidly, Internet access is not rising as rapidly. At the end of 2009, 25.9% of the population had broadband Internet access. Compared to the 67% using cell phones, Internet access isn’t spreading as quickly. The exception to these statistics is China, which accounts for about one third of people in developing countries with Internet Access.

I have said it before. The trend is for people to ditch their land line phones in favor of only having cell phone service. With the dropping prices from the major cell phone service providers, it only makes sense to keep the mobile phones over the stationary land lines. (See my blog New MagicJack for Cell Phones.) And with the growing popularity of Smartphones that provide effective Internet access, I see the numbers of cell phone subscribers rising even more rapidly.

5 billion cell phone subscribers by 2010 was the announcement made last week at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, the industry’s biggest trade show. We had 4.6 billion in 2009, so the prediction isn’t a wild guess.

5 Billion Cell Phone Subscribers in 2010

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) also said the mobile broadband subscribers would reach 1 billion this year, after reaching 600 million last year. They attribute this to the expanding growth of the Smartphone market.

Even in 3rd world countries, the rise in cell phone usage is amazing. Recently in Haiti, cell phones were instrumental in providing necessary disaster relief (see my blog Cell Phones in Haiti are key to emergency services.) More and more services and applications are being developed for Smartphones, making communication easier.

Face it. We are driven by instant communication. Is it any wonder cell phone usage is growing? This seems to be a no-brainer. And personally, I am thrilled. I know it makes my life easier. How about you?

The FCC not only regulates cell phone signal boosters, but also regulates the cell phone signal jammers. The way the law reads now, jammers can only be sold to federal authorities. In October, the US Senate passed the Safe Prison Act, allowing prisons to apply to deploy a cell phone jammer to block wireless coverage in the prison. This holds true for state prisons as well as federal prisons.

Can your cell phone be jammed?

The FCC is considering a regulation that would make cell phone signal boosters illegal unless they are deployed by a wireless operator or with the consent of a wireless operator. This will impact a significant number of users who already own such devices. MagicJack and other femtocell solutions could also be impacted. The argument is that a cell phone booster can enhance coverage for a customer, but also has the potential to interfere with someone else’s signal.

How does this affect you? Have you bought a MagicJack? Do you have poor coverage and need to buy a signal booster? Is this just another ploy by the cell phone service providers to control our dollars?

Cell phone service providers have figured out ways to bilk their customers of billions of dollars! They hire experts to figure out which bundles will suck the most money out of the customer’s pockets. People are catching on, however, and fighting back with prepaid phones and other work-arounds.

9 Ways Cell Phone Service Providers Rape and Pillage

Last year T-Mobile lost a class action suit for charging early termination fees. AT&T, Verizon and Comcast rejected $4.7 billion in government stimulus handout because the terms of accepting the free money required fairness in the provision of services. They were smart enough to realize that they could make much more than the $4.7 billion if they weren’t held back by the fairness agreement.

Here are 9 ways cell phone providers are able to charge more money.
1) Text messaging (costs the provider a penny per text and while charging us 20 cents)
2) Cell phone insurance (with deductibles and the monthly fee, it’s often more expensive than the used phone they send you.)
3) Early cancellation fees (some providers have stopped this and are charging sign-up fees)
4) New phones without signing up for a plan (go to discount stores or eBay)
5) International roaming fees (cheaper to buy a prepaid phone when traveling in Europe)
6) Miscellaneous fees and surcharges (These little add-on charges total 13 percent of bill charges for such useful extras as termination and activation fees, regulatory fees, equipment shipping and administrative charges.)
7) Wireless service (US is in the top three most expensive countries for wireless service)
Mandatory Voice Mail Messages (announcements that take up valuable minutes)
9) Double-charging Minutes (charging the caller and the receiver)

Do they have us over a barrel? We are all dependent on our cell phones. But with a little ingenuity, we can save money. Buy a prepaid phone if possible. StraightTalk offers a reasonable $45/month for unlimited calling and uses the Verizon network so the service is the same. Verizon will be allowing calls over the Skype network starting in late march. The new cell phone MagicJack is coming.

Keep your eyes and ears open for discounts! Fight back!