XplanaZine

I have been through four cell phones in the past three and-a-half years because I either lose them or I get bored with them. It just seems like there are always cooler ones coming out. Two years ago, that would have been considered wasteful, but with cell phone companies busting at the seams with new features, these handhelds are becoming a dime a dozen.

Communication technologies are quickly changing, and it is risky to invest in the latest trends. For instance, PDA’s are utilized in the classroom and more schools are purchasing them to use in tandem with computers. Since more students have cell phones and the latest technologies are enabling more functionality in phones, wouldn’t it be wise to pass up the PDA?

My first cell phone touted such features as Internet access and multiple ring tones, but was big enough to require its own garage. Currently on the market are slim and sleek phones with feature sets for communication, entertainment and organization, thus quickly antiquating my first phone and each one thereafter.

Just when we thought it was cool to check out the latest sports stats or weather from our phone, the industry introduced IMing, and email features. Not only can I speak with my mother in Chicago, I can email her, send her a picture of myself, IM her, or send her a text message in case she didn’t hear her ringer.

When it comes to the entertainment features swarming new cell phones, all I need is my phone and a deserted island, and I’ll be amused for months. Games are constantly improving and videos can now be recorded. I can even have the latest P. Diddy song as my ringer. Madonna has also text messaged me with her latest concert dates. If I didn’t have a TV or radio on my deserted island, I could listen to Boston Red Sox games via streaming audio.

Fun stuff aside, cell phones are slowly becoming a carbon copy of computers. Students can write a reports and send them to their professors or conduct research on the internet and save it to their phones. Cell phones have abruptly ended the PDA’s lifespan. The days of PDA’s in the classroom have come and gone without even reaching 95% of classrooms across America.

That’s all I can write for now… the Beastie Boys just “texted” me that their album is in stores now.