“Of Mice and Megabytes Supplement”

TRANSFERRING YOUR INFORMATION TO A CELL PHONE
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Managing your cell phone contact list can be tedious and cumbersome. That’s why software is readily available allowing you to use your computer to update or synch your contacts list, download photos and music, or for changing ringtones. (Just Google your cell phone brand and model followed by the word “software.”) For some, however, these features might be overkill. Enter the CellStik.

The CellStik is a handy, highly portable device, and its use seems simple enough. Just plug it into your cell phone, check the status lights, push a button, and before you know it, your phone’s contact info has been saved to CellStik. The info can then be downloaded into your Windows-based computer and revised, then uploaded back to your phone. You can use CellStik by itself or in conjunction with the supplied editing program. (The software is not Mac capable.)

CellStik also makes easier the task of transferring contact information from one cell phone to another, but you must remember that different cell phones may have different connectors. In that case, you’ll have to buy two CellStiks and utilize a computer running Windows.

Visit the CellStik Web site (Spark Technology Corporation, sparktech.com) for more info and to check compatibility with your cell phone. It’s priced at $40 (Amazon.com or eCost.com) but here’s the irony: At that price, you can probably buy the full-featured software and the required data cable for your cell phone and do more than just edit your phone book.

ON A RELATED NOTE ...
Suppose your wife accidentally drops your cell phone into Donner Lake and you have to jump in and retrieve it? Well, luckily (?) for me the shiny cell phone was dropped in only five feet of chilly water and was easily rescued. But here’s where I made a fatal mistake: I shook out the water, and then turned it on. All I could hear were the sounds of crackling and arcing emanating from the phone’s innards, so I quickly turned it off. But being the impatient person I am, I couldn’t resist testing it a few hours later. The result: The LCD screen worked but it displayed the data upside down and right to left. No kidding. However, to its well-constructed credit, once dried, the phone worked flawlessly for about six weeks before retiring to that big cell tower in the sky.

Here’s my suggestion if you ever find yourself in a similar situation. Remove the battery and let it dry out completely, maybe 7-10 days. Do not turn it on! Even if you find yourself in the throes of cell phone withdrawal, do not turn it on. And, you can forget about returning it for warranty repairs. If you look closely under the battery, you’ll find a small white, round paper sticker. It’s a moisture sensor and turns red if it gets wet, such as when it’s dropped in Donner Lake. And that, in turn, voids the warranty.

The big X factor is I’m not entirely certain that there’s any recourse once your phone has played Sea Hunt. But I know one thing. I’d do it differently if it ever happens again. Like, making my wife jump in to fetch the damn thing.

Re-printed from the Rafu Shimpo, March 2006. Copyright©2006 Rafu Shimpo. All rights reserved.