Cell Display Screen

The display screen on my cell phone used to be very bright, and it dims automatically in a power saving mode when it is idle. A few weeks ago, coinciding when the basketball season started, I noticed that the screen was very dim.  I noticed this when I was in the United Supermarkets Arena,  home of the Texas Tech basketball teams and the women's volleyball team.  It did not really bother me anywhere else, and I thought it might have something to do with the lighting in the arena.  But I just was not satisfied with that explanation.  Yesterday while I was in the arena, waiting for the men's basketball game to begin, I started looking for a different answer.  And found it in settings, under Display and Brightness.  The brightness setting was set to its very lowest.  I think this occurred during the last update.  That is one of the things that distresses me about updates, they change settings that I never thought about, and have to go looking to try to change it to the way I like it. 

My Sprint Bill

I receive my Sprint bill online.  Just recently, my bill came in $16 more than it had been.  I had no notice of this.  So, I called Sprint.  After waiting about 10 minutes to talk to a representative, I was thanked for being a loyal Sprint customer since 1994!  I was told that had been on a discount plan that was no longer available, so I now had this higher rate.  Then, I was offered a lower rate plan, with unlimited service as I had been receiving, at slightly more than I was paying,  but not $16 per month. And, I could get even a lower rate, if I did automatic payment.  I was incensed. This should have been offered to me automatically, and I should have been able to make that choice before I was just charged the higher rate. 

Well, of course I accepted the lower rate plan, and was offered and accepted a discount for the bill I had just received.  I declined the automatic payment option, knowing full well that companies like Sprint count on customers not to pay attention when their bills change. I think this is a fraud. 

Sending Pictures From My Cell Phone

When I first bought my IPhone, I sent myself a few pictures.  Some came through, some did not.  One thing I did discover is that they almost always go through if I post them to Facebook.  So often, if I went to send a picture to my computer, I send it to Facebook, then copy it to my pictures so I can email it to others, who do not have Facebook.

Well, when I came back from my vacation in July, I tried sending some pictures to my Gmail account, and they went through right away, almost instantaneously.  

Last night, I wanted to send a picture to my computer to share it with a co-worker, not on Facebook.  Ultimately, I sent it 4 times to my Gmail account, and it never went through. I even sent it to my Suddenlink account, although in the past, the pictures almost never went through to the Suddenlink account.  So, tonight, when I signed on my email, the picture was in my Suddenlink account, and 4 times in my Gmail account.

Too weird. 

Return to Access

It was good last night to return to cell phone and internet access, and to watch the news.  Unfortunately, much of it was a rehash of what has been going on in the Trump presidency for the last six months.  He does it to himself.

Watching the news tonight, it just did not feel like there was anything new about it.  Maybe a return to access is not that important.

Phone Problems

I was at the Texas Tech Lady Raiders Basketball game on December 14, 2016, and discovered that my phone was not working. I was really frustrated.  This was the third time this fall that I have had phone problems.  Both times before, Sprint had to “flash” the phone, at no cost to me, but it took a couple of hours to do. This time, when I brought the phone in, the technician at sign in was able to do a “soft reset” which took care of the problem.  He told me what he did, so next time, I can try that first.

Technology Gone Awry

So, I was trying to add a new contact to my phone, and for some reason, it just would not happen. I tried multiple times over the weekend to add this contact, and it just would not happen.  So, today, after I left work, I went to Sprint https://www.sprint.com/ to get some help. I told the service representative I thought it might be operator error, but when he could not add the contact, he passed me off to another technician, who realized he could not add my contact, or any contact to my phone.  So, they had to "flash" my phone. That takes a couple of hours.  When I returned for my phone, more than 2 hours later, they still had not resolved the problem.  So, I waited (I don't wait well, but I was prepared,  I had book.) The technician came out and told me he did not know what happened but I had to erase every contact for this person that was basically hidden on my phone. He did this for me, and then told me I needed to get on the computer, on ICloud https://www.icloud.com/, and erase any remaining contacts for this person. He even gave me the phone number to contact Apple IPhone direct.

I went home and did this. I had to talk to an Apple representative to help me because I was not sure what I was doing. But, there were no apparent vestiges of the contact on ICloud, and I was able to load the contact on my phone.  The most amazing thing about this interaction was that the person I spoke to spoke English without an accent (the call was with someone in California) and we had to disconnect for me to do the functions on my phone that needed to be done, and this person called me back when she said she would!  Faith in American business can be restored by this level of customer service.  Apple https://appleid.apple.com/  and Sprint https://www.sprint.com get an A Plus!

A Strange Email

So, when I have tried in the past to send myself pictures from my IPhone to my suddenlink email account, it has not always been successful. I do not know why, but sometimes, the email shows up several hours or even days later. Sometimes, it does not show up at all.

Today, I did some things on my phone shortly after 1 PM.  This afternoon, when I checked my emails, I had one from my IPhone that was a picture from my IPhone, sent today.  The picture was taken in December 2015.

I do not know what I did to send this picture. I do not know why it came through so quickly. I do not know anything.

SPRINT Discount - Huh!

So, back in the spring, I found a SPRINT http://www.sprint.com/?INTNAV=LeftNav:Logo#!/ discount opportunity.  As an employee of Texas Tech Health Sciences Center http://ttuhsc.edu/ I qualified for a discount from SPRINT.  I am still qualified and  eligible for the discount, but the plan I chose is not eligible for the discount.  That is a SHAM and a CROCK.  What deceitful advertising that is. 

Except for a few glitches, I have been generally satisfied with SPRINT.  But this is now glitch number 3.  How many glitches do I put up with?  I don't know. Most people who talk about their cell phone services also have glitches, and several people I know pay much more than I do for monthly service.

So, I feel like I am at the mercy of my cell phone plan.   Oh well. It is what I chose. And I chose it knowing what it is.

Cell Phone Coverage

I have just about convinced myself it is time to get a smart phone.  Interestingly enough, the last time I decided that, I had coverage problems with Sprint.  That was the second time I had coverage problems with Sprint.  The first time was the Thanksgiving week from hell, when I did not have cell phone service at home, and the battery in my car was going away, and I could not count on the car to start when I used it.   That was November 2013.   Additionally, my back was hurting, so I could not walk to where I could use my phone.  I could not convince Sprint that there was a problem, and it took a week of complaining before they responded.  And, when they did, they found the problem.

The next time I had that problem, I got a customer service representative who was very good, told me how to reset my phone, clean off the battery connections, and he called me back when he said he would to see if that worked.  It did.  He reported there was a suspected problem in my neighborhood, and Sprint acknowledged to me that there was.  They took care of me the second time. Much better service.

Tonight, as I drove home, and I turned into my neighborhood, I could hear my phone searching for a signal. I could not remember how to reset my phone, but I cleaned off the battery, so that took care of the problem.

I think I will wait until April to get a smart phone:  Sprint has a contest where I could win one.  I doubt that I will, but I see no reason to buy a smart phone if I could win one. The contest lasts about 6 weeks.  I can wait.  Who knows.

Do I Really Need A Smart Phone?

So, I have an old-fashion flip phone.  It has a camera, which I do not use, and I can actually access the internet with it, if I want to, but access is so slow, and the screen size is so small, I have long ago discontinued that service plan.

I keep debating about getting a smart phone.  I can text with my flip phone. I pay for each text message.  But, the truth be known, for as much texting I do, the pay per text message cost is still much lower than what I would pay to have a smart phone unlimited plan.

So, why do I need a smart phone? I don't.  There are two reasons that are not very compelling for me to get a smart phone:   The technology of my flip phone is outdated, and there will come a time when it is so outdated that it will limit my phone capabilities.  Since I usually only use my phone for voice communication, that has not yet happened.

The other reason I might want (not need) a smart phone is because I want to learn and use that level of technology.  The truth be know, I seldom text, and I do not make a lot of phone calls. I might like the portable internet access, but I am not sure the price is worth the convenience. 

My cell phone service is with Sprint http://www.sprint.com/mysprint/pages/sl/global/index.jsp. I have been a long term customer with Sprint, I think since 2003.  I see the promotional offers for customers to change to Sprint, but I have never once recalled an offer from Sprint to reduce my bill, or give me a deal because I have been a long term customer. (This is a wrong, long term customers need to get consideration.)

In November of 2013, I had a connectivity problem which Sprint denied was happening, until I finally convinced someone to check on it and they realized it was occurring. I could not use my phone in my home for a week.  I asked for a price adjustment, was told it would be only a few dollars, and said I wanted it anyway.

Within the past 12 months, I had another such problem, but it was resolved much more quickly. 

Every time I call customer service at Sprint, I am thanked for being a long time customer, but those thanks are not reflected in my bill. Sprint needs to figure it out.  If they really value me as a long term customer, they need to find a way to reward me for that.  That might include giving me a deal on an upgrade, as if I were transferring in from another cell phone service provider.