Some weeks ago, we decided to change mobile provider. We have a contract with Telefonica Movistar, but most people we phone with are at Amena. We did some calculation and came to the conclusion that we could save on our bill by changing to Amena as well.
This weekend we finally found the time to head to the Amena office, and we explained out plans. The nice lady in the shop asked us some questions on our phone behaviour, who, when and how much, and she explained us about all the possibilities of the different packages. We made some quick estimations and selected the ‘right’ package.
Then the more important question came. Carriers earn so much money with all their inflated rates, that they can give away expensive toys. We could choose a new phone! MJ had prepared herself, and knew what her demands were: she wanted the cheapest phone that could flip open. Until now she always had candy-bar phones, but now she wanted clamshell. All other functions did not matter, since she only use the device for phoning and sending SMS messages. Her choice was the NEC e242.
Of course, as a reader of mobile expert Russell Beattie, I know that there is more. Russ has the most incredible applications and uses for his mobiles, and it seems that he uses his mobile for everything I still use a PC for. But his phones are, even after the carrier discount, so incredibly expensive that it would take me years to earn that back with the cheaper rate of Amena. I guess Russ lives in another realm, but most people here choose between the five cheapest models. So I set my mind together, and thought logically. I don't phone a lot, I use SMS even less, and once in a while I use WAP to spend some dead time. Basically, any phone would be enough. But hey, I am a gadget freak, so I should have something additional to wish for, right? Maybe I need a camera on my phone, to update my photo page more often. That's it! I looked around, and saw a nice and cheap Samsung phone that according to the specs had a camera. I asked if I could see it, and fell in love with the device. Cool design, very light weight (they show the phones without batteries), but… without camera. I asked the friendly lady if she could show me the camera, but no, they'd made an error in the specs. So I took the cheapest camera phone they had: the NEC e242.
Now we have to find a way to keep our new phones separated!
