How about a 4sim?

I had stopped posting about tech stuff since I figured there are a ton of other people that seem to know more about tech stuff that I do. Besides, we’d be talking about the same thing anyway so what’s the point right? This post however isn’t about the technology. Well at least not entirely. It’s about the preposterousness (I think that’s a word) and the absurdity of the idea. Read on.

Have you ever seen guys with more than 2 mobile phones? I have. In fact I know someone with 4 mobile phones although he doesn’t carry more than 2 phones at a time. One of the numbers is always carried while he picks and chooses which of the remaining three he’ll carry with him. Of course, he’s got a Blackberry, an iPhone, a Samsung and another one I can’t seem to remember. The only reason I remember so much is because I was fascinated with this guy’s obsession of being so “in touch” with his network that he had to get 4 phones. I was also curious about his sanity. My guess is he needs just one phone and the others are to keep track of his girlfriends/mistresses! Or maybe they’re for different business? Bah….who knows!!!

Eiher way, enter – Dody, a Chinese mobile manufacturer that has taken into accounts dweebs like this guy and made a phone just for the likes of him. Here’s a phone that has slots for 4 SIM chips and what’s even better, the e-flyer attached says you can use them all at once! (If you can't view the flyer, visit: http://www.dody.mobi/ )

What will the come up with next? Seriously, this isn’t a rhetorical question. What WILL they come up with next?

Choices choices choices - This time, what smartphone do I buy?

Having used imate PDA phones for the past 4 years now, it's going to be a little difficult for me to get used to a different PDA/smartphone but it's about time I switch phones methinks. For the past few days I have been comparing various smart phones with the intention of getting one soon but can't seem to make up my mind. I've narrowed it down to 3 phones now, the imate JAQ3, the Samsung i600 and the Blackberry Pearl.

While the JAQ3 is my first choice at the moment, it is the first phone from imate to look and feel similar to a Blackberry and I have had qualms about the Blackberry since day one. Just like its predecessors the JAQ3 has good battery life (a must for a power user like myself), Quadband, GPRS with Push Email, a front placed QWERTY keypad, a decent camera with movie recording capability (for those specially over-the-top moments) and the usual Microsoft Windows Mobile for the on-the-go user. And it's got a stylus which I'm very very used to! Overall I think it's a pretty decent phone.

Second we've got the Samsung i600 with a sleek and sexy design. The thumbwheel is similar to the one provided by Blackberry and the Windows Mobile interface is a familiar sight for the hardcore imate user. (Don't you just hate the Sony Ericsson and the Handspring Treo interfaces?). The only weakness I see (apart from the slightly small QWERTY keypad which may take a while to get used to) is the battery. Samsung smartphones have been known to be battery drainers and how this one runs in the market is yet to be seen. Perhaps that is one of the reasons they give you a second battery.

The third in this review is the Blackberry Pearl 8100. The one really good thing about Blackberry is their marketing although the phones themselves have been getting rave reviews in Europe and the US. I honestly have a hard time buying what Americans buy! The Pearl comes with the usual Windows Microsoft interface, superior push email capabilities to add to the already much talked about email functionality of this phone with EDGE support. However the phone is sans 3G (don’t know when we'll get the full use of 3G in Kuwait but….) the QWERTY keys on the keypad are a little too small and according to some people that already have it, the phone capabilities of this piece are a little below expectations.

So there you have it; 3 good phones and I need to make up my mind by the end of this month. Any advice or input people?