Analog vs. digital cellular phonesWritten by Tim Gorman
Cellular phones are an amazing modern convenience, but it can be confusing for consumers to distinguish between various options available. There are two main types of cellular phones: analog and digital. Each type operates slightly differently and has its own unique advantages and disadvantages.The first cellular phones were analog phones. Analog phones are basically an extremely sophisticated radio and telephone combination. The main advantage of analog cellular phones is that they cost less than newer digital phones. Analog phones are also a better choice for travelers, since 95 percent of county is equipped for their use. The drawbacks of choosing an analog phone are reduced sound quality and slightly higher per minute rate. Digital cellular phones use same basic technology as an analog phone. The difference is that digital phones use binary code and compression to fit more calls into a given bandwidth. Digital cellular phones offer longer battery life, better signals, and cheaper calling rates. The main disadvantage of digital cellular phones is that many parts of country aren’t equipped with proper antennae to receive digital signals. This makes digital cellular phones inappropriate for frequent travelers or individuals who live in rural areas.
| | Making sense of cell phone minutesWritten by Tim Gorman
Cellular phones are different from your land-line home phone in that you’ll need to determine in advance how many minutes you’ll use in any given month. Deciding how many minutes you’ll need and making sure you don’t go over your allotted minutes is one of trickiest parts of using a cellular phone. The most common arrangement for cellular phones is a block minute plan. With a block minute plan, you’ll pay a flat fee to purchase as set number of minutes each month. The disadvantage of this plan is that if you purchase 200 minutes per month, you’ll be billed same amount whether you actually talked for 199 minutes or 60 minutes. Something that many new cellular phone users don’t realize is that you’ll also be charged to receive calls. If you’re worried about going over your allotted minutes, it’s best not to give out your phone number to any more people than absolutely necessary.
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