Mobile Phone Security - worth doing.

Here is something worth knowing if you have a mobile phone ....

Have you ever wondered why phone companies don't seem interested in trying to prevent the theft of mobile phones? If you have ever lost, or had one stolen, and if you are on a plan, you still have to pay the plan approximately up to 24 months, and you have to buy another handset and enter into another contract. This is more revenue for the phone company.

There is a simple way of making lost or stolen mobiles useless to thieves and the phone companies know about it, but keep it quiet.

To check your mobile phone's serial number, key in the following on your phone:

star-hash-zero-six-hash ( * # 0 6 # )

and a fifteen digit code will appear on the screen. This is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it safe. Should your mobile phone get stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset, so even if the thief changes the sim card, your phone will be totally useless.

You probably won't get your phone back, but at lease you know that whoever stole it can't use / sell it either.

If everybody did this, there would be no point in stealing mobile phones.

May want to send this to as many people with mobiles as possible.

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Mobiles Stolen, Or Are They Lost Every 12 Seconds

According to Halifax Home Insurance, a mobile phone is stolen every 12 seconds in the UK costing £390 million a year. Is this the data on an epidemic of mobile phone theft or a reflection in the sort comings in Halifax Home Insurance’s policies when insuring mobile phones?

Did you know ... figures published in 2006 show ...
1.3 MILLION mobile phones were stolen
1.6 MILLION mobile phones were lost
600,000 mobile phones were dropped in the toilet
400,000 mobile phones were dropped in drinks, and
200,000 mobile phones ended their life in a washing machine!

Home insurance policies will only cover mobile phone owners for theft. That leaves over double the number uninsured. Thus, forcing 2.8 million mobile phone owners to make fraudulent insurance claims in order to cover the cost of a replacement phone.

Greater Manchester Police ran a month long amnesty on false theft reporting in September 2004. 53 people 'came clean' about bogus mobile crime reports, a saving £16,000 in Police resources. The amnesty, called 'Operation hawk', was intended to publicise the huge drain on police resources from people looking to obtain crime reference numbers for false insurance claims.

An easier way to avoid making illegal and fraudulent insurance claims is to insure you mobile phone properly with a specialist mobile phone insurance company such as 2u.
2u. covers for loss and water damage, the two main reasons for requiring insurance.

2u. does not stop there. It’s policy covers you for up to £1,000 replacement cost and truly covers for fraudulent calls. For more information on 2u Mobile Phone Insurance Click Here

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Motorola RAZR V3i i-Tunes

Have Motorola done it again? When Motorola launched it's Razr V3 it was an instant hit.
The slimness, the shape and the functionality appealled to everyone. The silver high tech, the macho black and the girlie pink all found their niches making the Motorola Razr V3 the most popular mobile phone.

The long awaited upgrade the V3i with it's two screen option of an internal 254k colour screen or 64k external colour screen using SCREEN3 technology to bring you instant news and sport content. A TransFlash memory card compatible up to an incredible 512mb and independant speaker voice recognition. While still remaining inside the 14mm thickness, is here.

But not happy with that, the Motorola V3iM mobile phone takes Motorola's popular RAZR flip design adds an expandable memory then goes a step further by including Apple i-Tunes compatibility.

The result is a music player that's delightfully easy to use. Press the Music key - that's what the 'M' at the end of the name stands for in case you wondered - and you're able to browse through playlists to choose your favourite songs. Just as importantly Apple's iTunes software also makes it easy to transfer songs from your PC. In fact the Motorola V3iM is a perfect companion whether you already have an iPod or if you're just joining the digital music revolution.

Take a break from your favourite tunes and you'll discover a 1.23 megapixel camera for photos and videos. The large high-resolution colour display will act as a full-screen viewfinder or if you prefer you can use the smaller external screen for self-portraits. In addition this ultra-slim camera phone offers you Java games MP3 ringtones a personal organiser voice-activated calling and quad-band international coverage. But we reckon it's the music features that'll convince most people. The Motorola V3iM has taken the mobile music player and transformed it into a svelte style icon.


MOTOROLA RAZR V3iM

Sleek and stylish fold-open design
1.23 megapixel camera
MPEG4 Video playback
2 colour displays: Internal 256K colours external 65K
SCREEN3 Technology (Instant access news & sport content)
E-mail client (POP3 IMAP4 SMTP)
Speaker independent voice recognition
Bluetooth™
Java™
TransFlash memory card compatible up to 512MB
Polyphonic speaker with MP3 ringer
Electro-luminescence keypad illumination panel
Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)
Quad Band

If you have used this phone or have any opinions on it please leave a comment.

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What is International Roaming?

To get a better roaming deal, it helps to understand what roaming is and how it works.

Unless you have studied your Operator's roaming charges, you probably have little idea how much you will be charged when travelling

Let's say you drive from your "Home Country" across the border into a "Destination Country". How is it your mobile phone keeps working? After all, you have a mobile phone Operator at home, but it doesn't have a presence in the Destination Country. So how come you can still make or receive calls?

The answer:

* when you crossed the border, you started 'roaming' on a mobile phone network in the Destination Country. This "Host Operator" will now handle at least part of every call you make and receive;
* Rather then sending you a separate bill, the Host Operator charges your Home Operator, using a wholesale rate they arranged between themselves;
* Your Home Operator then passes this expense on to you in your next bill. This retail charge is likely to be greater than the wholesale rate they were charged.

There are almost certainly several Operators in the Destination Country, but you were probably transferred to one Host Operator automatically (you may have received a 'welcome SMS'), because operators across Europe have set up roaming arrangements. However:

* unless you have studied your Operator's roaming charges, you probably have little idea how much you will be charged when you're travelling
* you can choose your Host Operator - it's just a question of pushing the right buttons on your mobile phone



How to get a better deal - general advice
Before travelling

Mobile phone operators offer different packages. It makes sense not only to consider the different tariff plans and packages of one specific operator, but to compare those of several operators in your home country. For instance, if you expect to be travelling more frequently in the near future, it might make sense to shop around and consider switching from your current operator to a competitor. This is relatively easy to do and, thanks to EU legislation, you can keep your number.

Check with your mobile operator (and other operators) the current rates applying to your destination country. Check the sample tariffs pages for examples of what you can reasonably expect to be charged.

As you can manually select the roaming network in your destination country using the Select Network function on your mobile phone, it makes sense to check beforehand what rates are on offer once you arrive in your destination country. Again, check the sample tariffs pages to see what you can expect to be charged.

Remember that as a general rule you’ll be charged more expensive rates if you are a pre-pay customer rather than a regular subscriber.

Ask your mobile phone operator about any special deals it might offer. Many operators offer special holiday roaming packages. Sometimes, you have to sign via text message to be eligible.

Let your close friends and family know you will be travelling. This will avoid unnecessary calls. Ask them to text you instead. Alternatively, divert all incoming calls straight to your mailbox before leaving home.
When travelling

Remember you may be able to influence the level of roaming charges by selecting the proper network upon which you are roaming. Your handset will have an in-built function that allows for manual selection. Typically, your home operator will automatically guide you to roam on a specified partner network - but this may not necessarily be the cheapest option for you in all cases. Get in touch with your operator to learn about designated partner networks.

Always try to use off-peak rates which can be considerably cheaper. Off-peak rates apply on weekends and on working days in the evening, typically after 7 p.m.

Remember that mobile phone companies often charge by the minute, rather than by second.

Consider buying a local SIM card. Your number will change while you are away but you will only pay local rates for your outgoing calls.

Consider sending text messages instead of calling - this will reduce your charges.
Innovative Roaming Packages

In response to public concern about high roaming charges and to increase competition in the market, mobile phone companies have in recent months launched new and innovative tariff packages for international roamers.

These tariff packages are sometimes labelled special deals for the holiday season and at other times standard long-term offers.

Clearly we do not endorse any particular operator or any particular pricing initiative. However, you can consult the tariffs posted on the operators' websites.

You may also look out for up-to-date information on these new packages advertised in international airports and railway stations.

To take advantage of this encouraging movement in the markets, please contact your mobile phone operator.

Alternatively you might wish to use an international roaming SIM card.

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Guilty of "Using a Hand Held While Driving".

There is a new criminal offence in the UK of "using a hand-held phone while driving."

There has been a law against using mobile phones while driving for some years now, so how does this one differ? In day to day layman terms there is no real difference except for the penalties. No longer do you have to go to court. The police can issue you with a fixed penalty notice of £30 on the spot fine, soon to rise to £60. If the matter goes to court the fine rises to £1,000 if it is a car. if it is a van, coach, mini bus, lorry or any other commercial vehicle it rises to £2,500.

There is another significant difference to the previous law and the key word for this new mobile phone driving law is "hand-held".

It is perfectly legal to use your mobile phone while driving if you do not have to "hold" the handset at any time throughout a call. This includes pressing a button to accept or decline the call. Something you still have to do with standard hands free kits.

Most mobile phones now come with Bluetooth as standard but how many actually use it? If you are put off because you do not wish to look like a puppet out of Captain Scarlet with a "space age" head set, you can breath easy.

With the Bluetooth Car Kit unit you do not have to wear any head set, you do NOT have to hold the handset at ANY time thoughout the call. You are always perfectly legal and driving safely.

To accept a call you simply press the button on the Bluetooth unit itself, not the handset. This simple difference will help you avoid heavy fines.

The message is simple, in order to avoid driving illegally, and avoid facing fines from £30 to £1000, drivers must stop using their mobile phone while driving. The alternative is to use a mobile phone acessory hands free unit that allows the driver to talk and drive without having to hold the mobile phone. Popular low cost hands free kits do not allow you to do this.

Why Bluetooth? Bluetooth is a short-range wireless connection. This means you do not have to physically connect your phone to the car - you simply have to be in the car or near the car. So the phone can still be in your pocket or bag while you drive and talk. Another benefit of having a Bluetooth car kit? You can change phones - use another Bluetooth phone and you can still use the same Bluetooth Car Kit. So you can see that to avoid being stopped by the police and given on the spot fines, you need to drive carefully and sensibily, and legally, with your own mobile phone Bluetooth Car Kit.

Click here for more in-depth details on the new car driving and mobile phone law from the BBC.

Mobile Phone and Driving: Frequently Asked Questions

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Can Mobile Phones Boil An Egg?

I am sure you have heard how a mobile phone can fry your brain.

How do they know that? Have they actually tried to fry someones brain using mobile phones?
Well the answer to that is no. No, nobody has tried to fry someones brain. They have boiled an egg though.

Two Russian journalists, Vladimir Lagovski and Andrei Moiseynko from Komsomolskaya Pravda Newspaper in Moscow decided to try it out first hand and discover just how harmful those innocent mobile phones really are. Using a simple low tech experiment that can be replicated in any school or home they set about to learn the facts.

There is no magic in cooking with a mobile phone. The secret lies in the radio waves that are radiated from the mobile phone.

The journalists created a simple microwave structure. Setting two mobile phones with the egg in the centre, they called from one phone to the other. Placing a tape recorder next to the mobile phones to imitate speaking meant the mobile phones remained active while they got on with more important things.

After, 15 minutes: The egg became slightly warm.
25 minutes: The egg became very warm.
40 minutes: The egg became very hot.
65 minutes: The egg was cooked.

Conclusion:

Cooking eggs with mobile phones is indeed possible if not very expensive.
However, all this talk of danger is exaggerated; even if your brain gets cooked, it would take a quite a few hours of talking on a mobile phone. Although it is probably wise not to carry a mobile phone in your trouser pocket... just in case.

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