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In Defense of Disposable Cell Phones

Posted by timothy on from the possibility-of-bad-vs.-actual-bad dept.

SomeoneYouDontKnow writes: "Disposable cell phones are finally hitting the market, and it sure is refreshing to see a major media outlet like the Los Angeles Times debunk the insane rush toward a surveillence state as promoted by John Ashcroft. Read this column by Dave Wilson for a sensible breath of fresh air." Thoughtful points made here -- the payphone analogy rings true to me.

23 comments

  1. Hurray for Ashcroft by fm6 · · Score: 2

    I don't see why everybody thinks the AG is an enemy of civil liberties. He's a staunch defender of the second amendment!

    1. Re:Hurray for Ashcroft by LordNimon · · Score: 1

      But he's an opponent of the 1st and 4th amendments.

      --
      And the men who hold high places must be the ones who start
      To mold a new reality... closer to the heart
    2. Re:Hurray for Ashcroft by Happy+Monkey · · Score: 1

      As with all staunch partisans, he'll defend to the death the ammendments he agrees with, and fight tooth and nail against the ones he doesn't.

      --
      __
      Do ya feel happy-go-lucky, punk?
    3. Re:Hurray for Ashcroft by Kewlhand`tek · · Score: 0

      Well, once you have a gun you can defend your own civil liberties!

      --
      The Arkie Libertarian
    4. Re:Hurray for Ashcroft by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      I guess the answer then is to let your gun do all the talking.

      But only if you are a full American Citizen. No dice for them foreign-types.

  2. Pocket payphones? by imrdkl · · Score: 2
    Payphones cant be carried around in your pocket.

    But the purchase transaction for the disposable phone still gives better trackability than a payphone, imho. (Not to mention the ease of snooping on cellnet versus tracing wire-calls)

  3. Lovely, more disposable crap by dragonfrog · · Score: 1
    Just what we need - defence of our civil rights via throwing away more plastic junk! Much more convenient than actually changing the system, and better for industry too.

    Am I the only one who finds this disgusting?

    1. Re:Lovely, more disposable crap by SomeoneYouDontKnow · · Score: 2

      Actually, Hop-On Wireless, the first company rolling these out, claims to encourage recycling of them on their product page. You get refunded a deposit if you return the phone to a retailer instead of tossing it. Whether people will do this is anyone's guess.

      Still, I like the product concept here. It definitely fills a niche. For instance, my parents live in a very rural area, so if their car breaks down, they could be stuck there for a long while before someone comes along. They're retired and don't want to pay for cell service, but they really could use one for emergencies. This would suit them nicely. They could keep it in the car and only use it for an emergency.

      But to return to the original point of the article, I think it brings to the surface a crucial issue in our society: whether people have a right to communicate anonymously. I think they do. The government has no right to expect every one of our utterances to be tagged and logged for its perusal. The small amount of security that may only possibly be gained is far outweighed by the loss of freedom. Not a direct loss in the sense of criminalizing speech, but an indirect loss brought on by a chilling effect that will set in when people decline to say unpopular things because of a fear of who might be listening. Even if such information wasn't used in a legal proceeding, there is a greater risk that it would be used to indimidate, embarrass, and blackmail. It's been done many times before, and it will most certainly be done again.

      --
      That light you see at the end of the tunnel might be from an oncoming train.
    2. Re:Lovely, more disposable crap by Happy+go+Lucky · · Score: 1
      Just what we need - defence of our civil rights via throwing away more plastic junk! Much more convenient than actually changing the system, and better for industry too.

      Well, I hear that you can avoid the "system" by living in a tarpaper shack in the ass end of nowhere. However, the "system" tends to be a little cranky once you start mailing bombs around.

      Okay, genius, got a better idea? What other methods of defending our civil rights could you come up with?

      I don't know that you've noticed, but "industry" isn't some monolithic entity that includes GM, Ford, AOL Time-Warner, MicroSoft, Verizon, and pretty much everyone else who makes any money. "Industry" is a shitload of separate parts of the economy which frequently have very little to do with each other. And even within each sector, there are generally numerous competitors. For instance, in cellphones in the US, there's competition (and some really nasty competition) between AT&T, Verizon, Qwest, Sprint, Nextel, Cricket, etc. And probably nobody but Hop-On and its customers benefit from Hop-On's selling disposable cellphones.

    3. Re:Lovely, more disposable crap by Mr.+Slippery · · Score: 1
      And probably nobody but Hop-On and its customers benefit from Hop-On's selling disposable cellphones.

      Consider the electronics manufacturers, plastics makers, the software geeks who provide the voice reco, the guys who make whatever other software and hardware Hop-On uses to run its systems, the retailers who sell them at a markup...just for starters.

      --
      Tom Swiss | the infamous tms | my blog
      You cannot wash away blood with blood
  4. Voice! by JCCyC · · Score: 2

    Article sez:

    You dial by speaking the number aloud through a combination earpiece/microphone.

    Who guarantees me these things won't silently store an identifiable sample of your voice in them?

    1. Re:Voice! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Simple: nobody cares what your voice sounds like :-) If they did, they'd have some stronger surveillance than listening to your cheap cellphone.

    2. Re:Voice! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's a telephone. You talk into them anyway.

    3. Re:Voice! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      D'oh! Hard day at work, my brain is overheated. 8-* (JCCyC, anonymous to void modding down)

  5. Big Deal by CaptainZapp · · Score: 2, Informative
    In Europe (Switzerland) GSM phones with a prepaied SIM can be purchased at most gas stations. If you want to pay cash, nothing more is required then a 100 francs bill. Refills can be purchased at ticket vending machines at virtually every train station (no, they don't take a photo, when you pay cash)

    The only disadvantage is, that outgoing calls are fairly expensive. Else then that, no restrictions apply (even international roaming works just fine).

    Incoming calls are not only possible and free, one of the carriers even offers a measly (3cents or so) per minute reward for incoming calls.

    A couple years ago the federal district attourney required, that purchasers of pre-payed cell phones can be identified. That idea was given up, since - although the palament agreed that it is an inconvenience for law enforcement - the bureaucratic hassle and the impact on commerce outweighed the federal cowboys' concerns.

    Interestingly enough Switzerland doesn't seem to be infested by evil wrong-doers and grass can be bought (well not quite legally, but almost) in a couple hundred shops around the country. You don't need an anonymous cell phone to buy drugs.

    Methinks, that the current histerya visible in the US is not very effective in combating the evil ones. It seems to be very effective though, in reducing everybodies quality of life.

    --
    ich bin der musikant

    mit taschenrechner in der hand

    kraftwerk

    1. Re:Big Deal by O2n · · Score: 1

      In Europe (Switzerland) GSM phones with a prepaied SIM can be purchased at most gas stations. If you want to pay cash, nothing more is required then a 100 francs bill. Refills can be purchased at ticket vending machines at virtually every train station (no, they don't take a photo, when you pay cash)

      Exactly the same applies to Sweden. Well, s/100 francs/500 kronor/ :)

      You can register your initially-anonymous SIM and get back (in call credit) around $10. If you want anonymity, that's what you pay for it (one-time charge).

    2. Re:Big Deal by squaretorus · · Score: 2

      These phones cause the Police in the UK a significant headache as any 'crim' worth his wonga will have 3 or 4 of these, on different networks, at any one time and will simply throw them away after a couple of months.

      You can buy a contractless SIM for £20UK here which you plug into any phone. Your first phone is just £100UK - nothing!

  6. A year of battery life? by Animats · · Score: 2
    That "year of battery life" is impressive. Is that when turned off, or what?

    You can buy prepaid phones for about $60 at the local 7/11 here in Silicon Valley. They can call, receive, be recharged, and you can buy more airtime for them. That sounds more useful than a $30 originate-only phone.

    Hop-On's pricing sucks. For $30, you get only 60 minutes of talk time. That's $0.50 per minute, or about 5x/10x higher than the going rate for billed cellular. It's a rip-off operation aimed at poor people.

    1. Re:A year of battery life? by SnapShot · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I personally don't want a cell phone. I don't want to recieve calls. I don't want to be another one of those mother-fuckers tooling along tapping on the phone like a drugged monkey while not using their turn signals and basically driving thousand pound machines while thinking about nothing but their next fucking hair appointment. However, I wouldn't mind having a phone in my truck for the next time I leave my lights on all day and I need a lift. Stuff one of these in the glove compartment and I'm set.

      This is one conspiracy against the poor that I'm all for...

      --
      Waltz, nymph, for quick jigs vex Bud.
  7. 911 calls are always free by mr_rangr · · Score: 1

    You don't need to pay for cell service to make emergency calls. I gave an old phone of mine away to a friend so she could make a 911 call if needed. I believe it's the FCC who says that cell carriers MUST allow 911 calls to be made on their networks from non-subscribers.

    1. Re:911 calls are always free by MattT · · Score: 1

      But there's emergency, and then there's EMERGENCY. The free 911 that will work from any cell phone is fine for the capital E emergencies (police/fire/ambulance), however, this Hop-On thing could be just the ticket for calling a tow truck, getting directions, or telling the folks that your gonna be late. This may be the perfect phone to buy my in-laws to keep in their glove box. They hate the idea of using one, but would feel better to have the option to use it.

      --
      -MattT *** Not speaking for my employer, or any other sentient beings ***
  8. Pre-pay phones by fm6 · · Score: 2
    The phones 7-11 sells require you to buy more time every month, or you lose your phone number and have to start over. In effect, they're the same as subscription phones, but you pay for all your services before you use them. It's for people who have to pay in advance, either because they have no credit rating or their parents don't trust them not to run up a bill.

    That's a lot different from "Hm, it would be nice to be able to call home while I'm travelling without looking for a pay phone. But why should I get a service I won't use when I come home?" That's what the disposable phones are for.