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Can You Hear Me Now?

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the saved-by-the-bell dept.

squarefish writes "CNN has this story about a hiker stranded in South America's Andes mountains when a blizzard begins. He reaches into his backpack for his cell phone -- only to find his prepaid minutes are up. Out of nowhere, a phone company solicitor is calling on his cell phone, asking if he would like to buy more time. Is this convenient or what?"

11 of 300 comments (clear)

  1. hrm. 911 (at least in the US) by laymil · · Score: 5, Interesting

    as far as i know, you are still able to make emergency (911) calls from a cell phone even if it has no service agreement. however, seeing as it wasn't the united states, more power to the sales guy or something.
    next we'll be hearing a story about how spam saved someone's life. (i don't care whether its the canned or electronic kind, would be interesting either way :))

  2. But surely... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    ...Even a cellphone which has run out of paid minutes should still be able to make a call to emergency services? It is very poor if it can not.

  3. full of holes by jeff67 · · Score: 5, Interesting
    ...surviving for 24 hours with his only warmth coming from carefully measured dozes[sic] of brandy.
    Alcohol only gives the perception of warmth. It does it by dilating blood vessels in the skin. The result is you lose heat faster. Drinking when you're really cold is a good way to get dead.

    Besides, chilling your battery will not revive it. It will only slow down power loss.

    What a stupid article!
    1. Re:full of holes by sfraggle · · Score: 4, Interesting
      This whole article sounds like bullshit. From the comments I've read here:In short, it sounds like CNN were hoaxed.
      --
      were you expecting to see a sig here? perhaps you'd rather see the inside of an ambulance!
  4. Convenient? by Evanrude · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Convenient, maybe. But what if he hadn't been stranded. How annoying would it be having a solicitor call you and try to cell you more pre-paid minutes every time you run out. I thought it was against some kind of law that phone solicitors could not call your cellular phone anyway? (Correct me if I am wrong)

    --

    ~.Evanrude
  5. Simple... by Ian+Peon · · Score: 4, Interesting

    they dont.

    I worked in a battery shop for a few months. Cooling batteries makes them discharge slower, and freezing them destroys them (expanding/crystalizing electrolite destroys the membrane between the plates). Last month I left my cell in the car overnight, it got a bit cold (in the 40s), and my phone wouldn't work until the battery warmed back up.

    ...also, as Jeff67 points out:
    "Alcohol only gives the perception of warmth. It does it by dilating blood vessels in the skin. The result is you lose heat faster. Drinking when you're really cold is a good way to get dead."

    So, fake longer battery life, and fake warmth. In short, this looks like a bogus story. I guess CNN is taking it's cues from the Chinese news media these days...

    --
    Never never never smoke crack before geometry class!
  6. Re:Don't Drink in the Cold by Cryonics_au · · Score: 4, Interesting

    However.... Alcohol also acts as anti-freeze. You may know of the story about the Baker on the Titanic. The normal survival time in the icy cold waters at that time was only a few minutes. The baker had the right idea and got trashed just before it went under. The Baker was picked up 2 hours later, and he survived.

  7. About signals on top of mountains by olethrosdc · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Contrary to popular belief, it is easier to get signals on top of mountains. Why? Because at the top of the mountain you have line-of-sight with many different ground antennas. It is the same reason that you get a good 'view' :)

    Also, from my personal experience in the Alpes, phones seem to work pretty well at high altitudes - so much, that I even get signals from neighbouring countries' networks sometimes. The major problem with large height is that your cellphone might appear in many cells simultaneously and the networks might become confused. (And this could be one of the reasons why you can't use a cellphone inside an airplane)

    As far as the batteries are concerned.. I am aware that lower temperatures lower the reaction strength => the internal resistance of the battery increases => it becomes unusable very quickly. However it works again when it becomes warm. This does appear bogus...

    ... what do you expect from a story related with telemarketers and reported by Journalists working in US Media Conglomerate B]

    --

    I miss my rubber keyboard.(Homepage)

  8. Fake by Lord+Bitman · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Well the posts seem to all say the same thing, here's a summary:
    In most places, Emergency Calls are free.
    An obscure mountain path durring a blizzard doesnt seem like the most likely place to get cellphone coverage.
    Soliciting on Cellphones is illegal in many places, just like soliciting on Fax Machines.

    so is it real?

    --
    -- 'The' Lord and Master Bitman On High, Master Of All
  9. Re:That's it!! I'm moving!! by bwoodard · · Score: 2, Interesting

    High mountains make for really good cell phone reception. In many places in the remote areas it is easier to setup a bunch of cell phone stations than it is to bring in copper

  10. make directional antenna.... by The+Creator · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Stick the phone antenna in a tube of pringels and scan around. When you have the most bars, you'r pointing at a tower. That's what it seems like anyway, i could be wrong.

    So a /.'er should always be armed with a phone with an external antenna. And some potato chips.

    --

    FRA: STFU GTFO