Phoning It In

I inadvertently put Mrs. LB through a lot of anguish recently. I didn't mean to do it, but she struggled because of me.

See, she knew I needed a new phone and she knew I'd kinda been wanting an iPhone. But she also knew that I have enjoyed both of the BlackBerrys I've had. So when she decided to get me a phone for Christmas, it came down to the iPhone or a new BlackBerry. And she couldn't decide.

I'm actually glad I didn't have to decide because I'm not sure what I would have chosen. On the one hand, the iPhone sounds cool because it has so many gadgets and can do so much. But I've had great success with the BlackBerry so there really was no reason to change.

Ultimately Mrs. LB went with the BlackBerry Bold, and the more I figure out how it works, the more I love it.

Now, I realize some of these things may not be so new, but the last time I went phone shopping was 2007, and we all know how fast technology changes. Like my old phone, this new phone has a music feature so I can store songs on there. I never actually got a memory card for my old phone but this one came with one so I have two gigs of space on there. So I figured I'd play around with the music feature, and I was able to upload songs on there and listen to them. The sound quality is amazing - it sounds just as good as my iPod does.

Then I got to thinking. The phone is about the same size as the iPod, and I have one of those carrying cases that straps on my arm which I use when I run. So I tried my phone in there, and it fit perfectly. I made and uploaded a playlist and used it on Friday when I knocked out 6.5 miles. It worked great! Now, I used my regular headphones as they fit perfectly into the phone. I used them mostly because I'm comfortable with them and was unsure of the headphones that came with the phone.

But on Monday I played around with those headphones, and my love for my phone went higher. Not only do those headphones have a great sound quality, but they double as a hands-free kit. So basically I can be listening to music on the phone and when I get a call the music stops and all I need to do is push a button on the headset and I'm talking on the phone. When the call ends, the music resumes.

How awesome is that? Again, it might be old hat for some people but this is all new to me.

The best thing about that particular feature is that I can take my phone with me to Surf City, but not only will I take it but I'll be able to use it as a music player and not worry about it dying on me like my iPod has been known to do. Plus, I can recieve calls on it without having to take it out of my sleeve or pocket or fuel belt or wherever I'd planned on carrying my phone.

I hope I don't get random calls during the marathon, but I will have Mrs. LB call me while I'm on the course. Hopefully it's not too loud and hopefully she can hear me. Now, I don't plan on having lengthy conversations with her but it will be nice to be able to hear a voice on the other end, and possibly get some encouragement that way. Plus, it will be nice for her because she'll be able to tell exactly where I'm at.

Originally, I was worried about the iPod. For a while it's been acting up. Often times, the iPod will be so where I can only hear through one ear, and that's a pain. Also, as it did during the Cedar River Run, the iPod will just freeze and shut down for no good reason. It's so frustrating.

But now I don't have to worry about that, as I'll be taking my phone/music player on the race with me and it's going to work out great. The fact that it has a camera (3.2 megapixel) on it is simply icing on the cake.