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What Does Your Smartphone Replace?

I

itsallgood

Android Expert
So I read a very interesting article about what it would take to take the place of a smart phone. (I thought this would be fun to talk about.)

Here is the link:
Your Smartphone's So Smart It Takes 14 Gadgets to Match It

1) Tell me what your smart phone has replaced?
2) How many devices would it take, to do the same things your smart phone can do?
3) And How much would the total cost be for those items?

I have an Atrix 4G w/Lapdock that expands the full function of my phone. My total cost with apps is $424.

I have a total of 15 items, that would cost me $1,692, to take the place of my Atrix 4G and Lapdock.

So here is my list, with pricing of each individual item as of today's prices.

1) Digital Camera - Android Free; $54 - Kodak EasyShare C1505 12 MP;

2) Stand Alone GPS - Android Google Maps - free and CoPilot Live (Offline use) $10; $120 - Garmin nuvi 40 4.3"

3) MP3/CD Player/Radio Turner - Android $5 PowerAMP Pro and free iHeart radio; $149 - Samsung - Galaxy Player 3.6" 8GB

4) Digital Recorder - Android - free; $230 - JVC Everio HD

5) Portable DVD Player - Android Google Video - free; $135 - Sony 9" Widescreen

6) Basic Calculator - Android free; $5 Casio Solar Wallet

7) Digital Voice Recorder - Android Tape a Talk- Free; $63 Sony Digital Voice Recorder

8) Laptop/Tablet - Android Motorola Lapdock Accessory (Turns my phone into a netbook) - $179; Dell Inspiron 10V Netbook (Referb.) - $300

9) Alarm clock - Android - free, but use a dock $25; Timex Dual Alarm Clock Radio - $25

10) Workout Log - Android Cardio Trainer and Calorific - free - Fitbit Ultra Wireless Activity Plus - $97

11) Scanner/Fax Machine - Android CamScanner Pro - $5; Epson Perfection V30 Flatbed - $80

12) Flashlight - Android - free; Pelican 1920 LED flashlight - $24

13) Digital Books - Android Kindle/Google Play (Have to pay for books) - free; Nook Tablet E-Reader 8MB - $180

14) Games - Android - free (Some games do cost around $5.); Nintendo 3DS - $170

15) Digital Organizer - Android Google Calendar, Contacts, ColorNotes - Free; PalmOne m500 Handheld - $60
 
Main thing for me is time - I don't ever wear a watch, but always need the time.

Camera - I'm no pro, phone with reasonable camera will suffice.

Calculator, but then I wouldn't be carrying one around with me so that's just bonus.

Other things like laptop, mp3 player, map & compass I still use, but map & compass can go if I invest in waterproof, bag mounted solar cells for charging.

There is the technology for batteries that last decades, but manufacturers want us to buy their other gadgets! But then, there is this global quest for rare earth elements that are used in electronics, so perhaps it will be more economical to put everything into one device.
 
My phone replaces stand alone GPS, MP3 player, and mobile hotspot device.

It does not replace my TI83 calculator (because I find virtual buttons to be a pain), general video media including games and movies (because my laptop handles all my non-music media, and music sometimes), my alarm because its not loud enough, or my general use flashlight (because holding a phone as a flashlight sucks, however I will use it to find something inside if my flashlight is "out of reach").

Although the phone is capable of handling most of my tasks, I find virtual buttons and the small screen and lack of storage a major set back. I prefer to use my physical devices such as calculator and flashlight than to use phone apps. I don't even like using my smart phone as a phone because of the lack of physical buttons and shape of the device. I like my old flip phone more.

To me smartphones are jack-of-all-trades. They do almost anything, but do nothing perfectly.
 
It's great for impromptu opportunities that come up since you won't have a real camera with you at all times. But it's not going to replace the camera for times when you have to remember to take a camera (such as a wedding or anniversary)
 
My phone has replaced:

Camera. I don't have any real need for a camera. Just a few pictures during class of the presentation, and specimens under microscopes. The phone camera is good enough for that.

GPS/Navigation - I use Mapquest. Works well for my country and has a similar feel to Ovi Maps on Nokia which I had used for years.

Mp3 Player - meh, why carry a lot of stuff. My phone lasts approximately 8-9hrs playing music continuously. I won't be going anywhere unreachable to a socket for that long anyway.

Basic Calculator - not that I'd bring one always, but its handy.

Workout and Diet log - I use Noom. Works well

Expense Manager - I use Andromoney in conjunction with Expensify

Organizer - Contacts, Calendar, To-Do

While I do use my phone for those random Google searches I may need from time to time, and email/share pictures or files, these are more for convenience as opposed to stuff my phone has replaced. Same goes for social networking. Doing those stuff on your phone not necessarily has replaced a laptop for my uses.

For my Tab

Books - instead of lugging around heavy books, I have my tab.

Gaming - instead of a PSP or DS, I game on my tab

Other than that, the tab serves as a fall back if ever my phone gets low on battery for the other purposes.
 
Replaced Sony Clie UX-50.

Only 2 devices. PDA and phone.

Some of the items mentioned were not commercially available when the UX-50 was new. GPS not standard then.

Could surf the web via wifi, and hook the phone up via bluetooth.

No phone will replace camera. No phone with 800X optical zoom. I use that to identify birds, not take art shots.

It replaced a lot of non-electronic stuff - like paper star charts, Telrad guides, Audubon guide books, Geology road logs. Camera manuals. Don't have a mess of papers shoved in my back pocket or a backpack full of books.
 
Thanks to Math Studio, the only reason I'd need a graphing calculator is for a standardized test that required it
 
My phone is my primary source of my news, weather, scores and traffic. It is my music player, my podcast player, my video on demand player. It keeps my calendar and email. It is my library. It is my day to day camera (although I own a better one for planned occasions). It is my video game system, my Reddit reader, and my social networks connection. It is my sole source of navigation and maps. It is my major tool of keeping connected to the family. It’s nearly an all-in-one.

At this point I still watch live TV on my TV, I have one game I play on my laptop PC, I use my laptop to edit and upload photos taken on my DSLR, and everything else is my phone or my tablet.

My phone has replaced my VCR/DVR, my wristwatch, my newspaper, my stereo/MP3 player, my laptop (mostly), my Wii (although clearly it’s not the same), my Thomas Guide map, my home telephone, my instant messenger, my bookshelf, (when I diet) my food journal, my note pad, and probably more.
 
Here's what my phone replaced so far:

Watch -- Keeps better time and I never need to adjust it for DST.
Alarm Clock -- Better flexibility. I can set it to weekdays only instead of havign to remember to turn it on or off depending on day of the week.
Turntable, tape deck, CD player -- I converted all of my LP's, tapes and CD's to MP3 format.
Calculator -- I have the software version of my wife's graphics calculator.
GPS -- I actually bought a smartphone because I wanted a GPS for a vacation I was going on.
Paper Map -- Paper maps have the advantage of being able to see all of the city at once. I find that with Google Maps, I can make do with just a small screen.
Flashlight -- LED flash can be used as a light.
Newspaper -- Pulse gives me all the news I need. I have apps to give me sports scores and weather updates.
Dictionary/Thesaurus -- Dictionary.com app. I used to reach for my dictionary, but now it's my phone.

Here's what it hasn't yet replaced.

Camera -- My digital camera that I bought just 3 years ago is still significantly better than my phone's camera. I only use my phone camera if I don't have my regular camera with me at the time.
Scanner/Copier -- My scanner is still more convenient when scanning or copying documents. It is just easier to set the document on the glass than it is to properly align my camera.
PC -- Actually, I want my tablet to be able to replace my PC. It has replaced 75% of my PC, but not that last 25%. My phone would only be able to replace maybe 25% of my PC needs.
TV -- It cannot replace a 50" screen.
Board/card games -- My friends and I still sit around a table to play these using physical playing pieces.
 
My phone doesn't replace my watch. It is much easier to look at my wrist than take my phone out of my pocket and unlock just to check the time. However, it is much easier to use the phone to set alarms and use as a stopwatch
 
Nothing. I still wear a watch. I just came back from a family vacation. Our family of four hauled around 2 android phones, 2 iphones, 1 ipod, 1 galaxy tab, 1ipad, 1 notebook , 1 netbook, 1 digital camera and all the associated chargers. I left my digital slr camera at home because the electonics already weighed more than my packed clothes. It was a 2 week road trip. If we had stayed in one place, the kids would have insisted on packing the xbox, too. The reality is that my family is helping to drive electronics market. It was a good thing I bought some Apple shares last year.

I find the notebook/netbook is the best for doing work and answering emails. I use my tab way more than my phone for personal info management and casual surfing.
 
GPS (though have never had one before)
Calculator
Metronome
Instrument tuner
Mobile calendar
Weather checker
Music player (all Pandora)

Certainly more!
 
Don't forget to add:

For those of us who GeoCache, a handheld GPS ($100 to $300)
I use my S3's memory to carry files occasionally, so a jumpdrive ($5 to $40)
I have family photos on my phone for sharing, so a digital album ($30)
Tango & Skype replace video phones ($130+)
Tivo remote control ($40)
Portable weather radar (no consumer equivalent $$$)
Banking Apps allow me to make deposits (check imaging), transfers, and bill pay without having to drive to an ATM (priceless)

All that and so much more. I love my smartphone. It's instant gratification in the palm of your hand.
 
Doit2it said:
It's instant gratification in the palm of your hand.
Click to expand...
:vroam:

Replace? Not much 'cause most of what I use it for I didn't have before.
I now have GPS, tunes (Pandora and my mp3s), weather radar, the interwebs, GMail etc.
What I really did replace, and could no longer live without, is my calendar. So nice to not have to tote one around and then wonder where the heck I left my pen! If I had to give up a smart phone that is honestly what I would miss most I think.
 
Clementine_3;[URL="tel:4881734" said:
4881734[/URL]]:vroam:

Replace? Not much 'cause most of what I use it for I didn't have before.
I now have GPS, tunes (Pandora and my mp3s), weather radar, the interwebs, GMail etc.
What I really did replace, and could no longer live without, is my calendar. So nice to not have to tote one around and then wonder where the heck I left my pen! If I had to give up a smart phone that is honestly what I would miss most I think.
Click to expand...

Same here. The calendar event and reminders is a blessing for me. I never carried around a paper calendar, but would use the one we had hanging up on the wall to write stuff down on. The problem with that was I had to be home to check for conflicting dates and would forget date too. Now with it on my phone, I have 9 separate calendars all in one place and loving it. I use a calendar widget that lets me see the next few days at a glance. My smart phone has made my life much easier to manage a lot of things that was challenging before.
 
For me it's really replaced three devices.

1) Camera, the camera in my Galaxy S is good enough for my needs.
2) MP3/MP4 player. Except for long train and bus rides, here I will use a separate device, because there's no way to recharge phone batteries.
3) PDA, I can do all my calendaring and scheduling on my phone.

I wear a watch for knowing the time of day and lesson timing. Because I don't want to be pulling out a phone in the middle of classes. Adjusting for Daylights Savings Time doesn't happen here. No real need for a basic calculator either, I use my brain for that. It's not really replaced a PC laptop either.

Don't think it will be replacing my wallet any time soon though, I live in a very much hard cash society.
 
1. Phone
2. PDA/organiser
3. iPod/mp3 player
4. Torch
5. Portable games console
6. Newspapers, magazines, books (sometimes-- still prefer real books for the most part)
7. Gps/mapping device
8. Camera
9. Calculator
10. Alarm clock
11. Watch
12. Soon to be wallet!

I'm sure there's more but I can't think right now :p I'll keep adding to it.
 
My phone has replaced the Casio watches I wore for over 30 years, the expense of 30 magazines a month and reading email but otherwise my phones just add additional features and convenience. The phones and tablets have taken some of my web browsing away from the PC but I still need my Desktop PC's, Laptops and Netbooks for my job.

The features that I most use are:

Camera
Email
Reading IT news
Checking Time

I rarely use any of them for outgoing phone calls but only as I don't have any one to talk with.

As for costs I guess what I save on magazines pays for 4 of my contract phones a month.
 
The phone I had previously was a Sony-ericsson k800i. So having a android phone is sci-fi to me.

Key things for me are:
alarm - have to wake up early in the morning
email - keep up with contacts
calender/schedule/reminder - primarily so that it reminds me my wifes' name, in case I get it wrong!
 
My 5.3" Galaxy Note smart phone replaces many possible devices as well:

1. My 7" older, slow Android tablet
2. A PDA
3. A small camera (I still have my DSLR for serious photos, but the smart phone is always with me)
4. Calculator - helpe me find the best prices in the grocery store
5. MP3 Player
6. eBook reader
7. Travel alarm clock
8. Newspaper & magazines (ok, so these aren't devices, but it saves space)
9. Portable DVD player
10.Remote control and auxiliary screen for my DSLR. Very cool, I can see a live view of what my DSLR sees and control my setting and take photos on my DSLR using my smart phone
11.GPS navigation
12.Paper star charts for astronomy
13.Banking apps
14.Replaces laptop when I travel
 
ari-free said:
Technically a notepad isn't a device but wouldn't your Note also replace that?
Click to expand...

Pretty much any Android phone can replace your notepad IMO. The difference being you're typing rather than writing (except in the case of the Note with S-Note app).
 
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