Came across the below image recently, and it struck a chord :

Being a technology junkie, one of the best things about working in IT company is always being able to get hands-on with the new toys, gadgets, phones, software, PCs, servers, routers and so on.

However once the novelty wears off,  the next step is to take these gadgets and figure out how to use them to improve personal or business life.  Then we share these benefits with fellow Webnet IT staff members and our clients.

For instance, here is my current phone :

After modifications, upgrades and experimentation, here are some of the things I’ve configured my SmartPhone to do :

• use voice recognition with my Bluetooth headset to immediately dial the office and regularly dialed numbers
• listen to music and display pictures (naturally!)
• download a Word document proposal on the go, make a few edits, and send it off again
• enter a new contact in Outlook, including a phone number.  15 seconds later, the contact and phone number are automatically synchronised to the phone
• display weather for every day in the week
• download all of my work emails and personal emails, and keep them separate
• act as a English/Japanese dictionary
• help me study Kanji and Japanese phrases
• find a song title quickly with only a couple of words from the chorus
• take pictures of a funny English sign, and email a friend overseas in 5 seconds flat
• act as a remote control for my television (or the gym television if you disagree with the stations)
• give me a choice of two different train routes to get to my destination, the fastest and the cheapest
• keep me updated with the latest news around the world while I’m on the train, and
• Use Skype to talk to my family for free through my home WiFi connection.

This is a great example of taking an every-day device – a phone you can purchase in 30 minutes at Bic Camera, and unlocking its potential in ways that can make a serious impact on your life.

This is with technology that is over 2 years old.  The capabilities of a well configured iPhone these days make this list look anemic.

I’m looking forward to writing more articles like this and explaining how I use common, or not-so-common technology to make sizable improvements in my personal lifestyle and business productivity.

** While I was writing this post, I got an email from Amazon : “Top 10 Deals in Electronics”.  It’s nice to be understood, even if it’s only by the Amazon recommendation engine.