Samsung Music Phone is a Blast

Do you want a cell phone that's just for talking, or do you want your phone to be a blast to use? If you really want a blast, you need the Samsung Blast w/ myFaves for T-Mobile. Sure. It's a great cell phone for chatting away. But it's also a superb music phone and offers a keyboard designed for heavy messaging.

Would you expect to find a music phone that's a super messaging phone too? It seems like an idea whose time has come. After all, a lot of the same people who love messaging are also into having their music with them at all times. The Samsung Blast supports 5, count 'em, five kinds of messaging. They are text, instant, picture, video and email. But what really makes this a messaging monster is the special 2-character-per-key QWERTY keypad. This is a slider phone, so all you have to do is push up the front of the phone and your keypad appears. Stow it easily when you just want to listen to tunes or wait for a call.

The music part of the Samsung Blast is an MP3 player that supports MP3 and WMA files. You'll be able to store more tunes on removable memory cards if you fill up the built-in memory. The extra memory capacity also comes in handy if you like to take a lot of pictures. You probably will with the built-in 1.3 megapixel digital camera.

Oh, yes, this phone is also for talking. As a cell phone on the T-Mobile Wireless network, it supports the popular myFaves service. The black and red Blast looks cool held up to your ear, but you also have the option to go hands-free with a wireless Bluetooth headset or speakerphone. This is advanced Bluetooth that will also stream stereo music to and from compatible A2DP Bluetooth devices at home or in the car.

Does this phone sound like the one you've been waiting for? If so, you can get it free after rebate for a limited time when you order your Samsung Blast with T-Mobile wireless service through our online store. Order a family plan and get TWO blast phones at a special deal.

If you are looking for a great deal on a cell phone with service from the major carriers, you'll find a huge selection and the daily specials at Cell Phone Plans Finder.

Give and Give Back

It's just a week to Christmas Eve. Are you done with your shopping, or has your shopping done you in? Even more importantly, what will the impact of all your gift giving be on you, your loved ones and the world as a whole?

That last question has been going around in my mind this year. For years I've purchased, exchanged and then had to find a place to store gifts without thinking much about the process. When I was growing up, my parents always prided themselves on providing lots of gifts for everyone, even though we didn't have much money. Nothing was expensive, but there was a big pile of it. Of course, since kids want nearly everything they see, my brother and I thought it was great. The only problem came when it was time to take down the Christmas tree and find a place to put all of those gifts. My closet and drawers were full before Christmas, now they were even fuller.

As the years went by, we toned it down a little, but each member of both my family and my husband's family still gave several gifts each, and they expected to receive the same. Again, piles of stuff that we'd lived perfectly well without a week ago now needed a place to exist. We often didn't know what to give the others, nor did they know what we might want or need, but we bought and gave anyway. I didn't need or necessarily want much of what I received, and it ended up stacked in the basement. As I found out later, my in-laws had done the same. I don't regret the time I spent on trying to do something nice for them, but it made me sad to think of all the money we had all wasted on things that have sat for years still in the boxes.

This year I vowed to put a stop to the waste. I've asked everyone I exchange gifts with to exchange charitable donations to some of our favorite causes instead of buying things for each other. Instead of more stuff that neither of us want, I'd like to donate to an organization that they like to support, and I'd like it if they donated to an organization that I support.

I'm also spreading the word about my favorite non-profit organization, The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. Founded by Carol Buckley and Scott Blais in 1995, the sanctuary provides a home for sick, old and needy elephants on 2700 beautiful acres of old growth forest, pastures, ponds and even a 25 acre lake. It's a well deserved retirement for Asian and African elephants who have spent years in zoos and circuses.

Why Tennessee? Well, the climate in Middle Tennessee is subtropical, quite similar to the native climate of these elephants. They are free to walk for miles each day, graze the grasses and browse the trees, eat fresh blackberries that they pick fresh from the brambles with their trunks. Caregivers, not keepers, bring hay, grains and produce to them three times a day, no matter where they have roamed in the environment. Many of the residents have foot and joint problems, caused by years of confinement in circus trucks and concrete or asphalt parking lots for those who worked in the circus, or in small, hard packed enclosures and concrete floored barns in zoos. They need medication and/or foot soaks, and those are also brought to them daily.

Sounds a bit like a 5 star resort, doesn't it? I wish I could retire in a place that nice. Everyone who works at The Elephant Sanctuary loves "The Girls" dearly, and it causes their donors to share that feeling. We also love the elephants, and I'd much rather know that my family has donated to feed Winkie or Sissy for a day than receive yet another gift that I don't really need.

If you have that one last person on your list, and you don't know what to buy them, why not ask about their favorite charity? If someone asks desperately what you want, suggest a donation to your favorite organization, perhaps The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. You'll both feel good, and you'll be doing good also.

Never Pay For Directory Assistance

Here's the scene. You're over at a friend's house with the gang watching TV. Someone says: "I'm getting hungry. Anybody want Pizza?" Everybody else chimes-in: "Yes." There's a Joe's Pizza about a mile away, but who remembers the number? Hmmm. Can't find your friend's phone book, so you quick dial 411 for information. Bad decision. You'll probably pay more for that phone number than to have the pizza delivered.

Here's a better idea. Dial 1-800-FREE411 instead. You'll still get the number for that pizza restaurant, but the information is free. You won't get any ugly dollar-plus charges on your phone bill for calls to Information. Go ahead and call for some other numbers when you need them. You still won't get charged.

Doesn't 1-800-FREE411 sound like the perfect directory assistance service? It sure is, especially when you are on the go. You can call from your cell phone or from your home phone. It doesn't matter. You'll still get the information you asked for and you won't have to pay for it.

Now you're probably wondering how FREE411 can help you for free when the phone companies hit you up for as much as they can per call. Seems like somebody has to pay to support this service. Indeed, they do. Only it's not YOU. One of the things you'll notice when you call 1-800-FREE411 is that you'll hear a short commercial while the number you asked for is being looked up. It won't take any longer than if you dial 411 and pay for the call. You'll just get to hear a 15 second message, likely including a special offer.

That's the magic that puts the FREE in 1-800-FREE411. The commercial you hear is paid for by a local advertiser hoping to get your business. You called to get the number for Joe's Pizza. You may well hear an ad for Joanne's Pizza. Joanne is offering free delivery in hopes of luring you into calling her instead of Joe. We'll, it's your choice. You'll get both numbers.

Go ahead, give it a try and see what you think. Remember, calling 1-800-FREE411 really is free.

Now, if you happen to be the owner of Joanne's Pizza and think it would be great to have an ad for your business play to people who want the number for Joe's Pizza, or Tom's Pizza, or other rivals, then you should consider running an ad with FREE411. It costs only pennies every time your ad is played and just a small connection fee when a caller wants to switch from the business they asked for to you instead.