last seen 9 hours 34 min agoThese five features messages have been hitting my Inbox consistently about every six months. So I will list them here, then will follow up with a blurb from Snopes that verifies the validity of the five features claim:
5 Things You Never Knew Your Cell Phone Could Do
For all the folks with cell phones. (this is valuable info to keep in the glove compartment of your vehicle)
There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies.
Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you can do with it:
- Emergency- The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly, this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked.
- How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?- To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the following Digits on your phone: *#06#. A 15-digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it some where safe. When your phone get stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either.
- Free Directory Service for Cells - Cell phone companies are charging us $1.00 to $1.75 or more for411 information calls when they don't have to. Most of us do not carry a telephone directory in our vehicle, which makes this situation even more of a problem. When you need to use the 411 information option, simply dial: (800)FREE411, or (800) 373-3411 without incurring any charge at all.
- Hidden Battery Power - Imagine your cell battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370#. Your cell phone will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell phone next time.
- Have you locked your keys in the car? - Does your car have RKE (remote keyless entry)? If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their cell phone from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other 'remote' for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
I have not tried any of these features, but will be putting the RKE to the test today. Here is the write up on Snopes.
I think most people didn't read the Snopes write up, which said that these aren't really true; they're sorta true, but not really.
http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/cellphones.asp
One good tip is ICE. Make an entry in your phone called "ICE" (In Case of Emergency) and then put your numbers of people to call in case something happens to you. Police and rescue workers will look for this number.
I thought the RKE thing wasn't true because the remote for the car and your cell phone frequencies weren't the same. I think I read that somewhere else, other than snopes. Let me try and look it up and see if I can find it. Let us know what you find, though!
I tried the hidden battery power one on my phone and my mother's phone and it hasn't worked for either of us.
I've tried the battery power saver as well and it didn't work. I have a blackberry pearl 8100.
The Truth Is Out There. Trust No One! Deny Everything!
You're upsetting me....on several levels.
-I am The Phoenix that rises again.
-I am The Oasis in this dry world.
In response to #4, Hidden Battery Power, a buddy of mine told me about this a while ago. After he brought up the subject, I suggested that we give it a try. Neither I nor my friend could get it to work. Has anybody got this code to work before? Any suggestions, ideas or details for finding this extra battery power?
And do these things work for cricket phones ?
The only stupid question is the one that remains unasked
~Niebr~
im keeping the battery and stolen phone thing in mind,
The only stupid question is the one that remains unasked
~Niebr~
yahoo released this today in response to that cell phones can pop, pop corn viral video that's been circulating. well it states that the five features stated aren't true. bummers, sorry 2na.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/04/01/news/wireless02.php
This has got to be one of the greatest threads ive seen thus far. This site woulda came in handy about a month ago when i lost my cell phone and some mother************* stole it and downloaded a bunch of games and ring tones. Sad, but i had to pay 100+ worth of bills.
yup that does suck. ive lost it twice and nobody used it for anything, but i tried to deactivate it as soon as possible. which was a couple of hours for both cases. sorry hac king
Nice post, I had heard some of them but never the one about locking the keys in the car, very informative. By the way, I do not know how true it is but I have heard that using the reserve power erases everything from your cell phone, as thats where it pulls the extra power from, so dont try this just for fun unless you check into that first
Normal people worry me
thank you! i agree, and also have it printed and put in an envelope in the glove compartment ....just in case!
Tuna ><((((*> the other white meat!
nice post. especially the part about unlocking your car all terminator style. ill be sure to pass this info along. cheers.
Tuna, i thought this was a great post. it's very informative; there's things there that i would have never known and never thought to research. i mean the info about the hidden battery power, the free service directory. it is a great source of info. thanks so much! i've got this info saved, for sure...juliek