This morning, I came to work to find a quite applicable and concerning article in an e-mail from my supervisor (Thanks, Marcel!). Apparently two-thirds of today's smartphones have their FM radio switch turned off by the provider.
Click here to read the article by All Tech Considered's Emma Bowman.
While it makes sense from a financial standpoint for the provider to want for consumers to use data-dependent sources for their news, this raises a problem when power is lost and these data-searching apps suck up unnecessary battery life that could be used much more sparingly with FM radio waves. Further, Bowman notes that much of what she has found out is that mobile companies are doing this because there isn't a consumer demand for the FM ability to be switched back on. You may want to check and see if your provider allows for the use of FM radio on your phone, and if they do not, you may want to start asking for a switch. We never know how long we may be without power in the wrong situation, and the ability to find FM radio can be important if phone lines are bogged down like they were during Superstorm Sandy.
Also, Charlotte, you're on a tornado watch today so please be careful and be extra safe out there, y'all!
No comments:
Post a Comment