Is This 4mm Thick Emergency Phone the Ultimate Backup Plan for Wireless Outages?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the practicality and utility of a 4mm thick emergency land-line phone designed for use during wireless outages. Participants explore its potential as a backup communication method, questioning its effectiveness and relevance in modern communication contexts.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express skepticism about the need for a land-line phone that can be mailed, questioning its effectiveness if the recipient does not have an active landline service.
  • Others argue that individuals who are accustomed to landlines would already possess one, making the product redundant.
  • Concerns are raised about the practicality of waiting for a phone to be mailed during a wireless outage, with suggestions that it would be more efficient to replace a broken cellphone immediately.
  • One participant mentions using a cellphone as a backup for cordless home phones, highlighting the reliance on multiple communication methods to ensure connectivity during outages.
  • There is a humorous remark about the irony of needing to call someone to request the mailed phone, questioning the logistics of such a scenario.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express disagreement regarding the practicality and necessity of the emergency phone, with multiple competing views on its usefulness and relevance in contemporary communication practices.

Contextual Notes

Some participants note that many have transitioned away from landlines entirely, which may limit the product's appeal. Additionally, there are concerns about the reliability of other communication methods during outages.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to individuals considering backup communication options, those involved in product design for emergency preparedness, and consumers evaluating the relevance of traditional landline technology in a wireless-dominated landscape.

fourier jr
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A land-line telephone that can be put in a paper envelope and sent to someone by snail-mail? There would be knowing nods, winks and guffaws all over the gallery. People shooting cellphone videos of it and e-mailing them to YouTube.

But British industrial-design firm Priestman Goode isn't kidding. Its Post A Phone is meant as a "failsafe backup" when more sophisticated wireless technology goes off-line.

http://www.thestar.com/article/268958
 
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Interesting story fourier, someone has found yet another way to make money off of the uninformed.

That is the stupidist thing I've ever heard of. If you plug it in, but you don't have an active landline, it's not going to work. I have an $8 phone that has caller ID, auto-dialing, mute, etc... but again, if you plug it into a dead landline, it's dead.

If your cell phone goes out momentarily, are you really going to wait for a phone to be mailed to you, only to find out that, ooops, I don't pay for a landline, is that why it doesn't work?

And if you have a landline (you have DSL for instance) why wouldn't you go out and buy a $5-$8 phone to keep around the house anyway? That's just common sense.
 
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What an odd thing to think people would buy. Those who are "used to" landlines will already have a landline phone. And as Evo pointed out, if you don't have a landline service, what good is this thing going to be? But, if you have to wait for the thing to be mailed to you, you might as well run out to the store and get your broken cellphone replaced the same day if you've otherwise been relying on a cell phone. I actually keep my cellphone as the backup for my cordless home phones (since they rely on a plug to work...the cellphone is backup for power outages or outages of the landline phone). Between a cell phone and a landline, the entire area would have to be in a major blackout for me not to have one or the other to call from (and then nothing is going to work). I have a car charger for the cell phone, so am not depending on house electricity for it to work.

Many people I know have completely done away with their landlines...something like that won't help at all in that case. Actually, the one thing that keeps me from switching to VoIP instead of a landline is that the cable goes out more often than either the electric or phone (I've never had a phone outage, and while the power often blinks during storms, only once or twice have I had an outage that lasted as much as an hour...during which the cellphone still works). But, if I did switch, I'd still have the cellphone for backup if there was a power or cable outage.

By the way, if you need someone to mail you a phone, how do you call them and ask for it? :smile:
 
Related tip: keep a wire coat hanger on the back seat in case you lock your keys in the car.
 
out of whack said:
Related tip: keep a wire coat hanger on the back seat in case you lock your keys in the car.

:smile: Oh, and don't forget to send out those emails to let your employees know the mail server is down.
 
That would of worked out well when I had a apartment that was only 5mm big.