The experiment was immensely
and impressively successful. Not only I managed
to "survive" without my data plan in the city for a week, I've
discovered that I can function better
without it. I took the experiment out of the city to a no-reception zone and found
out wifi is more reliable than my carrier's (Sprint) data plan.
- Logging into free wifi
offered by Starbucks and other locations is easy and effective. I'm a Starbuck
junkie, but other places that come to mind are McDonalds, Dunkin Donuts,
Panera bread, Cozi and others, not to mention numerous independent cafes
in the city and most major parks.
- Some apps do not work
well without constant data connection. One such app I used (or tried to
use) in this experiment is Google Voice. Facebook and Google+ addicts who
have to check into every location they go to might have a problem even
though the later offers a good integration with Google Maps, which,
surprisingly, works extremely well without
data connection.
- Having to choose music
for the road was rewarding. My tool of choice is Google Music, but any
native Android (or IPhone or IPod, whichever) music app will do just fine.
Better music quality without cringing every time a commercial ruins your
groove is fantastic. Personal music mixes (playlists) for different moods
is something I definitely missed; relying completely on computer
algorithms to do the job still doesn't come close.
- Chances are there's a
Starbucks (or your place of choice) wherever you go. I found that I manage
my time better and that I'm overall more productive when my online time is
limited.
- I don't want to get into
carrier wars here, but mine is definitely not the best one. I learned to relay on wifi, or at times,
getting ready for not having internet at all during this week, and my work
was more fluid and productive than ever. I remember apologizing to my
students with a "any minute now.. it's coming.. it's coming..."
too many times during class when I needed an item I saved online. Not
anymore. Lesson learned well.
Final
thoughts: The next step should probably be to get rid of my contract and
get a normal, "stupid" old-fashioned phone that can handle nothing
but texts and calls. A pay-as-you-go plan would work best in my case, as I
barely use my phone to talk. Emails good texts replacements (did you know you
can "text" an email directly, data connection or not?), and Twitter
comes close second. I would like to stay with an Android device to go online
often and use as a personal assistant and as a camera.
