Brad,
There was a time when the US cellular industry actually
manufactured phones that were useful. Yes, they were larger and simpler, but
they did what phones needed to: communicate. Hands-free really worked, and it
was the default in appropriate situations. Then, the craze for digitalized
tininess hit, and practicality went out the window. Unfortunately, that trend
has hardly been kind to disabled people who have to use artificial speech, like
me. As phones have continued to shrink, they have become more and more nearly
unusable for those with limited dexterity. Finally, as if to be the ultimate
insult, someone decided within the last two years that all new phones needed to
turn off speakerphone after every call. It’s no wonder there are so many
wrecks, with people fumbling with their tiny phones. I went to Best Buy this
morning to learn about the speakerphone thing, and to try out
touchscreens.
The Motorola Barrage we last selected for me is laying in my
bedroom unusable. The back comes off every time I try to open the lid, because
the lock is already worn out. That, along with the speakerphone
“feature,” has made that phone as unmitigated disaster. I’m sure you understand
how angry I am; I pay for a small network of Verizon phones that’s inaccessible
to me when my own phone is FUBAR. I know you’re just a mid-level grunt, but
some decision-maker at Verizon needs to start paying attention before someone
gets even angrier than I am. Verizon is capable of fielding good simple phones,
such as the Kyocera QCP-2330. That was a wonderful little candy bar that you
could even control remotely from a laptop. Unfortunately, the Cellular
Technology Industrial Association is way too greedy, intent on selling you a
new microscopic Swiss Army Knife every two years!
Scott
Disability in America 