Beam Me Up...

We just got back from Phoenix, so what do you think I'm going to talk about? That's right: Bluetooth.

Wyoming recently passed a law banning handheld cell phone use while driving, so I wanted to get a hands-free device. I sent out my resident expert on all things technical and gadgety (the Cat Daddy), who is always up for a trip to Best Buy. He came back with a little box the size of a pack of Post-Its and said something to the effect of "Behold, your new speakerphone." Then he hooked it up for me. This involved clipping it to the sun visor. Then he told me how to link it to my celly. So I did.

So now when I get into the car, the lady inside the speaker says, in a pleasant yet slightly robotic British accent, "Battery level is high." And it gives a little ding and she says, "Connected to Motorola phone." When I want to make a call, I hit the button on the box and speak as if I'm talking to my cell phone. I tell it to "Name Dial," and then I tell it who to call, and THEN if I have more than one number for that person, it asks me which one to call. And then it does.

Now, the only touching I do at all is hitting the big button on the box when I want to make a call, and then again when I hang up. I do not touch my cell phone in any way. My cell phone is usually folded up and put away in the diaper bag, sometimes in the way back of the car...and I can still make a call with my nifty speakerphone.

It reminds me of the com-badges on Star Trek: The Next Generation. You know, the ones they wore on their chests, and they would hit it and say "Transporter room, one to beam up," or "Get us out of here, NOW!!!" I could hang my little speaker box around my neck, and people would look at me weird (and probably think "Dang Trekkie"), but it would be essentially the same as a com-badge, minus the tracking capabilities. There's a cell phone app for those, I believe.

The more we can do with technology, the more it amazes me. Right now, at this very minute, I'm having a conversation of sorts (via Facebook) with two guys in completely different parts of Phoenix. And I'm in Cheyenne. I can listen to the same radio station anywhere in the country, thanks to satellite radio and streaming audio. My computer isn't even connected to anything except its power cord, and yet here I sit, surfing away.

Friggin' amazing...