Tracking the Savings

I did it.

I bought my first smart phone.

I still feel weird about it, but I'm adjusting.

Basically, when I switched to Ting a while ago, I could not get my picture messaging to work.  I never thought I would consider picture messaging a necessity, but being without it for two weeks was driving me crazy.  Not only could I not see pictures sent to me, but I also couldn't take any to send to myself or other people.  I like to take pictures while out running, so I knew I would miss that, but I just didn't realize how much I rely on that feature.

I emailed back and forth with Ting's support staff, who were really great, but eventually I came to learn that Sprint is discontinuing that feature for all non-smart phones.  Since Ting uses the Sprint network, that meant me as well.

One of the great things about Ting is that there are no contracts.  One of the drawbacks of not having a cellphone contract is having to pay outright for a phone.  That means, depending on what kind of smartphone I settled on, I was staring down the barrel of a very big charge on my credit card.  So I waited.

I managed to go a whole month without my beloved picture messaging, but finally, in the span of one afternoon I:

1. Found a really good deal on a used phone via Amazon
2. Got a picture message of a friend of mine wearing Google glass that I couldn't actually see
3. Got offered an extra shift at job #3

These occurrences were the perfect storm I needed to make me pay the $226 for an excellent condition Apple iPhone 4s.  I ended up going with the iPhone because pretty much everything else I own is Apple (which makes me feel a little hipster and filthy), and I just wanted the transition to be as easy as possible.

Now, I'm $200 over on my cell phone budget according to mint.com, but My monthly bill is half what it used to be, and I intend to use little-to-no data, so my bill should stay low.  I'm also going to keep track of the money I save via various apps, and count that toward how long it takes to recoup the expense of the phone.  I've already used Target's Cartwheel app to save a cool $.63 and earn a badge! It's amazing how excited I get about badges which both do and mean nothing, so I'm well on my way.

Now I need help from my frugal friends.  What apps can you not live without? How do you save money using your smartphone?  I shelled out a lot of cash for this thing, I want the savings to be worth it!

The Art of Asking

I love this TED Talk that Amanda Palmer did a while back called The Art of Asking.  I encourage everyone to watch the whole thing, but the gist of it is because she isn't afraid to ask people for what she needs, she often gets what she asks for plus a personal connection with someone and a chance to encounter people.  She has asked her fans to fund albums (a controversial decision), has frequently stayed at fans' houses, has gotten food from fans--even a neti pot.  Basically whenever she needs something, she just asks. And when she gets what she asked for, she says thank you and shares a genuine moment with the person she is thanking.

It's almost stupidly simple.  You ask for something you need, and the person you ask says either yes or no.  But it can be awful, and embarrassing and potentially awkward as well.  Except, it can also be really great.  When you have something--anything, that you're not particularly fired up about and you find someone who needs it, it's a great feeling.  I've found that in freecycling things--both giving things and receiving them.  I had a tv a few months ago that I didn't need, and I found a girl who was really grateful to take it off my hands.  My bike was stolen, and a woman gave me a better bike that had been sitting in her shed.  Asking isn't demanding, and people have the option to just refuse, but oftentimes, they realize that it's not a big deal at all.

I mentioned a while back that I was in a bit of a pickle when it came to a tv for my new apartment. I don't want to pay for one, so I put an ad on Freecycle asking if anyone had one that works that I could pick up.  I heard back from a guy about 30 minutes away and planned to pick it up on Sunday.  Then I had a chat with BF and a friend, who strongly discouraged me from taking this potentially huge and heavy tv in favor of looking for a cheaper, newer one.  To be honest, I'm not sure why they were so vehement, but they did plant a seed in my mind, so I emailed the guy back and started hunting for a different tv.

Craigslist Flatscreen

I looked all over Craigslist and discovered that a flatscreen tv in Craigslist parlance, is just a tube tv with a screen that doesn't bulge out.  I became a bit disheartened.  Then I thought that maybe, just maybe, someone I know has one they are getting rid of, or just don't need.  I've already had a couple people offer me really old tvs, so I figured I'd see if there was something newer out there, for whatever reason.

I asked and I received--two offers actually, within about fifteen minutes.

A friend of mine who is planning on going on an adventure in the fall and who is actively purging her house of contents has a small flat screen (actual flatscreen, not just a screen that's slightly flat), that she bought four years ago and never really used. She said she thought she might like to have it on in the background since she was also living alone for the first time in a long time, but later realized that she's not much of a tv person.

It has a built in DVD player, and HDMI port so I can connect my laptop if I want, and is the perfect size.  BF was a bit horrified at how small it was when he saw it, but it's bigger than my laptop screen and perfect for my needs because I really don't care about screen size.   I know, since it's a newer model, that it will work with the roku I plan to buy... or ask for.

I have a tendency to just take the easiest option, so I am a bit glad that BF and my friend pushed me not to take the Freecycle tube tv because it turns out the even easier option was getting a better tv from a friend.

She even delivered it, and we got to catch up face-to-face instead of via facebook.  It was really nice.  Bonus: I've managed to still never pay for a tv.  Keep the streak alive!

Best Free Apps!

The following is a guest post from my good friend Stephanie, who blogs (just starting out!) at Backbends and Bookends.  Since I'm still in the land of the dumb phone users, I couldn't do the Blogathon Theme Day #1, so Steph took it on for me!

Just a few of my favorite FREE apps....

Before I start, I have to make note that I don’t play a lot of games on my phone and I delete an app that has just sat on my phone unused for a month.  I don’t like clutter - even the app kind.  Here are a few that have survived the ax:  

Overdrive

I can always have an ebook and audiobook on my phone.  Sweet.  I have become increasingly happy with Overdrive, especially after having issues with playaways randomly stopping on me and the tediousness of putting every disc of an audiobook on the computer to put on my phone (c’mon, everyone does it....).  It’s quick, easy and I never get caught bookless.

Zinio

Recent add to my phone after hubby’s library acquired Zinio.  With Zinio, you peruse through various magazines, add them to your account and get them added to your phone with every new issue.  Then you download them and enjoy.  It can be a little tricky reading an article on the phone, but Zinio has a handy “text-only” button that simply puts the article into text so you don’t have to worry about zoom in and sliding all over the place to read it.  You can purchase magazines as well, but I’ve been very happy with the selections the library has.  If your library doesn’t offer this service I would strongly encourage you to suggest it!

Duolingo

For years I have been wanting to brush up on my Spanish skills.  I stumbled across Duolingo and have enjoyed working through the levels and skill sets.   You get a variety of exercise types - listening, speaking, vocabulary, spelling and translating.  The vocabulary and activities is appropriate and the graphics are cute.

American Red Cross

I was taking my CPR/First Aid Certification class earlier this week, and the instructor suggested checking out their apps.  I downloaded the First Aid app and was surprised about how much information was in it.  It has basically every lesson as well as information on preparing for countless disasters and finding shelters and more.  They also have a separate earthquake, tornado, hurricane and shelter app and said they are working on more.  

Untapped
This is actually my husbands favorite app and is a lot of fun if you and your friends enjoy beer.  You get a status symbol based upon how many unique beers you drink and compete with friends to see who can drink more unique label beers.  He and his friends are very competitive and enjoy discovering new unique IPA’s and the like.  

The Television Question

Free tv!

It's a strange source of pride for me that I've never actually bought a tv.  I've also found, that when you tell people you don't have a tv and aren't willing to buy one, everyone offers you one to the point of being a bit aggressive.

The first time I needed a tv was the first time I lived alone--sophomore year of college.  My grandmother died that year, and I inherited her very nice television, which I then used for the next five years until I moved to Rhode Island.

When I told people I was moving to Rhode Island with only what fit in my car, and I was selling Grandma's tv, people were appalled.  I got at least two offers of tvs "so small it won't even take up that much room", and finally my new landlady in Rhode Island, whom I hadn't even met at the time, gave me a rather nice tv to use for the duration of my tenancy.  After that, I moved in with BF, who had a tv, and a couple years ago, he upgraded to a nice flatscreen.

Now, I'm in the situation where I'm going to be living by myself for a year, and I'd like a tv, but the nature of my tv watching has changed.  Presently, I can watch tv on my laptop.  That works fine when I'm just half watching something, or for the treadmill, but then I can't really also use my computer.  I could certainly get a nice tube tv off of freecycle for no money at all, but more than half of the tv/movies I watch are streaming from netflix or Virgin Media TV, so I would need a tv that plugs into my laptop, or some kind of streaming device like a Roku.  Plus, there's watching movies with friends, which I wouldn't want to do on my puny laptop.  What's the point of living alone if you can't have slumber parties!?!

So I really don't know what the best solution is.  I don't want to spend a lot of money since this is temporary, but I also don't want to have a lot of hassle associated with a leisure activity.  Anyone have any suggestions for me?  Is there something I missed?

Cheap(er) Gadgetry

I say over and over that I am not a gadget girl, and that's true.  Recently though, I stepped a toe into the waters of the future and bought myself a GPS running watch.  This is a completely nonessential item that I have lived without happily for years, but I finally decided that I wanted one after a few things became apparent to me.

1. Running this year has been hard.  I've been battling injuries, loss of muscle from having to recover from said injuries and gaining weight from being unable to exercise (and, to be honest, from eating too much...).  My stride is off and running just feels like a lot more work than it used to.  Because I just wear a stopwatch watch when running, it's easy to sort of fudge my times and think I'm going faster than I am.  Now, thanks to GPS technology, I know that I have slowed waaaaaaaay down, and I have goals to work toward.
2. Better/ easier organization.  I've got a pretty good system with using google maps to plot out running routes, but they don't allow a lot of room to mix things up.  For instance, I have a four-mile route, a six-mile route, seven, eight, etc. I do not vary from these routes, but sometimes I want to.  I also still want to hit the miles I set out to do when I left the house that morning.  GPS watch will tell me how far I've actually run if I veer off my usual route for a change of scenery, which also makes running more fun.
3. Digital record.  I can just plug my watch in at the end of a run and upload everything I just did to Garmin connect.  This gives me my split times (time per mile), and houses all of my previous runs so I can track progress. I just found out (though I suspected) that my six mile running loop is actually 5.8 miles, so I've been cheating myself a bit in training, now I won't let myself get away with that anymore.

So, those are the positives about this little gadget, and I apologize if I sound like a shill for Garmin, it's just that I've been researching these devices for over a year, and most runners conclude that this is the best brand.  Problem is, they are not cheap, there are about a million models out there, and some of them are just huge.

That's like a computer on your wrist--not interested

So I went for the brand new Forerunner 10 because I figure since it's new and Garmin has been doing this for a while, they've now worked the kinks out.  At $129.99, it's much more affordable than other models, and it's small!  It looks like a regular watch.

I could even wear this in real life

 $129.99 is not a price that I scoff at, which is why I've been contemplating buying one of these gadgets for over a year but have been unwilling to shell out the cash.  This time around though, I used the 43 points I had on my Amazon.com Visa to bring the price down to $87.  If I had been more ambitious, I could have brought my change collection to the Coinstar and gotten another Amazon gift certificate.  I do wish I had done that, but I was too lazy/ too eager to place the order.

Either way, it's a win/win for me!  I don't super love Amazon, but I do love that you can buy from a third party through amazon, and save money plus get extra points.  After listening to a co-worker go on about waiting in line for hours to buy an Xbox 360 just because it was painted red (he already had an identical Xbox--what is up with people?), I started to feel pretty damn smug about being a discerning gadget shopper.

Shut Out At A Museum?

Who are you talking to?!?!?

I've mentioned before that I do not own a smart phone and have no plans to get one any time soon.  I certainly don't judge those who have one and like it, but I just know that having a smart phone would take over my life and I don't want that.  What I'm starting to realize in a very real way lately is the fact that the world is skewing rapidly toward one where you're not only encouraged to have a smart phone, but almost required to have one.

When I was in high school, cell phones were a total luxury item and a wildly impractical one at that.  I don't honestly understand how Zach Morris managed to make so many calls on his phone because it was nearly impossible to ever get a signal.  Of course, I did grow up in North Dakota, so take that statement with a grain of salt.  Fast forward to when I was in college, everyone had a cell phone for emergency use only, because we lived in North Dakota, and now if you don't have a cell phone and ever run out of gas, you're screwed because there are no pay phones.

I was at the Mutter Museum in Philadelphia, PA a few months ago, and they had limited information in front of the exhibits, but a phone number that you were supposed to call for more information. Yes, a museum was encouraging you to make phone calls.  The librarian in me finds this notion absolutely repellant, and I also don't really want to be standing there on my phone surrounded by other people on their phones.  I mean, those awful acoustiguides are bad enough, now they're taking away all the reminders that there are places where cell phone use is just not ok.  Basically, this kind of cell phone sanctioning is going to turn people into even bigger jerks, I fear.

Acoustiguides are the worst, the WORST!

Well, the Danish Rosenborg Palace has even one-upped the Mutter Museum.  In front of the collection of Danish Crown Jewels, they have no information of any kind.  They put you in a room with a bunch of pretty things, and then just give you QR codes.

This is not helpful

I realize that they're doing this as a money-saving measure, but according to the computer programmer that I spent part of this vacation with, it's prohibitively expensive for an American to upgrade to a European data plan, so even if you want to get online, you need wi-fi, which the palace did not have.  Anyone not from Northern Europe who really, really wants to know about the Danish crown jewels, would have to, I don't know, take a picture of the QR code and look at it later?

I assume these are the more 'everyday' crowns,
but I have no way to know for sure

This just galls me to no end.  Museums and libraries exist so that everyone, no matter what social status, can access information and educate themselves.  They shouldn't be only for those who can afford fancy gadgetry!
In the case of the Danish Crown Jewels, certainly there must be some Danes, who paid for those jewels, who cannot afford a smartphone.  Dismayed though I am, I'm still no closer to wanting a smartphone.  Nice try, Denmark.

Gah! Electronics!

I'm not a gadget girl, not by a long shot.  I see the newest, shiniest thing out on the market that all the people are salivating over and I think something like do I need that?  I wouldn't use that and then I don't buy it.  It's actually one of the things I like best about myself.  Obviously, because of the world we live in, there are a few things one needs to be more comfortable/ reachable by others.

• Cell Phone
• Computer + Internet (the better to blog to you, my dears)
• Some kind of music device

I don't know, did I miss anything?  These are my big three, and they don't really cost much at all, except, like in recent months when all needed to be replaced pretty much one after the other.

Exhibit A: The iPod

I mentioned a while back that I needed a new iPod.  My old one was full, and I didn't want to delete anything. As I have had it for about six years, and paid for it with the money earned by selling my CDs (I had a LOT of CDs) this is a justifiable purchase.  As regular readers will recall, I started a smartypig.com savings account, and saved up nearly all I needed to pay for this item before I purchased it.  So really, the iPod is the least of my concerns right now because it's paid for.

Exhibit B: The Computer

My laptop is about four years old, and it's served me well.  I don't need a super-fancy computer, my needs are pretty basic, but I ran into a few problems with this item in the past year.

1. I got a virus.  I got a virus so bad that I had to give my laptop to a friend, and he had to restore it and rebuild it.  Thankfully, I have a friend who can do that and doesn't charge me for it, but it kind of freaked me out.  Then, after the restore, I started having issues with my wireless internet.  My friend had upgraded me to Windows 7, which apparently does not play nicely with the particular laptop I have.  I re-installed drivers, did everything the internet told me to do, and it just would not work right.  BF then bought me a little gadget that you can plug in, and it makes the wireless work!  I was very content with that until...

2. The whole thing just seized.  I installed Skype (one of my best friends lives in Indonesia--long story), and Spotify (as stated above, I enjoy good tunes) and these two programs just overwhelmed my poor machine.  I deleted as much as I could from the hard drive, but to no avail.  Once I reach the point where it takes five minutes+ to open firefox, I go shopping.

3. I bought a new laptop.  I got a good price on a good machine that has all the bells and whistles I desire, plus a few I haven't figured out yet.  Problem is, it was a nearly $600 unexpected expense, and that has sent me into a bit of a budgetary tailspin even though, that's a damn good price for what I got.

Exhibit C: Storage

In an effort to back up my stuff, and keep new laptop from being overloaded, I bought an external harddrive.  "What's that?" you ask, "You didn't already know you should have one of those in case your computer crashes like it did last year?"  Answer: "Yes, damnit, I knew!"  But I hadn't acted.  Buying a storage device is simply not fun, but now I can say awesome things like, "I have a terrabyte of backup space--yeah!"

So in the past month, I have spent approximately $1000 on gadgetry.  The good news, I won't spend anything on gadgets for probably five years.  The bad news is, of course, the outstanding balance on my Amex.  But, silver lining, I took old laptop back to awesome computer-fixing friend, and he will get it ready to sell on to the next person, and I will recoup some of my spending.  And the other good news, is that now that I have two iPods, I can use one in the car, and I won't be burning CDs / listening to the same music all the time i.e. my friends won't have to listen to nothing but Madonna, but they'll still be able to choose to.

Why I Don't Need A Smart Phone

My brother has that second one, and he accidentally
dials me from his pants pocket all the time--not smart.

Obviously I want my phone to be smart enough to make calls, and text, but that's about it.  It seems like every day another of my friends gets a smartphone, and every now and then I get a little jealous of them.  But once I sit back and think about it, I realize that the jealousy is just "shiny new gadget" jealously and isn't really me, it's just me being such a good actress gushing over a phone that I've even convinced myself!

Yes, it might be handy to have a smartphone, but I've lived a full life thus far without one, and I think I'm going to keep on keeping on in my way for quite a while.

1. Too expensive.  First you pay for the device, and then in order to use the device to its fullest potential, you need the huge data plan.  I currently pay ~$50/month for my non-smart phone, and even that makes me grumble sometimes, especially when I consider that I use it mostly as a clock.  I've asked around, and no one that I know pays less than $100/month for their smart phone.  Do I want to double my phone bill?  Answer: no.
2. Too distracting.  Do I really need to play Angry Birds whenever I have a moment of downtime?  Do I need to check facebook every ten minutes?  Do I need an app that simulates bread toasting?  Yes, a gadget-loving co-worker has told me about a few comparison shopping apps that might be a bit awesome, but I'm certainly not going to save any money with them if I double my monthly phone bill!  I won't let her trick me, she's already talked me into buying a Nook that I never use.
3. I already have a GPS--that's another practical use for a smartphone that certainly applies to me, but I've already got that base covered AND it was only a one-time fee, technically a gift.
4. I kind of hate people with smartphones.  I've found, that having a smartphone around means that you have to google everything all the time, or you just constantly have it in hand for one reason or another.  Yes, it's handy it you want to spontaneously go to a movie, or if you're off on an adventure and you need to make new plans, but you can also figure things out.  I like relying on my ingenuity, or speculating about something rather than just having the (sometimes dubious) answers right there.  If I really, really need the internet, I can call someone, or the library, and have them google it for me.  I've done it before.
5. I want my phone to be a phone--and sometimes a clock.  That's all I really need, and I barely talk on the thing anyway.  I hate talking on the phone and I much prefer texting or IMing, which is clunky on a smartphone.

So yes, sometimes I'm made to feel like a Luddite, but honestly, if all your friends have smartphones, save your money and just make them do all the "smart" stuff you may need.  They'll feel proud of their gadget, and you'll feel proud of your bank account.

Free Technology

Everyone knows that you can't get very far these days without using a computer. Instead of breaking the bank buying proprietary software, with a little work and willingness to learn, you can find free, compatible versions of many programs. My motto (one of them anyway) is why pay for something you can get (legally) for free. Sure, these versions may not be what you're used to and there may be a bit of a learning curve, but some are actually better than what you would pay for, and they save you money.

Open Office: Open Office allows you to create documents, spreadsheets, presentations, database and drawings. It's basically Microsoft Word without the hefty pricetag. Open Office documents are compatible with other programs, so if you need to save something and open it on a different machine to print it, you can do that. It's far more user-friendly than MS Office 2007, which I hate completely. As an aside, at the library where I work, we have MS Office 2007 on the public computers, and I spend a significant chunk of my day-to-day helping people figure out how to do the most basic things like print or single space. Open Office actually just works the way it should.

Google Docs: Google Docs is a very stripped-down version of MS Word or Open Office. Google Docs are handy because you can create documents and share them with people via email. You can give people permission to view the documents, or edit them as well. This came in tremendously handy when I was doing group projects in grad school--everyone would write their own content right into the document and it saved us emailing back and forth and retyping things. I've mentioned google docs before, because that's how I opted to do my budget. Google docs are stored online, so your harddrive doesn't get cluttered up, and you can access them from anywhere you can check email.

Picasa: Picasa is free online photo storage and manipulation software from google. I'm just getting into using Picasa, but it's incredibly handy, and I have friends who have done some pretty impressive things with the photo manipulation tools. Frugal Girl is a Picasa wiz, and has started sharing her secrets. Even if you don't want to do anything with photos beyond storage, Picasa allows you to free up harddrive space by storing things online; and you can share albums with family and friends by invitation.

GIMP: GIMP stands for Gnu Image Manipulation Program, and I always call GIMP the poor man's photoshop. Honestly, I've never used photoshop, and I doubt I ever will since my needs aren't that exotic. What GIMP does is allow you to crop and manipulate photos; you can insert graphics, paint, splice backgrounds, insert text and a lot more other stuff. I've managed to impress a lot of people with my "design" skills just based on what I've figured out about GIMP. There's a very thorough online help manual, and the commands are quite logical.

Cam Studio: Cam Studio is a groovy little program that seems like it meets a need you don't have. In actuality, what will probably end up happening, is that you'll say someday "I wish I could just show people how I do this thing online..." That's what Cam Studio does. It records your movements on your own computer, and stores them as a movie you can then share with other people. Also, if you have a program or a shortcut that you've figured out, you can record yourself using it so you don't forget. It's pretty handy.

Audacity: Audacity is a sound manipulation program that I haven't actually used too much, but a former boss raved about. Audacity allows you to upload sound recordings and manipulate them. If you do podcasting, you can record in into Audacity and edit out any stammers or long pauses, you can add in background music, you can plug your keyboard directly into your computer and become the next Corey Hart. Plus it's fun to play with.

Celtx: Celtx is a very specific program that perhaps a lot of people won't have a need for, but I have to mention it because as a sometime screenwriter/screenwriting instructor, I just love it. If you've ever done any screenwriting, you've learned pretty quickly that aside from coming up with a brilliant new idea, the hardest part is the formatting. Of course, the formatting also has to be completely perfect or a fantastic screenplay can get thrown out without a second glance, and the writer can spend hours fine-tuning spacing line breaks etc. There are programs that can do that for you, like Final Draft, retailing at $249, or you can download Celtx, for free. Admittedly, I've never used Final Draft, but I've also never needed to because Celtx does everything I need.

This is just a glance at what all is out there as far as free technology. I'm sure there's lots more, and I'd love to learn about it. If you've found something for free that you can't live without, mention it in the comments or send me an email: findmefrugal@gmail.com.