I’m Not a Luddite; I’m a Curmudgeon

The difference is that I like techy things, but I have my limits. I want them to work my way, and when they don’t I get a bit grumpy. *heh*

So, bought a couple of lil bluetooth “fitness trackers” that retail all over the place for about $50 each for $1 apiece at my fav “fell off the back of a truck store” (nah, closeouts, distressed sales, etc.) and discovered what, for me, is a lil “gotcha.” Yeh, the phone app closes in on “sucky.” I like keeping my phone off, so for reporting, etc., it’s turn on phone RE-pair the thing via my phone’s built-in functionality (cos the app from the mfg doesn’t “remember” that well), blah, blah,blah. Worse, the app won’t even pair with the device unless my phone has an internet connection!

Oh, well, I can put up with the rigamarole, and it is a fun lil toy for a buck. If I had paid anything close to retail, though, I’d not be real happy with the app.

It’s quite different to other things that I have paired with my phone, a decent set of stereo headphone, for example, that I use to listen to the music I have loaded onto the phone (nah, I prefer not streaming with the thing,and yeh, it’s just me *heh*). The headphones, I just turn on, start some music playing and it’s cool.


Update: Went back to the store and bought a $1 “fitness tracker watch” that does the same things with no need for a bluetooth connection of app for my phone. It also has a pulse monitor, which “sorta” makes up for the lack of a “gee whiz” app (that worked like a clunker).

2 Replies to “I’m Not a Luddite; I’m a Curmudgeon”

  1. The quality of Bluetooth audio has certainly improved lately. It used to be barely adequate for phone calls. I like to listen to music on my phone too, and I don’t like to stream it.

    I use a Crosley USB turntable and Audacity to transfer my vinyl albums to MP3s and then I load them onto my phone. Whenever I want to listen to music it’s usually with a pair of stereo Bluetooth headphones.

    It doesn’t cost me anything except storage space on my phone, and the music’s better than the streaming services. Especially when there’s no WiFi available or cell signal.

    1. Listening to music via the BT headphones paired to my phone is one of the few “smart phone” bennies I appreciate (and use) on the device. Somehow, these headphone’s reproduction of music is less irritating (tinnitus less impacted, somehow *shrugs* Freq repro? I dunno; just glad to have a relatively irritation-free listening experience and don’t wanna poke around to find out right now *heh*).

      I also use my BT headphones with my Fire, but I don’t like lugging it around the house or whatever (doesn’t reach downstairs). I even use them with a notebook that has BT functionality, sometimes. (That way, I can watch a movie or some YouTube videos while my Wonder Woman watches one of her programs on TV w/o disturbing her viewing experience.)

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