[Racer X 69]

What law is that? Not every state has the same laws.

Well they should.

Distracted driving is deadly driving.

[tim60]

I remember discussion in SA where Dave is to the effect that talking on hands free while driving should be illegal because a conversation with someone who is not in the car is distracting in a way that talking to a passenger is not because the passenger is also aware of the context.

[robtcorl]

IMO there are many people capable of safely cell talking and driving, if it's hands free. There are others who can't chew gum and walk at the same time. Calling, talking and texting are the things my cell phone is used the least for.

[Racer X 69]

Calling, talking and texting are the things my cell phone is used the least for.

So it just takes up space in your pocket and once a month you send some money to a faceless corporation for the privelege?

[JimJohnson]

...and then there is the information display in nearly all new vehicles. I'm not talking about speed and engine management gauges, I'm talking about which song is playing on the radio/etc., GPS map displays, weather forecasts, and on and on. I am sure it is typical, but my Subaru tells me (in writing) each time I start the engine that I shouldn't allow myself to be distracted

I DO have my phone tethered to my car. If my spouse is in the car, she can decide whether or not to take the call. Depending on road conditions, I MAY take the call (totally voice controlled). But my response to anything other than a couple short sentence update will likely be "let you call you back", or "hang-on until I can pull off the road". While driving, my wife in the passenger's seat knows better than to start any deep discussion. I'm busy.

[lesmore49]

One thing that drives me nuts on new vehicles is the display on the information screen...right there to the right of me on the dashboard that pops up all of a sudden, has a message that says taking your eye's off the road is dangerous. It is, so why put that bit of lawyerspeak right in front of you that comes on while your driving.

If I'm driving alone and me cell phone chirps, I ignore it while driving. If I'm expecting an important call, I'll drive till I can find a safe place to pull over and check out who called me. In our province our legislation says you can't drive and have a phone in your hand, you can talk on the phone if it's not handheld . And the penalties are severe, as there have been many anaccident due to talking on the phone while driving. I recall reading some provincial stats that indicated there are more accidents in my province from talking on the cell, then there are from DUI.

I have the stuff in my vehicle where I could speak on the phone through the vehicle and not hand hold a phone, but I don't have it set up.

I recall the first time I spoke on a cell phone in a vehicle. I was the... passenger in my SIL's new Toyota.

She gave me her cell phone and asked me to phone her parents and we were driving over there to show them her new car. I phoned them and was only on the phone for a short time, but during that time, it was as if that 5 minutes had 'disappeared'....from my life.

I tend to concentrate wholly when on the phone, oblivious to all else. For me, talking on a cell phone while driving would not be safe. I know it, and so I don't do it.

When I'm driving , I'm driving, and I have to admit...I'm a very aware driver, scanning for poor drivers, if dicey situations come up, I quickly scan for escape 'routes' , etc. I really enjoy driving and I really concentrate on driving.

Think it comes from my days riding motorcycles...where you have to ride defensively as you don't have that any sheet metal around you...also from driving commercial trucks...I found in these cases...I had to constantly not just ride/drive for myself, but drive and compensate for other so called 'drivers' poor driving.

Which I still do, in our family truckster...our large Chevy SUV. I have no problemo talking to other passengers when I'm driving, but for some reason, put me on a phone and I find I'm not comfortable and not concentrating as much as I usually do. So, I just don't use the phone while I'm in the driver's seat.

[robtcorl]

So it just takes up space in your pocket and once a month you send some money to a faceless corporation for the privelege?

Google maps with GPS gets me where I want to go, the calendar and it's notifications keep my busy life in order, the magnifying glass app lets me read the fine print, the baseball app lets me know scores and schedules, my tunes are stored on it, the calculator comes in very handy, YouTube can keep me entertained, news and weather at my fingertips, Kindle reader app if I want to read a book, are some of its other uses.
I do keep in contact with my kids and grandkids via texting, but not while I'm driving.

edit to add, saying Hey Google, or OK Google gets me vocal answers to nearly all of my questions, or will make calls for me.

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Last edited by robtcorl; 05-29-2021 at 08:09 AM.

[lesmore49]

Google maps with GPS gets me where I want to go, the calendar and it's notifications keep my busy life in order, the magnifying glass app lets me read the fine print, the baseball app lets me know scores and schedules, my tunes are stored on it, the calculator comes in very handy, YouTube can keep me entertained, news and weather at my fingertips, Kindle reader app if I want to read a book, are some of its other uses.
I do keep in contact with my kids and grandkids via texting, but not while I'm driving.

edit to add, saying Hey Google, or OK Google gets me vocal answers to nearly all of my questions, or will make calls for me.

I do know what you mean and sort of do the same things, well I don't, but my wife does .

Now that we're both retired, my wife and I usually do everything together. I just use my cell phone for talking, texting and in case an emergency pops up. I think I got it, back in 2007, maybe 2008.

It's old and simple....kind of like me. It doesn't take good pictures, for that I use my small Ricoh GR ll, it doesn't connect very well to online stuff, and I don't want a fancy phone.

Now I may not want a fancy phone, but I do appreciate all the things a fancy phone can do. Particularly tuning into podcasts on the road, taking videos of our 3 year old grandson, getting Google directions while traveling, and weather reports while traveling. But I don't want to have that fancy phone for me, let me continue to have and use my simplistic 14 year old basic Nokia or Nokian. Can't remember the name...one is a tire, one is a phone.

But my wife is a fancy phone a newer Apple and it is great to have on trips so we can access all that info, apps, etc...or at least she can while sitting in the shotgun seat.

[robtcorl]

My Samsung cell cost $150, and I've had it for 6 years this June. Still works fine, no plans to upgrade. We have prepaid service for $30 per month each. This thing takes better pics than any of my first digital point and shoots.

[lesmore49]

My Samsung cell cost $150, and I've had it for 6 years this June. Still works fine, no plans to upgrade. We have prepaid service for $30 per month each. This thing takes better pics than any of my first digital point and shoots.

I've always been a still photographer. But when our grandson was born, I started to use my K1 and K5 video and they work fine. But I keep them encased in camera bags and by the time I drag them out and start filming, the action has departed. So that was one of the prime reasons we got a good cell phone. My wife has it in her purse, whips the cell out, starts taking pix of junior in no time flat .

The video is excellent and so are the still pix out of this little camera phone. But what it has over the DSLR's IMO, is it is fast, quick to access and as they say...the best camera is the one with you.

I got a SLR originally in the late '60's because it was a job requirement for my work at a publishing company. It was a tool, just like a mechanic or carpenter have tools. Prior to that, I knew nothing about quality cameras, my box brownie did the job, for the pix I took. But I got hooked into photography once I got my 'work' camera, my Pentax S1a.

If I hadn't worked for a publisher, required a SLR....who knows, I may never had gotten past a point and shoot, just to take the pictures I took, which were to record family/friends birthdays, holiday shots, etc. ...then eventually as time rolled by, a cell phone camera would of been good enough.

[robtcorl]

Too much photo talk, I'll take my share of the blame.
In other news, my pork ribs are smelling like BACON. They've been bathing in gentle hickory smoke for 4 hours now.

[Parallax]

Too much photo talk, I'll take my share of the blame.
In other news, my pork ribs are smelling like BACON. They've been bathing in gentle hickory smoke for 4 hours now.

Hickory smoke. What a great idea! I'll add some liquid smoke to the water the next time I boil a batch.

[robtcorl]

Hickory smoke. What a great idea! I'll add some liquid smoke to the water the next time I boil a batch.

[StiffLegged]

That’s AUUUGHHHHHHHH!!

[Parallax]

LOL!