Use deactivated cell phone as PDA

[D L Davis]

Looks like this area doesn't get much traffic, but it appears to be the only section where this question is appropriate.

I use a palm pilot to track to do lists, reminders, quick notes, and contact information. I am well aware that smart phones do all that. However, I do not want the device I use for those purposes to even have the CAPACITY to connect to another device. No internet. No "cloud," etc. The only connection I'd like to make is to back up its information to my pc....which ALSO is NEVER connected to any outside device at all for any reason.

So, my question is this: Would it be possible for me to get a smart phone that has no capacity to wirelessly connect to any device or service? I'd like to take advantage of some of the apps available for reminders, quick notes, and contact information...as long as it can't connect to anything. I don't trust encryption or any promises of security.

[axur-delmeria]

Put it in "Airplane Mode". It disables the cellular, WiFi, and Bluetooth radios. If it's a GSM phone, don't put in a SIM.

Alternatively, you can open up the phone and disconnect the antenna (if it's possible). If the antenna is actually etched into the circuit board, you might be able to cut the circuit traces.

I use an LG VS920 as primarily as a music player. It's absolutely useless as a phone because it's CDMA-only and my country's telcos all use GSM.

Since I got it for free, I'm not complaining at all.

Besides, I prefer a physical keypad on my phone-- I use a Nokia 105 (2015):




Hmm. Physical buttons, rugged as heck, simple but functional aesthetics... that sounds like a classic Thinkpad, right?

[rkawakami]

I'd go with a GSM phone. In the US I believe that the current major players are AT&T and T-Mobile. As axur-delmeria indicates, simply don't put a SIM card in it and disable WiFi and Bluetooth. As a bonus, you can still make an emergency phone call to 911 if needed. I have a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge that I use this way.

@axur-delmeria: Up until very recently I used this:

Courtesy of Wikipedia
Since AT&T is eliminating the 2G network that this W810i uses, they offered me a free Samsung J3 upgrade. Now I use the Sony as an alarm clock . I sleep with it clipped to my waist, set the alarm to vibrate, lock the keyboard and it never fails to wake me up. A long time ago I removed the two orange buttons that activate the WalkMan and internet features as I never used them.

[excal32]

I bought a Bad ESN but good physical condition LG V10 on eBay about a year ago for this reason. Paid about 320 then and now they're 150-200. Still a great device. It only goes on wifi when i want it to and it has the benefit of having a Hi-Fi system in it too which sounds great. If that doesn't interest you (the good quality audio) any phone without a SIM should be fine.

[D L Davis]

I bought a Bad ESN but good physical condition LG V10 on eBay about a year ago for this reason. Paid about 320 then and now they're 150-200. Still a great device. It only goes on wifi when i want it to and it has the benefit of having a Hi-Fi system in it too which sounds great. If that doesn't interest you (the good quality audio) any phone without a SIM should be fine.

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I'll have to bone up on all the 3-letter stuff to interpret this and other posts...as I've never delved into the phone market beyond my Motrola flip phone.

As to the phone to PDA conversion project...I'm hoping to either find a product that is disabled from contacting an outside source, or one that can be permanently disabled. I don't want one that can be put in airplane mode or switched therefrom. I want one that has no CAPABILITY to communicate with anything. With my luck, if I nicked the trace wire on the system board to disable bluetooth or whaever, it would disable the whole thing.

I bought 3 palm pilots (model T3) via ebay but, of course, got ripped off. The one I ended up using has digitizer drift so bad that it's nearly useless. The other 2 don't work at all. I'm going to order new batteries for the other two and see if they'll come to life again. There is an app I use (called DIDDLEBUG) as a reminder that works like no other I've been able to find. It allows me to hand write a note (or even draw something), tell it when to appear, and repeat the alarm hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or even on several given days of the week. It doesn't even require me to tap an onscreen keyboard.

[axur-delmeria]

An alternative is to find an Android device that's hacker-frriendly (Google Nexus, perhaps?). The idea is to replace the Linux kernel with one that doesn't have drivers for Wifi, bluetooth, and cellular modems.

[rkawakami]

I'll have to bone up on all the 3-letter stuff to interpret this and other posts...as I've never delved into the phone market beyond my Motrola flip phone.

ESN - electronic serial number; basically a way of identifying a unique cell phone. A "bad" ESN is usually one that has been flagged as being unqualified for activation to a cell system carrier. It might mean that the phone is still under contract to a certain carrier, however most people normally understand this to mean that the phone has been reported as stolen.

SIM - subscriber identity module; typically used by GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) cell systems as a way of identifying individual users. Like an ESN but since it's an actual, physical card, it can be moved from one phone to another. Unlike an ESN, it can also store your contacts info.

[D L Davis]

An alternative is to find an Android device that's hacker-frriendly (Google Nexus, perhaps?). The idea is to replace the Linux kernel with one that doesn't have drivers for Wifi, bluetooth, and cellular modems.

I could do stuff like that on a pc...but it's above my pay grade to do it on a phone. Have no idea how. Maybe I could find a local tech to do it, tho.

[Cigarguy]

I use an older smartphone as a dedicated MP3 player. It doesn't have a SIM card so there's no data plan. Once in a while I'll turn on the wifi to check for updates. Rest of the time it's in airplane mode.

[excal32]

I use an older smartphone as a dedicated MP3 player. It doesn't have a SIM card so there's no data plan. Once in a while I'll turn on the wifi to check for updates. Rest of the time it's in airplane mode.

I bought a walnut v2 mp3 player. $30 shipped from china and it is like a walkman.

[D L Davis]

I'll have to bone up on all the 3-letter stuff to interpret this and other posts...as I've never delved into the phone market beyond my Motrola flip phone.

ESN - electronic serial number; basically a way of identifying a unique cell phone. A "bad" ESN is usually one that has been flagged as being unqualified for activation to a cell system carrier. It might mean that the phone is still under contract to a certain carrier, however most people normally understand this to mean that the phone has been reported as stolen.

SIM - subscriber identity module; typically used by GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) cell systems as a way of identifying individual users. Like an ESN but since it's an actual, physical card, it can be moved from one phone to another. Unlike an ESN, it can also store your contacts info.

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QUESTIONS:

1. I found an ad for a referbed Apple iphone4s. It can be bought in locked and unlocked configurations. If I'm just going to use it as a PDA, does it matter if it's locked or unlocked?

2. If such a phone has a sim card, can it be replaced with a mini sdram card?

2b. If so, can the sim card be used to back up data on the phone?

3. If I don't want to hook the phone to a carrier...can I still take photos with it and offload them to a pc?

4. Can you point me to a website that lists and describes the apps that come pre-installed on an iphone4s?

[Saucey]

1. Locked/Unlocked means if they can be switched to another carrier. iCloud/Find My iPhone is a different story, and if its locked in those conditions, it's essentially unuseable.

2. SIM cards are not designed that way, however recently there has been USB flash drives that have a micro USB or lighting port (iPad 4th gen, iPhone 5, iPad mini).

3. You don't have to hook up the phone to a carrier, however, android phones will work without a SIM card and some iPhones (for me it just depends which iOS version it has), needs a SIM card and/or a wifi connection, OR connected to a computer via iTunes to 'activate' the phone. They do this because of iCloud/Find my iPhone purposes. I've sold Android & iPhones from my work and I've used random AT&T & Verizon SIM cards to get past the 'activating iPhone' screen, but sometimes I guess I need a T-Mobile or Sprint SIM card if it doesn't work.

4. To be honest, I don't know if a site lists all the apps by default. Some iOS versions have different apps by default, so it may depend what you have. If you are thinking of bluetooth file exchange, I highly doubt it, unless you got a mac.


I find Android phones/tablets easier to set up than iPhones. Maybe you should check out an iPod touch? Its basically a slimmer iPhone because they removed the iPhone antennas/modem for 4G.
Also I think you can make an emergency call on all the phones, even without a SIM card, so there's that.

Currently at work I use a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and iPhone 5s via WiFi as an eBay cameraphone & email.

[axur-delmeria]

2. If such a phone has a sim card, can it be replaced with a mini sdram card?

No. A SIM card is like an ID that contains the actual phone number, so you can transfer it to another phone and keep your number.

It does have space for a contact list/phone book and SMS inbox, but the contact names are limited to 15 characters IIRC.

[calvinb]

IIRC, you don't need a SIM for an unlocked iPhone, regardless.

An iOS device is a better idea. as the offline sync options are better w/ iTunes. Android devices presume networked sync, though it doesn't have to be w/ Google. I use an Exchange server, myself.