Why You Need More Than Just a Cell Phone

Your phone can be your main mobile device. It should not be your only way into your digital life.

When did the cell phone become the computer?

For a lot of people, it happened so gradually they probably never noticed. The desktop disappeared, then the laptop stopped getting used, and maybe there was a tablet for a while. Eventually the phone did everything: email, banking, pictures, text messages, shopping, social media, doctor’s appointments, travel plans, passwords and two-factor authentication.

That is incredibly convenient until the phone stops working.

I have seen people break their phones in just about every way imaginable. Phones get dropped in lakes, run over by tractors, fall out of moving vehicles, get lost, get stolen or simply stop working. That is when people discover they did not just lose their phone. They may also have lost their only way into their digital life.

The Phone That Has to Approve the New Phone

Getting a replacement phone should be simple, and sometimes it is. If you still have the same phone number, know your password and the service lets you verify yourself by text message, everything may go smoothly.

But it does not always work that way.

Google, Apple, email providers, banks and other services have security systems designed to make sure that someone holding a new phone cannot simply take over your account. That is a good thing, right up until the device they want you to use to prove that you are really you is the phone sitting at the bottom of the lake.

You enter your password, and then you are told to approve the login on your trusted device. That was the old phone. Maybe it wants a code from your authenticator app, which was also on the old phone. Maybe it sends a recovery message to an email account that also wants you to verify the login using the old phone.

Now you are stuck in a circle.

The security measures that normally protect you are doing exactly what they were designed to do. Unfortunately, they can also make it very difficult for the legitimate owner to get back into an account when every method of proving their identity was tied to the same device.

The Phone Store Cannot Magically Find Your Password

This is also a good time to set realistic expectations about what the employees at a phone store can do.

They can often help you set up the replacement phone, transfer your phone number, connect to your carrier account, move data when the old phone still works and walk you through some account-recovery steps.

What they cannot do is magically figure out your Google, Apple, email or other account password.

They do not have a secret screen that shows every password you have forgotten, and they cannot simply bypass the security protecting your accounts. In many cases, they are working with the same recovery options you could use yourself.

If Google wants your password, an authenticator code or approval from a trusted device, the employee standing across the counter cannot manufacture those things for you.

That security is there for a reason. You would not want someone to walk into a store with your stolen phone and convince an employee to unlock your entire digital life.

The time to make sure you know your passwords and have backup recovery methods is before the phone breaks.

And You Might Still Owe $800 on the Broken Phone

There is another problem people sometimes forget about: the phone may only be a few months old, and you may still be paying for it.

Destroying a financed phone does not make the remaining balance disappear. Depending on your carrier, financing agreement and replacement options, you may still owe hundreds of dollars on the old phone while also needing another one immediately.

That is when a phone protection plan suddenly starts looking much more attractive. A deductible of a couple hundred dollars can hurt, but dealing with hundreds of dollars still owed on a destroyed phone while also paying for a replacement can hurt a lot more.

Protection plans vary, so it is important to understand what yours actually covers. Loss, theft and accidental damage are not necessarily included in every plan.

And insurance only solves the hardware problem. It cannot remember your Google or Apple password for you.

Keep Your Old Phone

This is one reason I keep my previous phone.

When I upgrade, the old one does not automatically become junk. It still works on Wi-Fi, can remain signed into important accounts, may still have access to email, cloud storage and photos, and it gives me another device if something happens to my main phone.

You do not necessarily need another active phone line for this. You just need another door into your digital life.

Your everyday phone can be the front door. An old phone, tablet or computer can provide another way in if that front door suddenly disappears.

Even an old phone sitting safely at home can be much better than having nothing. Just remember to turn it on occasionally, keep it charged and install security updates while the device still receives them.

Save Your Recovery Codes Before You Need Them

Many services give you recovery or backup codes when you enable additional account security. Google, for example, provides backup codes specifically for times when you cannot use your normal two-step verification method. Save them, and do not keep the only copy on the same phone you are trying to protect.

A recovery code is only useful if you saved it before you needed it.

Physical backups can also make sense. I have seen people keep their passwords written in a book, and there is nothing inherently wrong with having a physical emergency copy of important information if you protect it properly.

Keep it somewhere secure, such as a locked, fire-resistant safe. Do not leave a password notebook sitting next to the computer with “PASSWORDS” written across the cover.

Sometimes the best backup for your digital life really is a piece of paper in a safe. Digital security should not depend entirely on digital recovery. The same lesson about having another way back in came up when I wrote about what happened after I got hacked: redundancy matters most after the normal path fails.

Your Phone Is Not the Internet

I hear this complaint frequently: “Everything is an app now. I can’t even look at a menu without downloading an app.”

I understand the frustration, but your phone is not the internet. It is one way to access the internet.

Restaurants, airlines, doctors, banks, stores and other businesses may encourage you to use their apps, but many of the things people struggle to accomplish on a phone are much easier through a regular website on a computer.

And when I say computer, I mean either a laptop or a desktop. You do not need a giant tower, multiple monitors or an expensive workstation. A basic laptop or desktop is still a computer, and either one can make many everyday tasks much easier.

Planning a trip is a good example. I cannot imagine wanting to research destinations, compare hotels, look at maps, compare prices, buy tickets and organize an entire vacation using only a little phone screen.

Can you do it? Sure. You can also eat spaghetti with a spoon. That does not make it the best tool for the job.

I would much rather sit at a computer with a full-size screen, a real keyboard and multiple browser tabs open. The same goes for making doctor’s appointments, filling out forms, reviewing bills, shopping for something important, managing accounts, uploading documents or troubleshooting a problem.

The fact that you can do almost everything on a phone does not mean you should have to.

Put the Games on the Tablet

There is another problem I see, particularly with people who enjoy simple games such as solitaire, mahjong, puzzles and similar apps.

They download a free game, and the game has advertisements. Then an advertisement appears that looks suspiciously like a warning from the phone itself:

“Your storage is almost full.”
“Virus detected.”
“Your phone is at risk.”
“Clean your device now.”

The person is not necessarily bad with technology. The problem is that the advertisement was designed to look like a legitimate warning.

If you do not already know exactly what a real system warning looks like, it may not be obvious that the scary message supposedly warning you about your phone actually came from the solitaire game.

So the person taps it. Now they are installing a “cleaner,” “booster,” “security” or other app they never really needed. Then that app starts sending more notifications, and before long the phone is covered in advertisements and pop-ups.

One of the biggest problems I see is not people who cannot understand technology. It is people who cannot tell whether a warning came from their phone or from an advertisement pretending to be their phone. The FTC warns about bogus virus and tech-support warnings that are designed to scare people into taking action.

Here is one rule worth remembering:

If your solitaire game suddenly tells you that your phone has a virus, the solitaire game did not diagnose your phone.

For people who enjoy these kinds of games, I often suggest putting the games on a tablet instead.

Use the tablet for solitaire, mahjong, puzzles, videos and casual entertainment. Keep the phone relatively simple and use it for calls, texts, pictures, maps, authentication and the important apps you actually need.

The tablet does not magically eliminate misleading advertising, but it helps keep much of that clutter away from the device you depend on for communication and account security. A larger tablet screen can also make it easier to see what you are actually tapping.

Learn How to Use the Thing You Depend On

There also has to be some personal responsibility.

You are carrying around a device that gives you access to nearly the entire sum of human knowledge. Nobody expects you to know how to use every feature, setting or app on your phone. I certainly do not know everything about every phone either.

But “I don’t know how to use this” is not a very good reason to stop trying.

Press the button. Read what it says. Look at the options before tapping one. If you still do not understand it, ask somebody or look it up.

There is a very good chance somebody has already made a YouTube video showing exactly how to do whatever you are trying to do. A computer makes this much easier because you can play the tutorial on your laptop or desktop while following along on the phone in your hand. Pause it, rewind it and work through the steps one at a time.

You do not have to become a technology expert. Learn the basics: how to install and remove an app, connect to Wi-Fi, check your storage, change a password, find out whether your pictures are being backed up and recognize the difference between a legitimate system notification and an advertisement pretending to be one.

The employees at the phone store can help you to some extent. They can activate the phone, help with the initial setup, answer some questions and point you in the right direction. But the phone store is not a cell phone class, and it usually is not a repair shop either. Repairs may need to go through a repair provider, the manufacturer or your insurance or protection plan.

“You are not expected to know everything. You should be willing to make the effort to learn.”

Joe Jepsen

Maybe the Phone Isn’t the Problem

I think a lot of people’s frustration with their phones comes from trying to use the phone as a complete replacement for a computer.

Phones are excellent at being mobile. They are great for making a call, sending a text, taking a picture, pulling up directions, checking an email, scanning a QR code, showing a ticket at the door or approving a login.

Other jobs benefit from a larger screen, a real keyboard, multiple windows, easier file management and the ability to see everything at once.

Use the phone when convenience matters. Use a computer when visibility, typing, organization or problem-solving matters.

I could go without a phone. It would be annoying, but I could do it. I could not comfortably go without a computer.

My phone is extremely useful. I just do not expect it to be my only computer.

A Computer Does Not Have to Be Expensive

There is some irony in saying, “I don’t need a computer because I have my phone,” when the phone may have cost more than a perfectly capable laptop.

You do not need a high-end workstation or gaming computer to check email, plan a vacation, buy tickets, make appointments, fill out forms and manage accounts. A basic laptop or desktop can handle those jobs just fine.

For many people, a reasonably priced computer would dramatically improve their experience while also providing another way to access important accounts if something happens to the phone.

A tablet can also fill part of that role.

This does not mean surrounding yourself with expensive electronics. It means not making one expensive electronic device responsible for everything.

Before You Buy the Newest Phone, Consider a Laptop

If your current phone still works, you may get more practical value from keeping it another year and buying a computer instead. For basic everyday use, you do not need a $700 or $1,000 laptop. A machine in roughly the $300 to $400 range can be plenty for email, websites, doctor’s appointments, shopping, travel planning, banking, documents, YouTube and learning how to use the phone itself.

The difference between last year’s phone and this year’s phone may be a better camera, a faster processor or a feature you barely notice. A laptop gives you an entirely different tool. If your phone breaks, disappears or locks you out of an account, you still have another device at home that can reach your email, cloud storage, account settings and recovery information.

Do Not Create One Point of Failure

A smartphone can replace a lot of things: a camera, GPS, music player, calculator, calendar, flashlight and sometimes even your wallet.

That is impressive, but every additional job we give the phone makes us more dependent on that one little device.

If your phone contains your passwords, authentication codes, email, pictures, contacts, banking apps, tickets, documents and account recovery tools, losing it can become much more than an inconvenience. You have created a single point of failure.

You do not need an elaborate technology setup to avoid that. Keep your old phone if it still works. Have a laptop, desktop or tablet that you actually use occasionally. Make sure you know the passwords to your important accounts. Keep your account recovery information current. Save your recovery codes somewhere secure, and keep important photos and files backed up somewhere other than the phone itself.

If your phone represents a significant financial investment, understand what your protection plan does and does not cover.

A second device is not necessarily a luxury anymore. For many people, it is the digital equivalent of a spare key.

Your phone can be your main mobile device. It just should not be the only key to your digital life.