Choices for cellular phones are getting broader as technology expands into new territories. Not only do we now have to pick the carrier, type of phone, operating platform and review apps available but now we also have to look at “personal” integration.

The newest addition to functionalities of our cellular phones is the personal assistant. The personal assistant known as Siri is only available at this time on the new Apple iPhone 4S. The stir created by the release of this new iPhone was frantic anticipation. All of the techies I know were either on the waiting list for the release date or considering being the first in line at the store to purchase one or two.

One of my business associates that could not wait to get his iPhone to be able to show it off to all of us “unfortunates” was disappointed with the phone's shortcomings. He complained for a couple of days about the short battery life and the inability to connect to Siri or stay connected to Siri in our office building which is wifi enabled. He complained so much and was so frustrated that he called the company to complain and they stated that the tower was overloaded because everyone was slowing down the service because of their desire to show off and play with their new toy. He was told that once the newness wears off the service availability should be much greater. He complained further about the battery and was offered a new phone because the battery should last a lot longer than it was in its current standby mode. He chose, however, to just pick a different phone. Now, I am not saying that this is an overall problem for this phone because another business partner in the same area has had not problems with his phone and absolutely loves it.

My business associate that complained and got the different phone is excited about the personal assistant app he downloaded called Vlingo and has been showing it off all day. Vlingo is a new personal assistant app on the market and can do lots of things ie. utilizing voice command. The major drawback is the device does not talk back to you or enabled to hold a conversation.

I am sure there will be more additions to the personal assistant choices appearing in the next few months. Each will have its plusses and minuses, as in all things there is a give and take. The key point is to know what you need to make a good decision on what is a good fit for you. All of this will continue to change and progress to keep the techies salivating for the newest, latest and greatest gadgets to impress their friends. If you are like me, it takes awhile for me to decide the value and usage of the new technology and by the time I am ready for a change the cost has been reasonably reduced, the glitches corrected and the advantages verified to make it a new necessity for me. I am looking forward to having a personal assistant soon ans sharing my firsthand experiences with you soon.