Big tech versus big government. Why some of America's largest companies are fighting to keep you clicking through those subscription cancelations. Plus your Wi Fi dead zones could be history. I'll tell you how to finally get that same strong signal in your backyard that you have in your living room. And later, would you spend six hundred dollars to never scoop kitty litter? Ever? Again, my hands on review of the robot that's changing the game for cat owners. But is it worth the splurge? Find out? Plus your tech questions answered? What's going on rich damiro And this is Rich on Tech. This is the show where I talk about the tech stuff I think you should know about. It's also the place where I answer your questions about technology. I believe that tech should be interesting, useful and fun. Let's fire up those phone lines at triple eight rich one oh one. That's eight seven four two four to one zero one. Give me a call if you have a question about technology. Again, that's triple eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four to one zero one. Kim is back this week, So uh, that's who you will encounter. That's who you'll have to get through to get on the air here. Email is also open. Just go to rich on tech dot TV hit contact that will actually make its way directly to my inbox. We've got some great guests this week. We've got a full slate this week, clinical psychologist and attorney doctor Lisa Stroman. We'll talk about strategies for protecting youth in the digital age. We're going to discuss a story that is very sad and nonfortunate, discusses UH. Involves a fourteen year old that got obsessed with AI and just not a good ending to the story. We'll talk about that UH. Later in the show. We've got olo clip creator and entrepreneur Patrick O'Neil. He's going to talk about his latest creation, three D printed USBC AirPods holders. We'll talk about that. He will be live in studio. That's very exciting. And Bitward and CEO Michael crandall. We'll talk about password management safety and you should be using a password manager. I know they're intimidating, but you got to use one. I'm telling you, just start using one. And I think that's the thesis of his conversation. All right, So this week, I asked you in my newsletter or last week. I guess I should say what kind of phone do you use? Now? I kind of imagined what the answer would be here, because you know, I wrote a book. I wrote three books on the iPhone, one hundred and one Handy Tech Tips for the iPhone, and over the course of three years, I updated it for the various iOS systems until it just got to be too much. But a lot of you came to me from that book, and actually, I'll just tell you quickly the reason why I wrote that book. I will never forget. You know, I do cover technology on television. Average people just watching TV kind of see me and you know, maybe tune in, maybe whatever. I get their attention, but I did, you know a lot of times I'd take for granted this stuff that I know about technology. Not anymore so much, but back in the day, I'd be like, oh, everyone knows how to do that. While I was showing someone how to use the magnifying feature on their iPhone to like illuminate and make a menu look bigger at a restaurant, and they're like, wait, what, And I was like, Yeah, there's hundreds of those tips out there, and like what do you mean, what are you talking about? And so I was like, wait, you don't know about that. So I ended up doing that on TV. I made that into a tip on television and it went crazy viral, and I was like, I have never seen anything like this in my life, just the simplest little iPhone tip. And so I did another one and I can't remember what the second one was, but I did another one and that also did really well, and I was like, hmm, I think we're onto something here. Let's do these tips on TV more often, and maybe I should write an entire book about that. So I did and it did, you know, reasonably well. I self published on Amazon and a lot of you bought it, so thank you for that, and it was a lot of fun. It was like the best experience. I still say writing that book was one of the best experiences of my life. Taught me a lot, kind of helped me become an entrepreneur. It was really really fun, and people bought it all over They still buy it all over the world, even though it's not up to date, but some of the tips still work, probably a majority of them actually anyway, So a lot of you came to my mailing list from that iPhone book, And so it's no surprise that when you answered this poll, sixty five percent of you use the iPhone. Next up is twenty five percent of you use Androids specifically Samsung, and then after that it is six percent of you use Android specifically the Pixel, and then three percent of you use Androids something else that might be the OnePlus and various other brands that you might get, And then one percent of you said other. So the other is probably like those flip phones that are having a moment right now, people that want a simpler lifestyle. But anyway, I personally have my primary SIM card in an iPhone and I'm going to keep it there for a little bit, just because the last time I tried to swap it, I was out a phone for like a couple hours, and it was really tricky to get my number back to my phone. So basically a quick story is I took my number from one phone and I put it into another phone. You know, I test phones all the time, so I'm moving my number around. Well, this time the number did not move to the new phone, But what happened was it immediately went away from the old phone, and so my wireless carrier had no way of verifying I was who I said I was because they couldn't text. They usually text a confirmation code, and I'm like, well, you can't text it because I have no phone line. And so it was a whole run around. It was like a whole thing. That's just I was going around in circles with them. I said, there's got to be a different way you could verify I am who I say I am. And I get it. They need to stay secure because your phone number unlocks lot of things. Anyway, I finally convinced them to activate the old phone. I said, look, the old phone is on my account. Just look up the number of it. It's the Imei. It's on there, and they did and it worked out anyway. But I love the different phones for different reasons. iPhone obviously is just overall really really nice. Samsung to me is the powerhouse. You can do anything you want on that device, and I love that it's sort of independent. It's not iOS, it's not specifically Google, it's just its own kind of blend of things. And then the pixel is amazing, it's incredible. It's got the great camera, and it's got that great Google software. So they all have their pros and cons, and I think everyone uses their phone for a different reason. So there's the results. Now this week I also asked you. This was a couple weeks back, but I just compiled the results. How do you keep track of your to do list? I asked you this question on my Facebook page Facebook dot com slash rich on Tech. And I am constantly looking for a better way of being efficient because I've got two jobs, I've got two kids, I've got lots of things going on, and I'm trying to keep up with all of it. And so I'm constantly trying new apps and things, and so I'll share what I use in a moment. But the main breakdown of what you said in your comments. Phone apps obviously number one for the digital method the notes app, the reminders app, the Google Keep app, those are very popular. Then you've got the calendar apps. People just put their to do items in the calendar apps, Google Calendar, Apple Calendar. Then of course Microsoft to do is very popular, and Outlook is very popular. And voice assistants. People just tell their voice assistants, hey remind me this. Then of course you've got the analog methods paper and pens, sticky notes, post it notes, notebooks and notepads, and wall calendars. Some notable responses. Kayla said, I have five hundred and forty seven tabs open in my brain at all times, and my to do list is there. Kayla, I totally hear you, but this is the reason why I offload my to do list. It keeps me up at night if I don't put my to do list on a piece of paper. In fact, if I wake up in the morning and I'm thinking about all the stuff I have to get done for the day, I can go through and write down my stuff on a piece of paper, all the little things that are bobbling around in my head, and I will sleep better. Try it. Robert says, my wife reminds me of what I have to do every thirty minutes. That's funny. Lynn says, I'm seventy one. I have no to do list except wake up every morning. That's a good one. Ep says I have an app called my Wife nags Me. It's in the She Don't Play Store. My Wife. Yes, my wife is one hundred percent her to do list. She is so good with the to do list in her mind. I don't know how she does it. I just don't have a mind like that. I think that some people do. Some people don't. And Karen says in a notebook, like any respectable dinosaur. Okay, So I will tell you my methods, my current method and I've tried so many different methods for this, but I'll tell you what I'm using right now, and I put this all on the website rich on tech dot tv. It's in today's show notes. But first, I love this app called Whisper Memos. It's only available for the iPhone and the Apple Watch, but I've been begging the developer to make it on to Android as well because it is so incredible. You have it on your Apple Watch. You tap your screen on your Apple Watch, it will start recording and then it will transcribe what you say with perfect accuracy and email it to yourself. So when you get back to your inbox, your little to do list, or your memo, your note whatever is right there. Now. On my phones on iOS, I've got an app called email Me, So this is where it's on my home screen. I just tap, I type something quick that I need to remember, and it sends it right to my inbox. You can also share a link or anything you want and it will arrive in your inbox. And that's sort of where I trioge things. My inbox is sort of my triage where once I get back to my inbox on my email, I will be like, oh, yeah, okay, I need to put this here, file that there, do whatever. The equivalent app on Android is called Email Yourself, and I think it's a one time fee of a couple dollars or so has Email Me. But they're both fantastic. I use them every single day of my life. So where do my notes actually go? Right now? It's Notion. I've tried every single note taking app out there. I find that Notion sort of works the way I like. I've gotten quite used to its formatting. I don't use a lot of the high end options, all the templates and all that stuff, but it's a really nice, easy note taking app, and the search is really good. Now. As for my actual to do list, out of every single to do app I've ever tried in my life, I keep coming back to the same one. It is Microsoft to Do List. What do I love about it? Two things? Number One, it works across every platform known to Mankind. The other thing I like about it there's three Actually, you can set up a new day for every single day, So if you like you just want to have your to do list for that day, it will put that on one list, and then after that day it goes into the all list. So if you just want to start every day with a fresh list, which I find very helpful, Microsoft to do is really good at that. And the thing that it does that many other to do lists do not do. You can add an actual file to your to do list. So, for instance, let's say that you needed a PDF of something that would you know they're on your to do list involves a PDF. You can drag and drop that file into your to do item and now that pdf is there. Two other things I like for my to do list an app called voice Notoes dot com. So I'm an early adopter of this. I love this app. There's one thing. It's the same thing about the Whisper Memos, very similar, except it's sort of a it's its own note taking app. So not only can you take voice notes and it transcribes them for you, and you could do it on your wrist, you could do it on your phone it works across both platforms, which I love iPhone and Android. But I've been asking the developer to give me the ability to email myself my notes because the note sort of lives at voice notoes dot com, which is great, and you can search and use AI to summarize your notes and all this good stuff. But I'd really like if I was able to tap one thing on my phone or my watch and say, hey, email me a copy of what you just did. And then, finally, I still use that good old fashioned notepad at work next to my computer. I still find that I like to write things down that I need to accomplish that day. So there are my methods all linked up on the website rich on tech dot tv. Hopefully that helps you. And if you want to read through all of the comments I got on my Facebook page, I linked that up as well, because you guys are funny. Yeah, you're really You're really witty with your answers. I love it all right eighty eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one. Coming up, I'll tell you why big companies are fighting the FTC over its new click to cancel rule. Yeah, they want to continue to make it tough for you to cancel your subscriptions. Give me a call if you have a question about technology, we'll talk more tech. My name is Rich Demiro, and you are listening to Rich on tech. Let's go to uh Tony in the Inland Empire. Tony, you're on with Rich.

Big tech versus big government. Why some of America's largest companies are fighting to keep you clicking through those subscription cancelations. Plus your Wi Fi dead zones could be history. I'll tell you how to finally get that same strong signal in your backyard that you have in your living room. And later, would you spend six hundred dollars to never scoop kitty litter? Ever? Again, my hands on review of the robot that's changing the game for cat owners. But is it worth the splurge? Find out? Plus your tech questions answered? What's going on rich damiro And this is Rich on Tech. This is the show where I talk about the tech stuff I think you should know about. It's also the place where I answer your questions about technology. I believe that tech should be interesting, useful and fun. Let's fire up those phone lines at triple eight rich one oh one. That's eight seven four two four to one zero one. Give me a call if you have a question about technology. Again, that's triple eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four to one zero one. Kim is back this week, So uh, that's who you will encounter. That's who you'll have to get through to get on the air here. Email is also open. Just go to rich on tech dot TV hit contact that will actually make its way directly to my inbox. We've got some great guests this week. We've got a full slate this week, clinical psychologist and attorney doctor Lisa Stroman. We'll talk about strategies for protecting youth in the digital age. We're going to discuss a story that is very sad and nonfortunate, discusses UH. Involves a fourteen year old that got obsessed with AI and just not a good ending to the story. We'll talk about that UH. Later in the show. We've got olo clip creator and entrepreneur Patrick O'Neil. He's going to talk about his latest creation, three D printed USBC AirPods holders. We'll talk about that. He will be live in studio. That's very exciting. And Bitward and CEO Michael crandall. We'll talk about password management safety and you should be using a password manager. I know they're intimidating, but you got to use one. I'm telling you, just start using one. And I think that's the thesis of his conversation. All right, So this week, I asked you in my newsletter or last week. I guess I should say what kind of phone do you use? Now? I kind of imagined what the answer would be here, because you know, I wrote a book. I wrote three books on the iPhone, one hundred and one Handy Tech Tips for the iPhone, and over the course of three years, I updated it for the various iOS systems until it just got to be too much. But a lot of you came to me from that book, and actually, I'll just tell you quickly the reason why I wrote that book. I will never forget. You know, I do cover technology on television. Average people just watching TV kind of see me and you know, maybe tune in, maybe whatever. I get their attention, but I did, you know a lot of times I'd take for granted this stuff that I know about technology. Not anymore so much, but back in the day, I'd be like, oh, everyone knows how to do that. While I was showing someone how to use the magnifying feature on their iPhone to like illuminate and make a menu look bigger at a restaurant, and they're like, wait, what, And I was like, Yeah, there's hundreds of those tips out there, and like what do you mean, what are you talking about? And so I was like, wait, you don't know about that. So I ended up doing that on TV. I made that into a tip on television and it went crazy viral, and I was like, I have never seen anything like this in my life, just the simplest little iPhone tip. And so I did another one and I can't remember what the second one was, but I did another one and that also did really well, and I was like, hmm, I think we're onto something here. Let's do these tips on TV more often, and maybe I should write an entire book about that. So I did and it did, you know, reasonably well. I self published on Amazon and a lot of you bought it, so thank you for that, and it was a lot of fun. It was like the best experience. I still say writing that book was one of the best experiences of my life. Taught me a lot, kind of helped me become an entrepreneur. It was really really fun, and people bought it all over They still buy it all over the world, even though it's not up to date, but some of the tips still work, probably a majority of them actually anyway, So a lot of you came to my mailing list from that iPhone book, And so it's no surprise that when you answered this poll, sixty five percent of you use the iPhone. Next up is twenty five percent of you use Androids specifically Samsung, and then after that it is six percent of you use Android specifically the Pixel, and then three percent of you use Androids something else that might be the OnePlus and various other brands that you might get, And then one percent of you said other. So the other is probably like those flip phones that are having a moment right now, people that want a simpler lifestyle. But anyway, I personally have my primary SIM card in an iPhone and I'm going to keep it there for a little bit, just because the last time I tried to swap it, I was out a phone for like a couple hours, and it was really tricky to get my number back to my phone. So basically a quick story is I took my number from one phone and I put it into another phone. You know, I test phones all the time, so I'm moving my number around. Well, this time the number did not move to the new phone, But what happened was it immediately went away from the old phone, and so my wireless carrier had no way of verifying I was who I said I was because they couldn't text. They usually text a confirmation code, and I'm like, well, you can't text it because I have no phone line. And so it was a whole run around. It was like a whole thing. That's just I was going around in circles with them. I said, there's got to be a different way you could verify I am who I say I am. And I get it. They need to stay secure because your phone number unlocks lot of things. Anyway, I finally convinced them to activate the old phone. I said, look, the old phone is on my account. Just look up the number of it. It's the Imei. It's on there, and they did and it worked out anyway. But I love the different phones for different reasons. iPhone obviously is just overall really really nice. Samsung to me is the powerhouse. You can do anything you want on that device, and I love that it's sort of independent. It's not iOS, it's not specifically Google, it's just its own kind of blend of things. And then the pixel is amazing, it's incredible. It's got the great camera, and it's got that great Google software. So they all have their pros and cons, and I think everyone uses their phone for a different reason. So there's the results. Now this week I also asked you. This was a couple weeks back, but I just compiled the results. How do you keep track of your to do list? I asked you this question on my Facebook page Facebook dot com slash rich on Tech. And I am constantly looking for a better way of being efficient because I've got two jobs, I've got two kids, I've got lots of things going on, and I'm trying to keep up with all of it. And so I'm constantly trying new apps and things, and so I'll share what I use in a moment. But the main breakdown of what you said in your comments. Phone apps obviously number one for the digital method the notes app, the reminders app, the Google Keep app, those are very popular. Then you've got the calendar apps. People just put their to do items in the calendar apps, Google Calendar, Apple Calendar. Then of course Microsoft to do is very popular, and Outlook is very popular. And voice assistants. People just tell their voice assistants, hey remind me this. Then of course you've got the analog methods paper and pens, sticky notes, post it notes, notebooks and notepads, and wall calendars. Some notable responses. Kayla said, I have five hundred and forty seven tabs open in my brain at all times, and my to do list is there. Kayla, I totally hear you, but this is the reason why I offload my to do list. It keeps me up at night if I don't put my to do list on a piece of paper. In fact, if I wake up in the morning and I'm thinking about all the stuff I have to get done for the day, I can go through and write down my stuff on a piece of paper, all the little things that are bobbling around in my head, and I will sleep better. Try it. Robert says, my wife reminds me of what I have to do every thirty minutes. That's funny. Lynn says, I'm seventy one. I have no to do list except wake up every morning. That's a good one. Ep says I have an app called my Wife nags Me. It's in the She Don't Play Store. My Wife. Yes, my wife is one hundred percent her to do list. She is so good with the to do list in her mind. I don't know how she does it. I just don't have a mind like that. I think that some people do. Some people don't. And Karen says in a notebook, like any respectable dinosaur. Okay, So I will tell you my methods, my current method and I've tried so many different methods for this, but I'll tell you what I'm using right now, and I put this all on the website rich on tech dot tv. It's in today's show notes. But first, I love this app called Whisper Memos. It's only available for the iPhone and the Apple Watch, but I've been begging the developer to make it on to Android as well because it is so incredible. You have it on your Apple Watch. You tap your screen on your Apple Watch, it will start recording and then it will transcribe what you say with perfect accuracy and email it to yourself. So when you get back to your inbox, your little to do list, or your memo, your note whatever is right there. Now. On my phones on iOS, I've got an app called email Me, So this is where it's on my home screen. I just tap, I type something quick that I need to remember, and it sends it right to my inbox. You can also share a link or anything you want and it will arrive in your inbox. And that's sort of where I trioge things. My inbox is sort of my triage where once I get back to my inbox on my email, I will be like, oh, yeah, okay, I need to put this here, file that there, do whatever. The equivalent app on Android is called Email Yourself, and I think it's a one time fee of a couple dollars or so has Email Me. But they're both fantastic. I use them every single day of my life. So where do my notes actually go? Right now? It's Notion. I've tried every single note taking app out there. I find that Notion sort of works the way I like. I've gotten quite used to its formatting. I don't use a lot of the high end options, all the templates and all that stuff, but it's a really nice, easy note taking app, and the search is really good. Now. As for my actual to do list, out of every single to do app I've ever tried in my life, I keep coming back to the same one. It is Microsoft to Do List. What do I love about it? Two things? Number One, it works across every platform known to Mankind. The other thing I like about it there's three Actually, you can set up a new day for every single day, So if you like you just want to have your to do list for that day, it will put that on one list, and then after that day it goes into the all list. So if you just want to start every day with a fresh list, which I find very helpful, Microsoft to do is really good at that. And the thing that it does that many other to do lists do not do. You can add an actual file to your to do list. So, for instance, let's say that you needed a PDF of something that would you know they're on your to do list involves a PDF. You can drag and drop that file into your to do item and now that pdf is there. Two other things I like for my to do list an app called voice Notoes dot com. So I'm an early adopter of this. I love this app. There's one thing. It's the same thing about the Whisper Memos, very similar, except it's sort of a it's its own note taking app. So not only can you take voice notes and it transcribes them for you, and you could do it on your wrist, you could do it on your phone it works across both platforms, which I love iPhone and Android. But I've been asking the developer to give me the ability to email myself my notes because the note sort of lives at voice notoes dot com, which is great, and you can search and use AI to summarize your notes and all this good stuff. But I'd really like if I was able to tap one thing on my phone or my watch and say, hey, email me a copy of what you just did. And then, finally, I still use that good old fashioned notepad at work next to my computer. I still find that I like to write things down that I need to accomplish that day. So there are my methods all linked up on the website rich on tech dot tv. Hopefully that helps you. And if you want to read through all of the comments I got on my Facebook page, I linked that up as well, because you guys are funny. Yeah, you're really You're really witty with your answers. I love it all right eighty eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one. Coming up, I'll tell you why big companies are fighting the FTC over its new click to cancel rule. Yeah, they want to continue to make it tough for you to cancel your subscriptions. Give me a call if you have a question about technology, we'll talk more tech. My name is Rich Demiro, and you are listening to Rich on tech. Let's go to uh Tony in the Inland Empire. Tony, you're on with Rich.

Hi.

Hi.

Rich, thanks for taking my call.

Rich, thanks for taking my call.

Yeah, I would like to know.

Yeah, I would like to know.

I'm interested in purchasing a dash cam, but I need something that's economical, easy to install and operate. I don't need a lot of bills of whistles. And I also want to know should I be looking for one with the front and rear camera.

I'm interested in purchasing a dash cam, but I need something that's economical, easy to install and operate. I don't need a lot of bills of whistles. And I also want to know should I be looking for one with the front and rear camera.

Well, okay, so here's my thing about the front and rear camera. I mean, the problem is if the camera, the rear camera is not on your bumper, what's the point. So I mean I have one with a front and rear and it's like, okay, it records inside the cabin, which doesn't really do me much good. Right, So I think that the thing about the rear camera is unless it was on your license plate, which some of them do have that capability, but they're much more expensive. It's you know, you're not going to get Let's say you got rear ended. You're not going to capture that, right. So here here's my thoughts. So number one, this is a question. I get a lot, and I think that when it comes to these dash cams, the recommendations are all over the place. So personally I have tested, Uh, the brands that are Vava va va. Let's see, the other one I like is called what's that one? Well, the one that I'm currently using is the ring cam, which I really like, but I don't think it uh, I think I think they've discontinued it. Let me see if it's still available that camera.

Well, okay, so here's my thing about the front and rear camera. I mean, the problem is if the camera, the rear camera is not on your bumper, what's the point. So I mean I have one with a front and rear and it's like, okay, it records inside the cabin, which doesn't really do me much good. Right, So I think that the thing about the rear camera is unless it was on your license plate, which some of them do have that capability, but they're much more expensive. It's you know, you're not going to get Let's say you got rear ended. You're not going to capture that, right. So here here's my thoughts. So number one, this is a question. I get a lot, and I think that when it comes to these dash cams, the recommendations are all over the place. So personally I have tested, Uh, the brands that are Vava va va. Let's see, the other one I like is called what's that one? Well, the one that I'm currently using is the ring cam, which I really like, but I don't think it uh, I think I think they've discontinued it. Let me see if it's still available that camera.

I think you did a story on it or whatever. Yeah, first came.

I think you did a story on it or whatever. Yeah, first came.

Out, Yeah they're not, they're not.

Out, Yeah they're not, they're not.

It seems to be a very large.

It seems to be a very large.

No, not really, I mean it's I I think that, Yeah, that one's actually great and actually saved us. The other day, my wife got She's probably gonna be mad for me saying this, but she got a ticket, uh for not paying parking, And I was like, oh, let's check the dash cam, and sure enough, you know, not only did she pay for the parking, but we had on the dash cam her putting the parking pass on her dashboard of the car. So I literally have like the video of her placing it there, you know. So that's that's the kind of thing that these work for. I mean, and these are also really you know, I think that the idea of a dash cam, especially in Los Angeles, is very very helpful. Is there a reason why you want one of these?

No, not really, I mean it's I I think that, Yeah, that one's actually great and actually saved us. The other day, my wife got She's probably gonna be mad for me saying this, but she got a ticket, uh for not paying parking, And I was like, oh, let's check the dash cam, and sure enough, you know, not only did she pay for the parking, but we had on the dash cam her putting the parking pass on her dashboard of the car. So I literally have like the video of her placing it there, you know. So that's that's the kind of thing that these work for. I mean, and these are also really you know, I think that the idea of a dash cam, especially in Los Angeles, is very very helpful. Is there a reason why you want one of these?

Well, I've always been kind of interested in getting one, but just recently with some of the stories that are being shown in the news with people backing it into you, making it look like a rear in accident type thing, and that just makes me, you know, considering just getting one.

Well, I've always been kind of interested in getting one, but just recently with some of the stories that are being shown in the news with people backing it into you, making it look like a rear in accident type thing, and that just makes me, you know, considering just getting one.

Just because Yeah. Well okay, so I'll tell you this so that the brands that I like again are Vava, Vava, next Base, I like them, And then I'll tell you the brands that are popular online. Wirecutter likes one called the Meo five S one that's their best dash cam under one hundred dollars. She said, you wanted something cheap, but I would also check out van True. That one comes up a lot in reviews. People seem to like that one, and then the Garment obviously people like that again, but I would just personally go to like, if you have a membership to Costco, see what they have there. They usually have one or two dash cams that are a very good value if you go there. But the things that you want to look for, obviously are high quality video. Four K would be ideal. You want the GPS, you want the sensor, the parking sensor so if your car gets bumped or hit it will start recording automatically. And of course night vision. All that stuff is handy as well, and the widest angle you can find. Thanks for the call, Tony eight eight eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one. We'll get back to the phone lines in just a moment. But a very sad and serious story this week about a kid in Florida fourteen years old apparently kind of had a relationship with an AI character and ended up committing suicide. Here to talk about this story and some of the takeaways here is doctor Lisa stroman clinical psychologist and attorney. Thanks for joining me today.

Just because Yeah. Well okay, so I'll tell you this so that the brands that I like again are Vava, Vava, next Base, I like them, And then I'll tell you the brands that are popular online. Wirecutter likes one called the Meo five S one that's their best dash cam under one hundred dollars. She said, you wanted something cheap, but I would also check out van True. That one comes up a lot in reviews. People seem to like that one, and then the Garment obviously people like that again, but I would just personally go to like, if you have a membership to Costco, see what they have there. They usually have one or two dash cams that are a very good value if you go there. But the things that you want to look for, obviously are high quality video. Four K would be ideal. You want the GPS, you want the sensor, the parking sensor so if your car gets bumped or hit it will start recording automatically. And of course night vision. All that stuff is handy as well, and the widest angle you can find. Thanks for the call, Tony eight eight eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one. We'll get back to the phone lines in just a moment. But a very sad and serious story this week about a kid in Florida fourteen years old apparently kind of had a relationship with an AI character and ended up committing suicide. Here to talk about this story and some of the takeaways here is doctor Lisa stroman clinical psychologist and attorney. Thanks for joining me today.

I'm happy to be here.

I'm happy to be here.

Thanks for having me.

Thanks for having me.

So what was your initial thought when you heard this story?

So what was your initial thought when you heard this story?

You know, it was just gut wrenching. I've been talking about AI and deep bakes now for at least two years and I'm kind of the chicken little of the kind of the psychology of technology world, and when this came across, it was just heartbreaking for me to see and to know the pain that the family, the mother specifically, is going through.

You know, it was just gut wrenching. I've been talking about AI and deep bakes now for at least two years and I'm kind of the chicken little of the kind of the psychology of technology world, and when this came across, it was just heartbreaking for me to see and to know the pain that the family, the mother specifically, is going through.

So The New York Times wrote about this story. Fourteen year old boy, I guess he came up with a Game of Thrones inspired AI character, the website character dot Ai. Now the family is suing because they say that, you know, this AI chatbot kind of lured him in, and you know, was there Could this happen to anyone? I mean they said that this is the ninth grade student mild aspergers, but had no serious behavioral or mental health issues before. Do you think that this caused it? Or do you think that these AI you know programs are going to cause more situations like this in the future.

So The New York Times wrote about this story. Fourteen year old boy, I guess he came up with a Game of Thrones inspired AI character, the website character dot Ai. Now the family is suing because they say that, you know, this AI chatbot kind of lured him in, and you know, was there Could this happen to anyone? I mean they said that this is the ninth grade student mild aspergers, but had no serious behavioral or mental health issues before. Do you think that this caused it? Or do you think that these AI you know programs are going to cause more situations like this in the future.

I think that there's probably a multitude of these situations that have already happened that we just haven't seen hit the news. I think that Sewell's mom hit is particularly adept because she's an attorney herself, to bring this story to the forefront. But I've had multiple cases in my private practice already. One example is a college student who had a full right scholarship straight a student and literally went into the world of AI role play just because she was feeling lonely and wanted some support and didn't leave her dorm room and ended up losing everything, including her college career, over it. So it's happening every day, and I don't know how to get it out there faster, but I do think that some of the kids might be more vulnerable and more impulsive. But you know, developmentally, this is going to hit them much harder because this is where they are, and particularly in the teenage years, where they're trying to identify and figure out who they are, and you've got an AI companion that is telling them that they love them and there's unconditional support and there's nothing they could do wrong, and they want to spend the.

I think that there's probably a multitude of these situations that have already happened that we just haven't seen hit the news. I think that Sewell's mom hit is particularly adept because she's an attorney herself, to bring this story to the forefront. But I've had multiple cases in my private practice already. One example is a college student who had a full right scholarship straight a student and literally went into the world of AI role play just because she was feeling lonely and wanted some support and didn't leave her dorm room and ended up losing everything, including her college career, over it. So it's happening every day, and I don't know how to get it out there faster, but I do think that some of the kids might be more vulnerable and more impulsive. But you know, developmentally, this is going to hit them much harder because this is where they are, and particularly in the teenage years, where they're trying to identify and figure out who they are, and you've got an AI companion that is telling them that they love them and there's unconditional support and there's nothing they could do wrong, and they want to spend the.

Rest of their lives together.

Rest of their lives together.

It's really hard to compete with in the real world. So it's going to get worse before it gets better, and we need to put the biggest minds and get the training in the schools as quick as possible.

It's really hard to compete with in the real world. So it's going to get worse before it gets better, and we need to put the biggest minds and get the training in the schools as quick as possible.

Yeah. I tested one of these AI chatbot systems and it's pretty wild because number one, I mean, we're not talking about you know chatchipt. We're talking about apps that are specifically created where you can make a character that kind of gets to know you. It talks to you like a friend. And by the way, this is twenty four to seven, always on, and if you have notifications on, it's going to text you out of the blue and say, hey, come talk to me, come join me, come hang, and you can basically talk to about anything. And I think adults have relationships with these ai but again, like you said, kids' brains are not fully developed, so I think adults are going to have problems with these things too, but kids are particularly at risk because of their brains. Have you tried one of these things, and what's your take on them? Are they evil or is it just we need to learn how to deal with this in our world?

Yeah. I tested one of these AI chatbot systems and it's pretty wild because number one, I mean, we're not talking about you know chatchipt. We're talking about apps that are specifically created where you can make a character that kind of gets to know you. It talks to you like a friend. And by the way, this is twenty four to seven, always on, and if you have notifications on, it's going to text you out of the blue and say, hey, come talk to me, come join me, come hang, and you can basically talk to about anything. And I think adults have relationships with these ai but again, like you said, kids' brains are not fully developed, so I think adults are going to have problems with these things too, but kids are particularly at risk because of their brains. Have you tried one of these things, and what's your take on them? Are they evil or is it just we need to learn how to deal with this in our world?

You know, they weren't created for evil. I'll say that, you know. Nothing in the tech industry I think was created with this nefarious role, like trying to get us all like into these dark places. But I think that it's interesting how human interaction influences and trains them. So when I look at some of these things that I have tried, one of the you know, I speak nationally on this and I do keynotes all the time. One of the apps that I put up was pocket Girl, and most adults are parents or educators don't know about it, but it literally is an It's an AI derivative with a video of a girl and you can talk to her, and you can if you look up the app, it'll tell you like it's better than having a real girlfriend. You have a girlfriend in your pocket at any time, and you can tell her what to do, and you can imagine the things that this this this girl will do for you. So it's you know, of course, like I could go in and say like I just want to go on a walk, or I want you to be my best friend, and I could be like very late late or whatever. But you know, you take adolescents where they're pushing boundaries and they're curious and all of those things, and it gets dark and it gets very challenging in terms of like the psychological risks very quickly on them.

You know, they weren't created for evil. I'll say that, you know. Nothing in the tech industry I think was created with this nefarious role, like trying to get us all like into these dark places. But I think that it's interesting how human interaction influences and trains them. So when I look at some of these things that I have tried, one of the you know, I speak nationally on this and I do keynotes all the time. One of the apps that I put up was pocket Girl, and most adults are parents or educators don't know about it, but it literally is an It's an AI derivative with a video of a girl and you can talk to her, and you can if you look up the app, it'll tell you like it's better than having a real girlfriend. You have a girlfriend in your pocket at any time, and you can tell her what to do, and you can imagine the things that this this this girl will do for you. So it's you know, of course, like I could go in and say like I just want to go on a walk, or I want you to be my best friend, and I could be like very late late or whatever. But you know, you take adolescents where they're pushing boundaries and they're curious and all of those things, and it gets dark and it gets very challenging in terms of like the psychological risks very quickly on them.

So what a parents do, I mean, do you do you look on your kid's phone to see if they have these now? I mean, and I'm sure you're up on this. With this new hidden app drawer on the iPhone, with the latest update. I mean, it's gonna be for parents that don't really even know that's there to find these apps on their kids phone. I mean, how do you even where do you start as a parent.

So what a parents do, I mean, do you do you look on your kid's phone to see if they have these now? I mean, and I'm sure you're up on this. With this new hidden app drawer on the iPhone, with the latest update. I mean, it's gonna be for parents that don't really even know that's there to find these apps on their kids phone. I mean, how do you even where do you start as a parent.

You know, it's to me as this is what I address in my program. I'm like, we've got to give power to the kids, because to your point, like they're going into Congress, they're testifying they're doing all of these things. They're like, hey, look at we're getting parents' controls. And at the same time they're releasing things I can nap drawers that can give kids like more power to be secretive and like do things without the parents knowing. And so it truly in my estimation and what I've seen work is to talk to the kids about it and give them power. When we educate the kids and say hey, this is what the industry is doing, this is how they're using you, this is how you have now become a commodity, and let me show you some of those ways, it infuriates them. And then I remind them they are the largest technological cohort in history and if we can stop allowing big tech to silo them, they can come together and make true difference is where they truly have better control and they're not getting manipulated by these industries.

You know, it's to me as this is what I address in my program. I'm like, we've got to give power to the kids, because to your point, like they're going into Congress, they're testifying they're doing all of these things. They're like, hey, look at we're getting parents' controls. And at the same time they're releasing things I can nap drawers that can give kids like more power to be secretive and like do things without the parents knowing. And so it truly in my estimation and what I've seen work is to talk to the kids about it and give them power. When we educate the kids and say hey, this is what the industry is doing, this is how they're using you, this is how you have now become a commodity, and let me show you some of those ways, it infuriates them. And then I remind them they are the largest technological cohort in history and if we can stop allowing big tech to silo them, they can come together and make true difference is where they truly have better control and they're not getting manipulated by these industries.

Is there a warning sign for parents to kind of I mean, I know kids are on their phones, on their devices. You know they're doing I was just taking a tour of a high school yesterday and I mean half the kids were on their phones in class. Half the kids had an AirPod in one ear, which to me is totally unacceptable. But you know, it's the reality of what you know. These I call them kids, but like teenagers are growing up at a completely different time where it's always on, you're always connected, and by the way, if you're not in on it, all your other friends are and you're left out.

Is there a warning sign for parents to kind of I mean, I know kids are on their phones, on their devices. You know they're doing I was just taking a tour of a high school yesterday and I mean half the kids were on their phones in class. Half the kids had an AirPod in one ear, which to me is totally unacceptable. But you know, it's the reality of what you know. These I call them kids, but like teenagers are growing up at a completely different time where it's always on, you're always connected, and by the way, if you're not in on it, all your other friends are and you're left out.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah, I think that it's fundamentally different for parents. It's tough, right, So parents need to approach kids with empathy, understanding, and curiosity because I think that if we come in and we say like, hey, this is how we did it, you know, kids are like, we don't really care. And I'm happy to provide you a link for your listeners. But I wrote a book that they can downlok for free called Digital Distress, and it really is about the first generation, which is Gen z that has come through that is fully digital, and it helps parents understand it is a different community, it is a different world, and it kind of puts that gap together. It's the best I could do to try to kind of scale what I know and the knowledge that I have. But parents need to understand that kids have more control than we think, and they want to do good if given the opportunity, and so we just have to have that as a synergistic approach and not just come down on them as parents. Obviously guidelines and parents have to be parents, but we really truly have to get their voice in this if we're going to get systemic change.

Yeah, I think that it's fundamentally different for parents. It's tough, right, So parents need to approach kids with empathy, understanding, and curiosity because I think that if we come in and we say like, hey, this is how we did it, you know, kids are like, we don't really care. And I'm happy to provide you a link for your listeners. But I wrote a book that they can downlok for free called Digital Distress, and it really is about the first generation, which is Gen z that has come through that is fully digital, and it helps parents understand it is a different community, it is a different world, and it kind of puts that gap together. It's the best I could do to try to kind of scale what I know and the knowledge that I have. But parents need to understand that kids have more control than we think, and they want to do good if given the opportunity, and so we just have to have that as a synergistic approach and not just come down on them as parents. Obviously guidelines and parents have to be parents, but we really truly have to get their voice in this if we're going to get systemic change.

And finally, these AI companionship apps versus sort of the traditional social media apps. I mean, the AI apps make social media seem like a cake walk at this point, right.

And finally, these AI companionship apps versus sort of the traditional social media apps. I mean, the AI apps make social media seem like a cake walk at this point, right.

Well, the difference is is right, social media is very interactive, like we have the ability to put something out there, we're getting something back. AI appears that way, but like you have to think, it doesn't know right from wrong. AI is completely generative and it robs authentic relationships and true boundaries that we have in real life. So you can really be totally awful to an AI character and they're going to come back and still love you. You can be truly inappropriate with an AI character and they're going to come back and meet you.

Well, the difference is is right, social media is very interactive, like we have the ability to put something out there, we're getting something back. AI appears that way, but like you have to think, it doesn't know right from wrong. AI is completely generative and it robs authentic relationships and true boundaries that we have in real life. So you can really be totally awful to an AI character and they're going to come back and still love you. You can be truly inappropriate with an AI character and they're going to come back and meet you.

There.

There.

So the addictive and the emotional manipulation that AI provides is very, very different than even with social media, which I already think is like awful for kids.

So the addictive and the emotional manipulation that AI provides is very, very different than even with social media, which I already think is like awful for kids.

Yeah so do I. I think it's awful for adults too half the time. But here we are, all right, Doctor Lisa Stroman, you have a website that you want folks to visit.

Yeah so do I. I think it's awful for adults too half the time. But here we are, all right, Doctor Lisa Stroman, you have a website that you want folks to visit.

Sure if they want to go to Digital Citisenacademy dot org. There's resources on there, and like I said, I will follow up and send you a note with the free books for your listeners.

Sure if they want to go to Digital Citisenacademy dot org. There's resources on there, and like I said, I will follow up and send you a note with the free books for your listeners.

All right, thanks so much for joining me today. And obviously our thoughts are with the family in Orlando, Florida. Uh, with this child, it just just sad, sad story.

All right, thanks so much for joining me today. And obviously our thoughts are with the family in Orlando, Florida. Uh, with this child, it just just sad, sad story.

Uh.

Uh.

Eighty to eight rich one O one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one the website for the show rich on tech dot TV. I'll link up Lisa's website there as well. Uh. Coming up, I'm gonna tell you why big companies, Surprise Surprise, are fighting the FTC's new click to cancel rule. They don't want to make it easy for you to cancel your subscriptions. You're listening to Rich on tech. Let's see a couple of people emailed about the dash cams. Neil said, Uh, it's a dash cams can go in your rear window. If it's on your bumper, it's gonna end up getting destroyed. Huh, okay, I guess you. And then uh, Steve also said, my rear camera is on the back window, So I guess that must be a camera that doesn't have the integrated camera. I mean, I guess it's better than thing.

Eighty to eight rich one O one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one the website for the show rich on tech dot TV. I'll link up Lisa's website there as well. Uh. Coming up, I'm gonna tell you why big companies, Surprise Surprise, are fighting the FTC's new click to cancel rule. They don't want to make it easy for you to cancel your subscriptions. You're listening to Rich on tech. Let's see a couple of people emailed about the dash cams. Neil said, Uh, it's a dash cams can go in your rear window. If it's on your bumper, it's gonna end up getting destroyed. Huh, okay, I guess you. And then uh, Steve also said, my rear camera is on the back window, So I guess that must be a camera that doesn't have the integrated camera. I mean, I guess it's better than thing.

Right.

Right.

If it sees through your back window, you could see the person that kind of came up on you. Okay, thanks for those emails. Let's see FTC a couple weeks ago, I told you about this click to cancel rule that they approved. So this rule says that if you sign up for something, the cancelation process has to be just as easy. So if you're able to sign up for let's say a newspaper subscription online, you should be able to go online and cancel that newspaper subscription without jumping through a lot of hoops, without having to chat with someone without having to interact with an agent, not having to go online or phone. I mean, there's just so many different ways that they make you kind of cancel your subscription versus signing up. Signing up super easy, it's super simple. It's a couple of clicks, boom, you're done when you go to cancel. Not very easy. And of course, if you ever had a gym membership, you know all about this. It is nearly impossible. The last time I had to cancel a gym membership, I actually used an app. It was called true Bill back then. Now it's called Rocket Money, but I used it to cancel two memberships. One was my gym membership and one was my kid's gym, you know, like that those little kid gym things. And they both made it really tricky, like you gotta send a letter on a Tuesday. It's got to be notarized. You got to you know, put your signature in blood and then send it with a a I don't know, a non forever stamp. You know, it's very very tricky. And so I was like, you know what, let me see if this app can do this, and sure enough it did. It got both of them canceled very easily. So FTC's new rule is supposed to go into effect in one hundred and eighty days, and it says, yeah, if you can, you got to cancel. Make it easy. That's that's the bottom line. And when you think there's there's companies that don't do this anymore, there are many many companies that still do this. I'm gonna I'm not gonna mention them by name, but let's just say cable companies. There are some audio companies, there are some alarm company don't make it easy. Jim's obviously notorious for this. So why am I telling this because three industry groups that represent a lot of these companies are suing the FTC to stop this rule. Those companies are the NCTA, the Internet and Television Association, the Electronic Security Association, and the Interactive Advertising Bureau. These companies represent a lot of major cable companies, a lot of major entertainment companies, a lot of major alarm companies, a lot of major just companies that don't want you to cancel. I think that's horrible. And here's what I think. Why not just make your pricing transparent? Why not make your pricing good, And why are you trying to get me to stay when I'm leaving? Why don't you just have a service that's so great that I want to stay? Have you ever tried to cancel Netflix? It's so easy that you do it, and you're like, wait a second, I shouldn't have done that. They don't try to you in with like a better deal. Literally, anytime you get an email from Netflix that says the price is going up, it says, yeah, your price is going up on this day. If you don't like it, here's how to cancel, and they give you the link to cancel. That's how that is how confident they are that you like their service. And yeah, do people cancel Netflix all the time all the time. It's easy to cancel, it's easy to bring back. Now with Paramount Plus, it's easy to cancel. But every time I go to cancel Paramount Plus, which is like every other time I subscribe, they say, oh, we'll give you three months free, we'll give you another month free. So anyway, my point is FTC click to cancel is a good thing for us, not so good for companies. But hopefully they just give better pricing and easier ways of signing up and getting rid of it eighty eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one. If you have Amazon Prime, there's a new fuel savings benefit. UH save ten cents per gallon at seven thousand BP D stations, Amaco and AMPM gas stations across the US. They expect you to save about seventy dollars a year for Prime members at drive a gas car. Electric vehicle charging savings is coming in twenty twenty five with something called BP Pulse. I look up online, though it does not seem like they have a lot on that BP Pulse network. Maybe that's changing because they still have another year. But if you want to sign up for this, go to Amazon dot com slash Fuel Savings. You have to download and create an account with this free Ernifi app, and then use the NiFi app to locate the stations and then you redeem this at the pump using your phone number or your linked payment. I also really really like an app called Upside, and I don't know if it's like as guaranteed you know, ten cents per gallon, but if you refer your friends, they do give you a decent amount off the gas. I think it's like fifteen cents, but you have to keep referring people. But upside dot com that's another one. I use that all the time, not obviously I have an electric car, but for my wife's gas, I use that and it's great. Saves us money every time. And then also for groceries. If you check out at the store with your linked credit card or debit card, they give you a certain amount of cash back, and it's pretty substantial. Actually, Charlene writes in from Hawaiian Gardens, that sounds nice. I have a Samsung Galaxy S twenty four phone. When I take photos, I move them into separate folders. If I take a screenshot or picture of a cat and I move it to a folder that same cat, it still puts the picture in that folder, but leaves it in the main folder. If you try to delete it from the recent folder, it delets from the cat folder. Why does it do that? And how can I fix the problem, Charlene, This is not a problem. This is how it is intended to be. So nobody really uses file folders anymore because we can search and slice and dice using keywords, and the keywords have gotten so good on these programs like Google Photos or Samsung's Gallery app or Apple Photos that they don't really move the photos into those folders anymore. They always remain in the main kind of let's say master folder, but it's just putting a link to that photo in the cat folder. So you're really just making an album that says, oh, these are all the cat pictures. But personally, Charlene, there's no real reason to do this unless you have a business use or a work use, or you're just making an album of like a vacation. Because you can always just search whatever you want at any time using keywords, So try it on your S twenty four Ultra or your S twenty four pol Plus. You can just search for a keyword, search mountain, search, cat search, rainbow search sunset, and search someone's name. You can name people in your photos. That is the best way to organize your photos, which to say is there is no reason to organize photos anymore unless you are making an album that you were sharing with someone, or you run a small business and you want to show everyone all the bathrooms that you've ever remodeled, something like that. But otherwise, next time you need a cat picture, just search cat eight of eight Rich one O one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one, ED in Fullerton, California.

If it sees through your back window, you could see the person that kind of came up on you. Okay, thanks for those emails. Let's see FTC a couple weeks ago, I told you about this click to cancel rule that they approved. So this rule says that if you sign up for something, the cancelation process has to be just as easy. So if you're able to sign up for let's say a newspaper subscription online, you should be able to go online and cancel that newspaper subscription without jumping through a lot of hoops, without having to chat with someone without having to interact with an agent, not having to go online or phone. I mean, there's just so many different ways that they make you kind of cancel your subscription versus signing up. Signing up super easy, it's super simple. It's a couple of clicks, boom, you're done when you go to cancel. Not very easy. And of course, if you ever had a gym membership, you know all about this. It is nearly impossible. The last time I had to cancel a gym membership, I actually used an app. It was called true Bill back then. Now it's called Rocket Money, but I used it to cancel two memberships. One was my gym membership and one was my kid's gym, you know, like that those little kid gym things. And they both made it really tricky, like you gotta send a letter on a Tuesday. It's got to be notarized. You got to you know, put your signature in blood and then send it with a a I don't know, a non forever stamp. You know, it's very very tricky. And so I was like, you know what, let me see if this app can do this, and sure enough it did. It got both of them canceled very easily. So FTC's new rule is supposed to go into effect in one hundred and eighty days, and it says, yeah, if you can, you got to cancel. Make it easy. That's that's the bottom line. And when you think there's there's companies that don't do this anymore, there are many many companies that still do this. I'm gonna I'm not gonna mention them by name, but let's just say cable companies. There are some audio companies, there are some alarm company don't make it easy. Jim's obviously notorious for this. So why am I telling this because three industry groups that represent a lot of these companies are suing the FTC to stop this rule. Those companies are the NCTA, the Internet and Television Association, the Electronic Security Association, and the Interactive Advertising Bureau. These companies represent a lot of major cable companies, a lot of major entertainment companies, a lot of major alarm companies, a lot of major just companies that don't want you to cancel. I think that's horrible. And here's what I think. Why not just make your pricing transparent? Why not make your pricing good, And why are you trying to get me to stay when I'm leaving? Why don't you just have a service that's so great that I want to stay? Have you ever tried to cancel Netflix? It's so easy that you do it, and you're like, wait a second, I shouldn't have done that. They don't try to you in with like a better deal. Literally, anytime you get an email from Netflix that says the price is going up, it says, yeah, your price is going up on this day. If you don't like it, here's how to cancel, and they give you the link to cancel. That's how that is how confident they are that you like their service. And yeah, do people cancel Netflix all the time all the time. It's easy to cancel, it's easy to bring back. Now with Paramount Plus, it's easy to cancel. But every time I go to cancel Paramount Plus, which is like every other time I subscribe, they say, oh, we'll give you three months free, we'll give you another month free. So anyway, my point is FTC click to cancel is a good thing for us, not so good for companies. But hopefully they just give better pricing and easier ways of signing up and getting rid of it eighty eight rich one oh one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one. If you have Amazon Prime, there's a new fuel savings benefit. UH save ten cents per gallon at seven thousand BP D stations, Amaco and AMPM gas stations across the US. They expect you to save about seventy dollars a year for Prime members at drive a gas car. Electric vehicle charging savings is coming in twenty twenty five with something called BP Pulse. I look up online, though it does not seem like they have a lot on that BP Pulse network. Maybe that's changing because they still have another year. But if you want to sign up for this, go to Amazon dot com slash Fuel Savings. You have to download and create an account with this free Ernifi app, and then use the NiFi app to locate the stations and then you redeem this at the pump using your phone number or your linked payment. I also really really like an app called Upside, and I don't know if it's like as guaranteed you know, ten cents per gallon, but if you refer your friends, they do give you a decent amount off the gas. I think it's like fifteen cents, but you have to keep referring people. But upside dot com that's another one. I use that all the time, not obviously I have an electric car, but for my wife's gas, I use that and it's great. Saves us money every time. And then also for groceries. If you check out at the store with your linked credit card or debit card, they give you a certain amount of cash back, and it's pretty substantial. Actually, Charlene writes in from Hawaiian Gardens, that sounds nice. I have a Samsung Galaxy S twenty four phone. When I take photos, I move them into separate folders. If I take a screenshot or picture of a cat and I move it to a folder that same cat, it still puts the picture in that folder, but leaves it in the main folder. If you try to delete it from the recent folder, it delets from the cat folder. Why does it do that? And how can I fix the problem, Charlene, This is not a problem. This is how it is intended to be. So nobody really uses file folders anymore because we can search and slice and dice using keywords, and the keywords have gotten so good on these programs like Google Photos or Samsung's Gallery app or Apple Photos that they don't really move the photos into those folders anymore. They always remain in the main kind of let's say master folder, but it's just putting a link to that photo in the cat folder. So you're really just making an album that says, oh, these are all the cat pictures. But personally, Charlene, there's no real reason to do this unless you have a business use or a work use, or you're just making an album of like a vacation. Because you can always just search whatever you want at any time using keywords, So try it on your S twenty four Ultra or your S twenty four pol Plus. You can just search for a keyword, search mountain, search, cat search, rainbow search sunset, and search someone's name. You can name people in your photos. That is the best way to organize your photos, which to say is there is no reason to organize photos anymore unless you are making an album that you were sharing with someone, or you run a small business and you want to show everyone all the bathrooms that you've ever remodeled, something like that. But otherwise, next time you need a cat picture, just search cat eight of eight Rich one O one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one, ED in Fullerton, California.

Ed, you're on with rich him calling about my Samsung Galaxy Flip four phone. It's I can I can receive calls and hear them, but they cannot hear me. It's garbled. The transmission is garbled.

Ed, you're on with rich him calling about my Samsung Galaxy Flip four phone. It's I can I can receive calls and hear them, but they cannot hear me. It's garbled. The transmission is garbled.

Staticky, are you on it right now?

Staticky, are you on it right now?

No?

No?

Okay, I was gonna say, you sound great right now? So how long has this been going on?

Okay, I was gonna say, you sound great right now? So how long has this been going on?

This is, uh, three or four days now?

This is, uh, three or four days now?

Oh, three or four days, okay, So it's not it's not been a long time. It's just been a couple of days.

Oh, three or four days, okay, So it's not it's not been a long time. It's just been a couple of days.

Phone is just finished paying for it. It's two years old.

Phone is just finished paying for it. It's two years old.

Oh well that's when they break down. Ed, Come on, everyone knows that.

Oh well that's when they break down. Ed, Come on, everyone knows that.

Of course, it's got a couple other issues, but this is the the current one that makes an inoperative.

Of course, it's got a couple other issues, but this is the the current one that makes an inoperative.

So every single person you call, it's garbled.

So every single person you call, it's garbled.

Yes, okay, half a dozen times with different people.

Yes, okay, half a dozen times with different people.

Okay, So, and you've restarted the phone? I take it. No, okay. So first thing, okay, Well that's okay, you turned it off and turn it back on.

Okay, So, and you've restarted the phone? I take it. No, okay. So first thing, okay, Well that's okay, you turned it off and turn it back on.

No, I didn't restart got it?

No, I didn't restart got it?

Okay? So what I would do is restart the phone and see if that helps. That may just you know, Samsung phones sometimes as software can get a little uh you know, little laggy, a little clogged up, and a nice reset will help. There's also some uh some optimization tasks inside the settings which I would look through, and there's a there's actually a just an optimized now, a big optimized now button. So if you go into Settings Device Care and it'll say optimized now, I would click that and it will go through and kind of detect anything that messing with your phone. If it's a software problem. This could be a physical problem or a hardware problem, but I doubt it because it's two years old and you've been using it. The other thing I would do is make sure all of the software is up to date. So have you've done all the major software updates for this phonematically does that in the middle of the night, okay, so make sure. I would just go through and just you know, make sure on Google Play all those are updated. Go through on the Samsung software Update and you know they have a main software update, just double check that to make sure those are up to date. I love software updates, so I'm always looking for those, but I know the average person is.

Okay? So what I would do is restart the phone and see if that helps. That may just you know, Samsung phones sometimes as software can get a little uh you know, little laggy, a little clogged up, and a nice reset will help. There's also some uh some optimization tasks inside the settings which I would look through, and there's a there's actually a just an optimized now, a big optimized now button. So if you go into Settings Device Care and it'll say optimized now, I would click that and it will go through and kind of detect anything that messing with your phone. If it's a software problem. This could be a physical problem or a hardware problem, but I doubt it because it's two years old and you've been using it. The other thing I would do is make sure all of the software is up to date. So have you've done all the major software updates for this phonematically does that in the middle of the night, okay, so make sure. I would just go through and just you know, make sure on Google Play all those are updated. Go through on the Samsung software Update and you know they have a main software update, just double check that to make sure those are up to date. I love software updates, so I'm always looking for those, but I know the average person is.

A care another symptom. That's when I used to open it up, it would populate the home screen immediately. Now it's three or four seconds before that screen shows up.

A care another symptom. That's when I used to open it up, it would populate the home screen immediately. Now it's three or four seconds before that screen shows up.

Okay, yeah, I mean it sounds like, you know, it's two years old, so you probably have a couple of apps on there and things like that over the years that have built up. So what I would also do, and I always recommend this, is go through your list of apps, uninstall any apps that you no longer need or want, because that will help the phone not to load so many things in the background when you're first loading the loading up this device. So I would do that. I've done that, okay, And then the other thing I would do is once you do all the other steps, So once you've done everything and you've gotten this phone, you know, you've done the software updates, you've done the you know, the the app cleaning, all that good stuff, you've done, the the maintenance and the device care, I would go through and there's a there's a feature where you can kind of reset your settings, and so if you type in if you go into your about phone at the bottom, it says reset, and there's actually a reset mobile network settings, and so you can reset your mobile network settings and it will be fine. It'll just kind of clear out your network and bring it back again once the phone restarts. But I would do that and maybe that will bring back the clear calls. The other thing, and this may be a small thing. You might just have some gunk, some lint that is stuck in the bottom of your phone. I would also maybe take a little bit of canned air and kind of gently just look in that area and maybe gently blow out that area as well. There's some microphones and things on the bottom of the phone, and sometimes even with Samsung phones, I've noticed the way you hold them, your finger could be on that microphone on the bottom, which really messes it up and people can't hear you if your finger happens to lay on that microphone on the bottom of the phone. Those are the things I would check out and ed hopefully that will fix your device, if not bring it into a maybe like a you break I Fix or even your carrier store if you have a main carrier, and you can hopefully get some help that way if it's maybe a hardware issue. Thanks for the call. Do appreciate it? Got an email from Whitney in Los Angeles. Whitney says, Hey, what do you think of the new promotion that Verizon is having a free iPhone sixteen in exchange for whatever phone you have? Now? Is there a catch? And if there isn't, why are they doing it? What are they gaining? You only have to pay the tax and one monthly bill. It doesn't increase either. Thank you love all the stuff you post and I listen to you on the radio, et cetera. Well, here is the catch, Whitney. The catch is yes, uh, you are on the hook for thirty six months for this free phone. So let's do a little bit of math. Okay. So number one, just looking at this the details of this promotion, you have to have the Ultimate Unlimited plan. Now this is for thirty six months. The Ultimate Unlimited plan is one hundred dollars a month times thirty six months, that's thirty six hundred dollars. Okay. Plus you're giving them your old phone. Let's just say your old phone is worth three hundred dollars, okay, So that's now thirty nine hundred dollars that this company has on your that you are giving them, and they're giving you a free phone, which costs Let's see, usually they're giving you like a eight hundred and twenty nine dollars, So nine eight hundred and twenty nine dollars. Okay, Now they're giving that over thirty six months, so you must stay a customer with them for thirty six months. If you leave, you're gonna have to pay the difference. Now, let's just say you are a customer of another company, and let's say you just got an unlimited plan very similar to the Verizon plan. Let's say you went to US Mobile. That's forty four dollars a month for their unlimited plan, which uses the Verizon network, and that's thirty six months. That's fifteen hundred and eighty four dollars over thirty six months. So if we subtract thirty six hundred, if we actually say thirty nine hundred, I know, keep with me with this math. So we said thirty nine hundred dollars to Verizon, you're paying fifteen hundred and eighty four dollars to US Mobile over that same time period. That would leave you with the balance of twenty three hundred and sixteen dollars on the table. Verizon's giving you a phone for eight hundred and twenty nine dollars. So what do they get out of the deal. They get you for a customer for three years, and they're making the difference between twenty three sixteen minus eight twenty nine, So they're also making an extra fifteen hundred dollars in the process for your free phone. So, yes, big companies do not do things out of the kindness of their heart for you. So my and here's my advice on this. If you're sticking with a Verizon or an AT and T or a T Mobile and you'll want to do the free phone plan, I'm not going to fault you for it. Just understand that they are not doing this out of the kindness of their heart. They're doing it because they make money on the deal and it's convenient for you. It's zero percent interest on the finance charges and all that stuff. But at the end of the day, they're actually making money on this deal fifteen hundred dollars to be exact, depending on the plan. Now, if you did a Mint Mobile plan, which is even cheaper thirty dollars a month for unlimited and by the way, there's other unlimited plans that are inexpensive as well. That's even more money that they are netting on this deal. So that's what's happening here with this deal. With these free deals, the carriers love them because it keeps you connected to them for three more years. And by the way, that plan isn't just a hundred dollars a month. There are also taxes. There are fees, you know, all the other add ons and things. You want to talk to a customer service representative, they may they may charge you for that. So again that is the catch. But if you're comfortable with understanding how these things work, I'm not going to fault you for doing that. It's it's just fine. Uh eighty eight rich one on one eight eight eight seven four to two four one zero one. The website for the show is rich on tech dot TV. A couple things you can do there. Number one, sign up for my newsletter. I've got a brand new newsletter on the front page right now, so click through there, put in your email address. The newsletter is free. You can join over thirty four how many people do we have on there? Over thirty four thousand people get that newsletter every week. So rest assured a lot of people are reading that and enjoying the tips and tricks that I share there. You can also hit the contact button up at the top if you want to get in touch with me, send an email to me, and if you hit the light bulb, that will give you you a link to the show notes. Everything I mentioned is in the show notes. All right, coming up, we've got a lot more. I'm gonna tell you about Amazon's new Wi Fi system for your backyard. Plus, we've got an in studio guest. The guy who invented the attachable lenses for the iPhone is here in person, and he's back with a new accessory to the AirPods. We will talk to Patrick O'Neil coming up right here on rich On Tech. Patrick in Colorado Springs. Let's see here is that line three? There we go, Patrick, You're on with rich Hi.