So, it looks like the only phone thus far that can use these calculators is… the iPhone. Don’t blame me – blame every other cell phone maker out there. I played with an LG Dare again a few days ago and was disappointed with its web browser this time.

I’m sure its a great phone. But, let’s be real, that’s not good enough any more.

Pros:

  • Touch screen
  • Virtual QWERTY keyboard
  • A screen that rotates when you tilt the camera
  • MP3 player
  • Digital camera, video camera
  • Removable memory chip
  • 500 contact with up to 5 phone numbers each
  • A web browser that will support AJAX and XMLHttpRequest
  • Decent support of cascading stylesheets

Cons:

  • Imperfect support of javascript
  • No support of cookies/sessions

What does this mean for you? You can go to my site, but you can’t log in. If you can’t log in, you can’t use the calculators. :/

As a side note, just about every Verizon rep I’ve talked to pushes this phone’s 500 person contact list. My question, “How much memory does the phone have?” Their response: “It has 5 phone numbers per contact? Wow. That’s a lot. I didn’t know that.” Riiight – you didn’t know? Why have I heard that exact line from three separate reps? I don’t have 500 contacts. I don’t even know 500 people.

Verdict: It may be a good phone, but you won’t be able to use my calculators from it.

A friend sent me an e-mail letting me know their Verizon LG 9400 phone works with the calculator test. (Thanks Patty!) According to Verizon’s site this phone is out of stock.

FYI, when I need to research a phone, I use PhoneScoop.com. I find it a handy way to search/compare features. My own phone… has seen better days. I’m thinking the LG Dare, but we’ll see.

If your phone does not already work with PDRater.com, have you tried using a different web browser on your phone? Everyone knows Internet Explorer (sorry, no link :P ), most people know about FireFox (my own browser of choice), but there’s also Opera and OperaMini. OperaMini can be installed on some phones as an alternative to the factor web browser. From playing around with the OperaMini demo page, it looks like OperaMini will work with my calculators.

Almost completely off topic, have you seen the iPhone simulator? Sure, it doesn’t play music or make phone calls, but if you need a fix or want to test out some calculators (ahem), it’s a pretty cool website. ((Do people even use iPhones for telephone calls anymore? That’s sooo analog. . . .))

Thus far, I’ve discovered only two cell phones that can take advantage of my calculators:

I’ve only tested the iPhone with the version of this site launched on September 17, 2007. However, it should still work.

Do you have a cell phone with a web browser? Click here:
If you see a message appear, your phone will probably work with the calculators.