VOXOX Blog

School isn't all about number 2 pencils and Trapper Keepers anymore, people. A new wave of education is upon us. At one time universities were considering banning laptops and smartphones from class, but maybe technology in the classroom isn't as distracting as some professors would like to believe.


According to a recent infographic from OnlineEducation.net, students are growing increasingly attached to their gadgets but they're not just playing Angry Birds and texting, they are using high-tech tablets and devices to optimize their learning experience. Check out this infographic to see how some college level classes are embracing social media, not shunning it, and how digital assignments are increasing engagement and generating a positive response from students:



Infographic Source – Adapted from OnlineEducation.net/students-love-tech


Now, we want to hear from you...


How do you use technology to be more productive? Do you think gadgets in the classroom are useful or do you think technology is distracting? Tell us what you think here or on the Voxox Facebook page!

For some of us, the end of summer comes with mixed feelings. We'll miss the beach days, pool parties, sunny days, warm nights... but it also means the beginning of new adventures. For example,  going off to college for the first time and experiencing new-found freedom. Of course, with that freedom comes some financial responsibility, and, in this economy, it's not a bad idea to find ways to save on keeping up with friends and family. Check out a few ways the Voxox Call iPhone app can help you save as you start off the new school year:

1) Free phone number in your new state

If you’re starting school in another state (U.S.), you may want to get a second phone number with that state’s area code. When you sign up (free) for Voxox -- either for Voxox Call for iPhone or Voxox for the desktop -- you get a free phone number that forwards to any of your other phones. This feature works similarly to Google Voice, however if you have family in multiple states or in Canada, you can also get additional phone numbers for less than two bucks a month. This way, your out-of-state grandma can call you at a dedicated number that's local for her. (Maybe she'll even pay for it, since you're trying to save her money!) If you're an international student with family in another country, you could achieve the same effect with our free global access number ( iNum), which allow folks in 45+ countries to call Voxox phone numbers at local rates.

2) Cheap or free worldwide SMS over Wi-Fi or mobile Internet

Let's talk about that unlimited texting plan you have with your carrier -- you may want to cancel it and use this way cheaper option instead.  With the Voxox Call app, you can text over the Internet on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. It's free to receive texts; one penny to send in the U.S. and Canada; 2 cents to send anywhere else in the world. Plus, if you have the Voxox desktop software, it all works together, so, you can send and receive texts through the same account from your computer and your iOS devices, depending on what you have on you.

3) Long-distance calls for pennies

If you're a student on a budget, you might consider downgrading your wireless plan to regionally-restricted / local calling and using the Voxox Call app to dial out of state. Our awesome callback functionality lets you dial out of state without paying an outbound toll. It works like this: you dial a number and Voxox calls you back with the person on the line. Your carrier counts this as an incoming call, and incoming calls typically don't incur toll fees.  You just pay a penny per minute for calls to the U.S. and Canada and varying cheap rates for calls to other parts of the world.  You may want to confirm your carrier's policies, just in case.

4) Free and cheap faxing

For college students who may need to receive a fax, whether it's financial aid paperwork, rental agreement, work study application, etc., Voxox Call iPhone app offers free inbound faxing. You can receive, view and forward faxes on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. If you ever need to send a fax, just download the Voxox desktop app for free. Sending faxes through Voxox will cost you just a few pennies and no stress. Voxox has the only free phone number in the world that’s voice-, SMS- and fax-enabled (plus free voicemail transcription, too!), so why not take advantage?



So there you have it-- four tips that may just help you save a few bucks in college... think of all the extra coffee! Have any other tips of your own?  Share them by commenting here or on the Voxox Facebook page.

You're at a job that requires you to be on the Internet 8 hours a day, so why do you experience pangs of visceral yearning  to check notifications via your smart phone while sitting in traffic and then again 35 seconds after you've walked through your front door? Why do you feel anxiety and the beginnings of  a full-on tantrum when your browser isn't loading fast enough? Our need for connectivity and constant stimulation has made the Internet our #1 companion and nemesis.

As the Internet is increasingly replacing almost everything in our lives, from TV, to radio, to books, to classrooms, to doctors, to the need to interact face-to-face with other humans for absolutely any reason at all, we're using the tool more and more, and according to scientists quoted in a recent CNN article, our brains are starting to show the effects. Technology feeds the human brain's natural desire for instant gratification, fast pace, and unpredictability, so it's only natural that we are easily drawn to the Internet, right? Not so fast.

The worry is that constant online interaction is giving us what researcher and professor with the Information School at the University of Washington, David Levy, calls " popcorn brain" -- a brain accustomed to the constant stimulation of electronic media and multitasking. This constant online stimulation can activate dopamine cells in the main pleasure center of the brain, leaving us feeling elated and alert.

WALL-E - chud.com

Although this sounds like a good time, our online multitasking habit is actually depriving our brains of rest, which it needs to process things, and it is also negatively affecting our abilities to read human emotions.

Clifford Nass, a social psychologist researcher at Stanford, says, "Human interaction is a learned skill, and they (online multitaskers) don't get to practice it enough." Nass reported that when he showed online multitaskers pictures of faces, they had a hard time identifying the emotions they were showing. This same group had difficulty identifying emotions and stating ways to improve the moods of characters in stories he read to them.

It's obvious, and scientifically proven, smartphones and online media are quickly reducing our need and ability to interact with other humans. WALL-E is no longer an inconceivable vision of the future, it is a very real (OK, exaggerated) representation of the present. If you think you're losing the fight against Internet addiction, spending too much time on your devices, and are feeling the kernels popping in your brain as you read this, maybe it's time to give Voxox a try and rid yourself of communication overload once and for all.

So you've used the Voxox app for iPhone to save tons of cash on those international and long-distance toll calls you've been making to that hunky Brazilian you met on vacation, but since it's been a few weeks and you've realized a life of leisure filled with epic Rio de Janeiro sunsets, sweet coconuts and naps in the hammock are all just a fantasy, you're wondering, "What else does this app do?"

It's no secret that everyone and their mother has a cell phone (no seriously, check out the last stat) and there's certainly no denying that we rely on our mobiles for more than just calls. We look to our devices for everything from simple text communications; to instant GPS navigation; to checking the @replies on our Twitter; to cashing checks; to scanning QR codes for coupons; to... OK you get it, right? We use our phones for pretty much everything. Here are some hard stats from DigitalBlogBuzz.com that will help you wrap your mind around just how huge the mobile industry is:

The truth of the matter is that voicemail (and voice calling in some instances) has become antiquated.  Listening to someone's voice in real-time can be slow. You have to wait through pauses and "um’s" to grasp the key point of the call – this type of thing can be skipped when I'm reading a message.