Things are said about cell phones!

High-definition technologies are always talked about in terms of ups and downs. Some of the 'facts' are actually hypes or unproved things. Others are based on statistics and surveys.

Let's speak about some things that are said about cell phones in terms of safety, advantages and facts.

1. High-end cell phones are better than heavier and balkier ones. Most of us are certainly fond of small and shiny cell phones. And very often we opt rather for design then for some specific features of the device. Then we get bored and get into some kind of crazy run for 'better-faster-smarter'.

So, is it right to consider bleu-chip handsets such as Motorola Krzr, NEC N500iS Ultra, SANYO Katana, etc. to be better than bulkier handsets? Regular-size-function phones do have their advantages. They are less likely to break, they can be more comfortable to hold (especially for men) due to their classic design. Then, it is almost 100% guarantied that you'll not loose it or get robbed. Besides, some users just want a device that looks and feels like a real phone.

2. Regular usage of a cell phone raises the risk of brain tumor development for most of the users. It refers even to the most modern ones. This is the final conclusion of a Finnish study published on-line in the International Journal of Cancer. Adding to the subject the study proved that cell phone increases the risk of getting a brain tumor (glioma) by 40 to 270 % on the side of the head where the phone is used.

There were inspected less than 5000 people with and without galioma tumor. The risk increases at a 270% rate for people using cell phone for more than 2000 hours in their lifetime.

3. The above survey and several of others also proved that the negative influence on the brain is higher among children and teens.

A study published in the Annals of Neurology shows that cell phone EMF emissions stimulate the area of the brain nearest to the device. Still it has not been proved that they are harmful.

Today nearly 2 billion people worldwide use cell phones. Of these around 500 million use GSM models. There have been carried out a number of studies involving electromagnetic fields, but results have not been definitive.

4. FBI has developed a technique that turns the cell phone into a listening device. The technique works by remotely activating a nearby cell phone's microphone.

It is said that this technique was approved by officials of U.S. Department of Justice. They plan to implement the technique on members of an organized crime family in New York.

This method works no matter the phone is on or off. Many phone models cannot be powered down without removing the battery. Some models, for example, will turn on when an alarm is set.

It is also known that cell phone providers can install a software on any phone from a remote location. This will allow not only microphone activation, but also stop display from indicating a call in progress. According to James Atkinson (counter-surveillance consultant), the most vulnerable to remote software downloads are models such as Motorola Razr and Nextel and Samsung products.

5. Continuous cell phone use can damage male's sperm. This is suggested by a research of the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine (Case Western Reserve University, Ohio).

The study was based on inspection of 361 men attending the clinic for infertility tests. The men were divided into four groups in dependence on the usage of cell phones. Finally, the results showed that the men who used their cell phones for more than 4 hours a day had a 30 % drop in sperm quality. Sperm motility and viability was better with each level of reduced phone usage.

It is suggested that the cell phones harm the DNA, by disrupting testosterone-producing cells or by shrinking the tubules that create sperm.

Of course, even the researches noted that a small study can not prove that male fertility is affected only by cell phone use. Further investigations are to be carried taking into account such factors as age, smoking, stress, weight, and sedentary way of life.

6. Statistics shows that those who use cell phones while driving are the main cause of accidents. The studies also shown that it's not just about physical effort to use cell phone that causes accidents; it's rather the lack of attention resulting from doing two actions at the same time.

Many would cry our the desire to ban the cell phones, but for the public safety, it's probably better to think that you can be the next who dies in a car accident because the one to hit you was talking on the phone (just like you use to do).

So if to talk about traffic accidents then 30-35 % are reserved by people who are dosed up on prescription drugs. The other 1/3 are caused by people on alcohol or illegal drugs. Thus, cell phone use causes an insignificant number of accidents. It actually doesn't mean that they should be ignored.