When it comes to developments for mobiles phones, you'd be forgiven for scratching your head and wondering what exactly is considered good technology and bad technology. Or perhaps, not to use the distinction of "good" or "bad" but more so that which is relevant or due to become essential, and that which just falls into the category of gimmick or fad. You know the type of functions, those which seem to be so perfect in-store, but then are ultimately irrelevant to your day-to-day life or that never get used because you haven't taken the time to read the instruction booklet to figure out how they work.

In terms of a basic Top 3 when it comes to mobile phone essentials, there's no surprise that the first relates to printing and data storage options. There's no point in creating more and more information through your mobile phone camera or video, only to leave it forgotten somewhere and accidently deleted down the track. It may be old fashioned, but hard copy is still a great way to safeguard your photos, and it’s just as valuable as burning your memories onto CDs or DVDs to cherish for the future. So here it goes, forget the razzle-dazzle for a moment and check out these prime considerations for your taking your mobile phone into the future:

It was a long time coming, but who doesn't love the ability to combine your phone or memory storage software with external technology? Sure the handy coin-operated machine has been with us for as long as we've wanted gumballs or our clothes washed, but three cheers that it's now possible to print your photos on virtually every street corner for an insubstantial fee. Just use Bluetooth, or insert a disk that you've created at home, a flash memory card or a USB stick into the terminal, add the necessary coins and before you know it, you've actually got a photo printed – proving for once and for all that this is no longer obsolete, despite what those technologically savvy or just lazy will tell us!
Smart phones, iPhones, the Nokia N96… Need we say more?
Cheap international calls to and from mobile phones. In case you've forgotten, phones were actually primarily for communicating though the spoken word, however these days those sorts of old-fangled notions are going by the wayside. The rise of text messages came in part with the exorbitant charges associated with calling from a mobile phone, but these days phones are not so cost restrictive, and more often than not, you can pick up a great mobile phone deal, as long as you're aware of the conditions that your provider offers.