7/3/2009 5:02:00 AM
Are smartphones the next trend down on the farm?
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| Photo courtesy www.phonearea.net |
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BY ED GEBERT
Times Bulletin News Writer
egebert@timesbulletin.com
As technology continues to march along, businesses and industries become more efficient and often more profitable due to the increased information available. Agriculture and technology may not go together in the minds of many, but Ohio State University Extension Educator Andy Kleinschmidt refutes that idea.
"Agriculture is already technologically dependent," he asserted. "What agriculture is not used for now is the social media, the twittering, and the blogging. We're getting there, but it terms of just technology, we're there."
Kleinschmidt is a step ahead of many in agriculture when it comes to the social media online. He uses Twitter, a social networking site, as well as his own weblog (blog) extensively. Technology like this is another tool for Kleinschmidt, and he is convinced that the "smartphone" he carries helps in his work.
There is no official definition of a smartphone. In essence, it is more computer than telephone, providing access to the internet, email, and computer software products. Displays are of higher quality than the smaller "flip phones" and are usually larger. According to Kleinschmidt, the larger, clearer displays make sense for farmers. "A lot of farmers are already checking prices with their flip phones, but I think with smartphone technology, the information is much clearer and it's much more real time on smartphones," he shared.
For those in agri-business, a computer is already an essential. Besides checking commodity prices, a farmer always keeps an eye on the weather. "Weather is a very popular use for the guys that have smartphones," agreed Kleinschmidt. "I use it all the time. I pull up NOAA radar image on my phone to look when we are trying to spray a field, it's very handy to pull that radar image up. Sometimes you can judge whether you should start another task based on what you see on the screen."
An entry on Kleinschmidt's blog attracted the attention of CNN, who called him for an interview on the subject of smartphones in agriculture for a story this week. He noted that his device, a Samsung Omnia i910, has helped him answer questions for area residents. The added detail on the phone's display enables Kleinschmidt to more easily identify pictures of insects sent to him. He said, "I'll blog on an issue, like stem borer in wheat. We took some pictures, put it instantly on the blog.
Nice, clear pictures. Then I'll put a twitter feed out about my blog posts. It's a good way to network with other ag professionals."
Agricultural applications for smartphones are already available, as well as real-time weather information like soil moisture, temperatures, and barometric pressure. Kleinschmidt stated that his phone offers instant communication with farmers or clients and keeps him connected with his email account and his calendar, which in turn keeps his connected with the office - even when his job has him out in the field more often than behind a desk. "I can make a change to my calendar in the middle of a field, and it synchronizes instantly with google calendar and my secretary can pull it up and know exactly what my plans are or how they have changed," he described.
Social sites like blogs or Twitter are new to many in agriculture, but Kleinschmidt sees the growth potential as huge. "I learn a tremendous amount if I participate in these social media tools," he explained. "And I can bring things back to people in Van Wert who may not be as social media savvy."
Although smartphones allow instant communication and crystal clear pictures and video, Kleinschmidt did warn that not everything about a smartphone is farm-friendly. "These phones were not designed for farm use," he chuckled. "They are not that rugged. That's the downside of having them on the farm. You kind of have to handle them with kid gloves, but if you know that going into it, it works out okay."
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