Control your Android phone from your PC

I have been playing with an Android phone and decided to try and use a real keyboard rather than the (small) touch screen virtual keyboard.  I found a wonderful tool that allows you to take control of your Android (or SonyEricsson) phone.  It is called MyPhoneExplorer and connects to your phone via USB cable, Bluetooth or infrared. So, I can now send WhatsApp messages using my real keyboard… and more:

You can also use it to sync your contacts (address book) - with direct sync to Outlook, GMail, Windows contacts, Thunderbird, SeaMonkey, Lotus Notes and Tobit David
You can also use it to sync your calendar and direct sync to Outlook, Google, Sunbird, Thunderbird, SeaMonkey, Windows calendar (Vista), Rainlendar, Lotus Notes, Tobit David and net shared calendars (WebDAV, FTP, local)

You can also use it to send SMSs and also back them up to your PC.
There’s a file browser with a cacheing system to minimize data transfer.
The phone’s date and time are also sync’d to Internet time and more.

See here for the software (and why not donate some $s too) [4MB]: http://www.fjsoft.at/en/downloads.php

To use your computer’s keyboard: Install then once connected go to the “Extras” menu option and select “Phone keypad”:

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This is what my phone looks like on my PC:
 

Discovery miles or Discovery FAST miles – that is the question

So you have finally seen the advantages of getting a Discovery credit card with all its cashback features: cashback plus miles that you can spend at the Vitality Mall or use them to pay for your travel arrangements… but when you were filling in the application form, there’s a question on the form asking you whether you want to activate the “Discovery Miles benefit”.



The standard “Discovery Miles” costs R295 per year (not per card) and for every R120 you spend you earn 10 Discovery miles which is the equivalent of R1.  Doesn’t seem like much, but it does add up – and before you know it, you could be buying your children’s next Wii game console on the Vitality mall using those miles.  Nintendo Wii Sport Resort pack: R2,199.00 = 21,990 Discovery Miles.

There’s another option – which costs more, but earns you miles faster: “The Discovery Fast Miles” costs R2,450 per year (not per card) and for every R60 you spend you earn 10 Discovery miles which is the equivalent of R1.

So, is the hefty, up front cost of R2,450 per year worth it? – this was a question which one of my readers (Richard Crawford) asked me.
I put together another famous HTT calculator to try and figure out what the per month spend would need to be to benefit from the fast miles option.

Bear in mind that once you’ve paid your R2,450, you will need to start spending the miles on stuff at the Vitality Mall or travel arrangements… there’s no way of cashing in the points for Rands again.


Small print from the Discovery web site:  http://www.discovery.co.za/portal/loggedout-individual/miles-card
Cardholders can activate the Fast Miles option for an annual fee of R2,450 and earn one Discovery Mile for every R6 spent on the first R100,000 qualifying spend in each billing cycle.
They will thereafter earn Miles at the normal Discovery Mile rate of one Discovery Mile for every R12 spent.
DiscoveryCard holders earn Discovery Miles for every qualifying transaction every time they swipe their DiscoveryCard.  The Miles earned are, however, limited to a qualifying spend of R100,000 per store per billing cycle.
Your Discovery Miles expire after five years from the date these Miles were earned. This applies even if you don’t have any Discovery products at the time.

I put some figures into the HTT calculator, and created the charts below:

  For “Normal Discovery Miles” option: it seems that the monthly cost of R25 for the miles is recouped if you have a monthly spend of about R5,000 per month – which is pretty easy these days… So, it’s a no-brainer that everyone takes the “Normal Discovery Miles” option and spends their miles at the Vitality Mall.

For “Fast Discovery Miles” option: it seems that the monthly cost of R204 for the miles is recouped if you have a monthly spend of about R15,000 per month… So, it seems that if you spend that on your card, then it’s time to look at upgrading your miles option to a faster one - and get ready to spend some miles at the Vitality Mall, and go do some travelling!








Using HTT’s calculator:
Download the HTT calculator from here: DiscoveryMilesCompared to FastMiles CalculatorFeb2012.xls
Edit purple cells if necessary.
I have used formulas to allow you to change the “Rand equivalent” cells – I find that the prices of goods on the Vitality Mall are slightly inflated (ie: more expensive than the shops) – so, the R10 per mile is more like R13 per mile.  So, you can tweak how much you think the points are actually worth.
Get your Discovery Card statement out and look at your average monthly spend and see what your profit is for both the “normal miles” option (column E), and the “fast miles” option (column I).
From that you can decide whether it’s time to upgrade to the fast miles option and take the plunge and pay your R2,450!

Discovery Insure and VitalityDrive: Another HTT calculator to see how much cashback you get on your short term insurance

I have been considering investigating the new product from Discovery: “Discovery Insure” with VitalityDrive (sometimes called “Discovery Drive”).  As with all Discovery products it’s quite a mouthful to understand and figure out how much the insurance will actually cost you – so, I’ve decided to try and collate all the information into another “HTT famous calculator” ;)
Additionally, I wanted to quantify how much fuel rewards I would receive because I wasn’t sure how much the maximum term: “receive up to 40% fuel rewards” meant to me - As well as understanding the limits to the cashback which was explained (quickly) while on the call.

==== NOTE: This posting has been updated on 29Jan2012 with more info on how DiscoveryInsure calculates the cashback on BP petrol spend – the initial blog posting and HTT calculator were INcorrect =====

I was spurred into action when looking at my short term insurance cover on my car – luckily it was a stand-alone insurance policy so I could (relatively) easily compare apples with apples. 
While browsing the Discovery web site I clicked on the “Request a quote” link – and as promised, a (very, very efficient consultant) called me after about 48 hours.  By that time I had my current policy on hand and I could do the comparison.

What stood out for me were the questions that the consultant asked (note: my answers were recorded during the 20 minute call)… things like: who is going to drive the car?, how long have you been driving?, where is the car parked at night?, where is the car parked while at work?, who else will drive the car?, when was the last time you had a claim?.
All those questions were aimed at assessing the risk that my vehicle was exposed to… not generalised into my age group, or the suburb where I lived, not any general risk factors – but things that were specific to my vehicle and me.
In my case, my vehicle is parked in a secure (alarmed) place at night and secure place during the day and driven by only my wife and I – so my risk is low. 

The other issues that they take into account are measured by the “free” tracking device – so, if you are a careful driver then you are rewarded; also taken into account is the safety and reliability of your vehicle which are assessed through safety checks at Tiger Wheel & Tyre, and annual servicing of your car.

So, my driving habits and my vehicle’s upkeep are good – so I don’t pay more due to “generalised” unknown risks of the others in my “group”.
 
As you are probably expecting, the quote that was provided to me – at the end of the call by the way – was favourable… favourable, not cheaper than my current insurance – BUT, for about R50 more per month I was getting a tracking device as well,  AND cashback on fuel and other rewards which the calculator will hopefully illustrate to you (see below for details on how to use the calculator).

Yes, I did take up the offer and I have moved to Discovery Insure and I am currently investigating the option for my wife’s car.  In fact, I have a quote for my wife’s car and it came out about R60 less per month!  So, she’ll be paying less per month and will get a tracking device and cashback and additional rewards (up to 15% more) from partner stores.  That means that if you are on Vitality Diamond level, and on Vitality for more than 5 years, then the discount at partner stores goes up from 20% to 35%!

I did notice the "small print” (as listed below) that I wasn’t too happy about eg: no DQ points for 12 months after a claim :( 
[Update on 31Oct2011: I have checked this with Discovery and their documentation is not clear: the “no DQ points” referred to in the documentation is specifically aimed at the ‘Claim free years DQ points’.  So, where the document says:
"As soon as claims occur, the member will not receive any 'DQ Points' until another 12 month period from the claim date." it actually means:
"As soon as claims occur, the member will not receive any 'Claims free years DQ Points' until another 12 month period from the claim date."
So, quite logically, if you make a claim, then for 12 months after the claim you will not earn any 'Claim free years DQ points'.  It does not mean that for 12 months you cannot earn any DQ points at all - making your cashback from petrol also zero :) – which is a much better deal for me!]

The car hire vehicle is a “Group A” vehicle – which is a bit tiny compared to my current “Group C” vehicle (charged at R40 per month).  But what’s nice is that if I do need that Group A hired car, then if I can’t drive my car then the Avis car will be delivered to me; if I can drive my car then when I take my car for repairs then I just drop off my car at the nearest Avis and swop it for the hired vehicle :)
 
Disclaimer: Please note that I am not a Discovery Insure employee nor have any association nor training about the product – I am merely expressing my interpretations of the documentation on the web site as well as information that has been given to me while purchasing the product.  So, any information could be incorrect – please check with Discovery Insure before making any decisions. 

The terms that you need to understand:
Vitality Drive is the name of the insurance product: short term, comprehensive insurance for motor vehicles
DQ is your “Driver Quotient” is a measure of your driver intelligence and is expressed in ‘DQ points’. The more DQ Points you earn, the higher your DQ.  When you first take out your policy you will be awarded 400 DQ points for the 1st month, so this will put you in the “Neutral” VitalityDrive status.  This means that from day 1 you can use your Discovery Card and earn 10% off wheels and tyres.

DQ-Track is the tracking device (manufactured by Ctrack) which is installed in your vehicle to measure of your driver behaviour (called “Driver Quotient” or “DQ”).  The device is installed for free at your office or home by the SmartService team [make sure that your car’s 4 doors can open wide in its parking spot, and it is not on a public road].  The appointment will be made a few days after your policy is confirmed.  Depending on the area that you are in – in my experience - this could take a few weeks (3 to 6 weeks) to happen.  You will start to earn DQ points based on actual driver performance one calendar month after the tracking device is installed.

The tracking device provides the following for no additional costs: 1) tracking of the vehicle if it gets stolen; 2) in an accident the device’s GForce detector (I think) will trigger an ImpactAlert to Discovery and they will call you to see if assistance is needed (the tracking device’s GPS will indicate your location);  3) With VehicleProtector: any tampering with your vehicle’s battery or tracking device or if your vehicle is moved without “normal” ignition procedures will send an SMS to you; 4) If you get lost, then call the 24-hour helpline, Trip Monitor, will ensure that you arrival at your destination safely.
For an additional monthly fee (R49): FamilyProtector: 1) Armed response for protection in an unsafe area after a breakdown; 2) SMS notification when your family start and end a journey through Drive Alert; 3) SMS alert when your family members leave a preferred safe driving area;
[Update on 31Oct2011 from DiscoveryInsure: The family protector is not available yet; the additional fee is R49 per month]

For a once-off fee: ‘VitalityDrive panic remote’ and receive immediate ER24 medical and security response, 24/7/365 when a member of my family presses their panic remote near their car.
[Update on 31Oct2011 from DiscoveryInsure: The once-off fee is R575 which includes the installation costs]


ImpactAlert: if your vehicle is involved in an accident then the device’s GForce detector (I think) will trigger and send a signal to Ctrack/Discovery and they will call you to see if all is well or if you need emergency services;

Driver behaviour: is measured by the DQ-Track device and takes the following into account: harsh braking, acceleration and cornering, which increase the risk of loss of control of a vehicle, and being on the road at dangerous times (for example, late on weekend nights).  You can see your past trip information and driver records by using the online tool “DQ mapper”.

Fuel rewards: receive up to 40% fuel rewards directly into your bank account… (read the small print below… there are limits and if you have a claim, then your “Claim free years DQ points” are zero'd until another 12 month period from the claim date).
1) Purchase petrol from any BP petrol station and simply by swiping your VitalityDrive card when paying you will earn 10% of your fuel back in cashback rewards.  (If you don’t go to a BP petrol station but still use your Discovery Credit card then you will still get 5%)
2) Completing the Tiger Wheel & Tiger Annual MultiPoint check pushes your fuel rewards to 25% (If you don’t go to a BP petrol station but have completed MultiPoint check will push your fuel rewards to 15%)
[Update on 31Oct2011 from DiscoveryInsure: This 25% rewards is earned even if you fail the MultiPoint check]
3) Paying for fuel at BP petrol station with your Discovery Credit Card to receive up to an additional 15% fuel rewards (which results in 40% fuel reward)
Example: spend of R400 at BP with your credit card after having the multipoint check: 40% of R400 = R160 back

The small print: Your monthly fuel rewards are based on fuel spend that is equal to your DQ points up to a maximum of 1,400 DQ points per month.  So, a low DQ point count in a month means that your cashback on fuel will also be as low.
==== Update on 29Jan2012: The %cashback is limited to the number of DQ points that you have earned in the month.  So if you have earned 800 DQ points, then the 40% is calculated on R800 that you have spent on fuel – the rest of your fuel spend receives zero cashback.  Refer to the HTT calculator (worksheet: Jan2012Calc) to see an example of the cashback calculations. ====

Note: I have not included the option of the ‘Excess Funder Account’ where you can get up to 80% into your excess funder account (see the web site for more info) as I’d rather get the cashback.

Boosted Vitality and DiscoveryCard rewards:
 
Note: These additional VitalityDrive %rewards are for the primary driver’s Discovery Credit Card only (not the spouse’s).  In other words, if the primary driver (husband) has a DiscoveryDrive insurance policy and Discovery Credit Card but the wife’s car isn’t insured, then the wife’s spend on her credit card does not get the additional discounts.  When the wife’s vehicle is also insured, then her credit card will earn the additional %rewards at partner stores.

Small print to take note of (otherwise known as “the things they don’t tell you, but it’s in the contract”):
1) As soon as claims occur the member will not receive any “Claim free years DQ points” until another 12 month period from the claim date. 
2) No ‘claim free years DQ Points’ will be earned in the 1st year of insuring with Discovery Insure.
3) Your monthly fuel rewards are based on fuel spend that is equal to your DQ points up to a maximum of 1,400 DQ points per month.


So (referring to small print item 1 above): before claiming, take into account the excess (R500 for windscreen or theft of sound equipment; R2,000 for collision or write-off) as well as the lost benefits (eg: cashback on fuel for 12 months after the claim).  This means, the higher your DQ points are and the more you spend on petrol per month, then it’s not worth your while to claim for anything less than R2,000+(12x ‘Claims free years DQ points’ cashback).


I love the parenting driver contract…. nice, very nice… “Creating a driving contract between a parent and new driver” – even if you don’t take out their insurance policy, print this out and make your kids sign it!

See here for all of their interesting articles on safe driving and vehicle safety: https://www.discovery.co.za/portal/loggedout-individual/improve-driving-articles

Let’s get to the interesting part of figuring out how much cashback and other benefits are available:
HTT’s Discovery Insure Calculator:
1) Download it from here: DiscoveryInsureCalculatorFeb2012.xls
2) Use the "DiscoveryInsureInfo" worksheet and this page for an explanation of the Discovery Insure product
3) Use the "My_DQ_PointsMonitor" worksheet to figure out how many DQ points you need to earn to get the cashback
4) Fill in the purple cells and leave the others to auto-calculate the information
 






































  
Reminders to put into your cell phone’s calendar:
1+2) Annually: Tiger Wheel & Tiger Annual MultiPoint check for 100 DQ points per month (+100 = 200 if your vehicle passes); remember to take proof of your annual car service along to get another 50 DQ points per month.  This check includes: tyres, shocks, wipers, lights, indicators, seatbelts, hazards, steering, hooter and wheels.  This check also pushes your fuel rewards up to 25% of your fuel spend at BP. 
3) Annual: Driver Safety review (web site questionnaire – I think) for 75 DQ points per month
4) Every 3 months: Online quiz for 75 DQ points per month (if you achieve 70% or more – no limit on number of tries)
5) Once every 2 years: Proactive driving course at Mercedes-Benz (Gauteng only) or TopGear (R350 incl. VAT for the course) for 100 DQ points per month.  See here for all the contact details: http://www.discovery.co.za/vi-rsa/genericTCB.do?type=TCB_DEFENSIVE_DRIVING


If you notice any errors in this article or the calculator then please let me know!


Read the “main_rules” document in detail [328KB]: https://www.discovery.co.za/discovery_za/web/pdfs/vitality_drive/main_rules.pdf

Here are some points from the document that I highlighted for myself:

VitalityDrive status:
At the start of each month you begin your membership on Base VitalityDrive status.  The more points you earn, the higher the status you will reach. The different levels are: Base, Neutral, Engaged and Advanced status.  To move up a status, you need to earn enough points to reach the relevant status threshold. 
Vitality Drive status is guaranteed for one month only.  Your VitalityDrive status remains in place from the time you earn the relevant VitalityDrive Status until the end of the following month.
You lose your VitalityDrive status at the end of the following month if you do not earn enough points to maintain the status.
Claiming DQ Points:
Monthly points:
You have a maximum of three months to claim your points after the event. For example, if you earn the points on 1 December, you must claim them by 1 March. If you do not claim the points within the three months, we will not award the points to you.
Yearly points:
You may claim for your annual service event up until 12 months from the service date.
Example:
You had your annual service completed on the 10th of June 2011, you then only submit the proof on the 25th of August 2011. You will receive the annual service points for 12 months from August 2011
Waiting period: if you join VitalityDrive™ more than three months after taking out cover with Discovery Insure, you must wait another three months before you can use the travel benefits available on VitalityDrive™

Primary drivers of motorbikes, vessels and trailers do not qualify for VitalityDrive (only motor vehicles qualify)

There’s also a SmartPhone app to send any claim and photos to Discovery (else email them to insureclaims@discovery.co.za)
[Update on 31Oct2011 from DiscoveryInsure: the SmartPhone app is not yet available for download.  When it is ready they will notify us]

You can get the full set of benefit rules if you email a request to VitalityDriveinfo@discovery.co.za or call 0860 751751

Contact: insureinfo@discovery.co.za or call 0860 751751.