There are a few things that aren’t needs, but will dramatically benefit your lifestyle. Most of these items are pay once, and then only when you need to replace them. There is a resource that you will have to pay annually, but it is worth it, and the annual price is very minimal. Another resource will add a monthly bill to you, but again – I feel that this will be beneficial to you as it will improve your presence on the Internet.
Cellular Smartphone
A smartphone is like having a computer in your pocket. This alone will allow you to do so much, and have a number of resources. If you have a SIP account, you can install a SIP client on your phone, and make/receive calls on your smartphone. If you do social networking, most social networks have a smartphone app. Depending on the capability of your smartphone, you can play games. And while I won’t recommend it, you can browse websites, and compose emails.
Obviously, your smartphone is a phone. Being on SSI, you should be able to qualify for Lifeline. Lifeline is a program where you would get free limited cellular phone service. For example, Life Wireless in Pennsylvania will give you unlimited voice/SMS and 50MMS (Media via SMS). You also get 4.5GB of data. This could be a significant benefit if you are in need of free phone service. If Lifeline is not an option, and you can afford to pay for a year, then Mint will be an option. The cheapest plan will give you unlimited MMS/SMS/Voice capabilities with 5GB of high speed data for $180 (+taxes) per year. If you want a limited rate plan, and something that you can pay monthly, then Tello can be an option. Their most expensive plan is $25/month. There are 2 reasons why I don’t rely on a Lifeline service. First, I do not like how my carrier handles voicemail. Second, my provider does not support eSIM which is required on an iPhone 14 series phone.
If you are stuck for what to buy, I would recommend going to your preferred manufacturer’s website. I will not recommend that you get a “free” phone as that would lock the phone to one carrier, and tie you into a contract with the carrier. It is better to buy an unlocked phone, even if you must do refurbished or used. If you do get a phone, I will recommend at least 128GB of storage. You will need the storage for apps, files, and other features + the operating system.
Computer
To me, a computer is the ultimate media consumption, and creation machine. If you buy a desktop, you can decide the size of your screen (unless you get an all in one). You can also decide your keyboard and mouse. If you are into making your own websites, but you don’t know all of the web development technologies, WordPress will be right for you. It is how I develop my own websites, and all I need is a web browser, and an FTP client. The FTP client is to upload the WordPress platform, while the web browser helps in creating the content pages.
A computer can also be used to write to friends, and handle messaging services such as WhatsApp. WhatsApp are used by me when the person I am chatting with supports one of those platforms. As for email, most OSes will have an email client, and using that one should be fine for most people. Since I hadn’t used a Windows PC in years, I don’t know of email clients for them. An internet search for a Windows Email Client should bring some results up.
If you were to buy a computer, you should weigh the benefits and flaws of both a desktop, and a notebook. A desktop is likely to have better specs than a notebook of the same price. If you are OK with a learning curve, you might be able to get away with a Linux computer. This will cost less since the manufacturer won’t have to buy a Windows license. In that regards, I heard great things about Debian, although I do not have the resources to try a Debian computer.
Contact Profile
There are a couple of options to consider when deciding on a contact profile. The first option will be to create a web page with all of your public contact information in it. The page name should be Contact so people will know what the page is about. If you take my suggestion on a WordPress driven website, a contact page might be something like https://you.com/contact/. Obviously, you would only want information that 8 Billion people will see.
The second option will be a dedicated contact website. Again, if you followed my suggestion with regards to a website, you could create https://contact.you.com/. You would want an email address that people can reach you on. Email is much quicker, and more efficient than postal mail.
While some people might say a .TEL address will work just as well for a contact profile, I will agree. However, the past couple of times I tried to get support from TELnames, I got none. Because of this, I can never recommend a .TEL address even though I still have a couple. I promote fsp.contact as my contact site. Yes, this is a domain, and a little extreme, but I am willing to pay the extra cost for a dedicated contact domain.
Tablet
A tablet is a good in between device. I use my iPad mini to play games, and view Twitter feeds. Because I use my computer for email, and most of my web browsing, I don’t rely on the tablet for that. If you want maximum flexibility, you can get a tablet with cellular capabilities. Keep in mind that adding cellular connectivity to your tablet will cost you a monthly fee (just like a phone bill). My tablet supports cellular data, but my 1GB plan is just $5 per month. This is worth the price.
Website
This is for anyone who wants a better than Facebook internet presence. For example, it will be hard to have a site like this one on Facebook. However, this site provides valuable information, and might make one’s life easier. If I just had a Facebook presence, and nothing else – then this site will not exist. I personally use Dreamhost for my hosting needs. They cost less than $15/month, and cheaper per month if you are able to pay for a year or three years. Also, when hosting with them, you would get a free .com/.net/.org domain. If this will be a personal site, I would recommend a .com followed by .org, and then .net. If you are willing to pay more per year, you might be able to get all three, and have the other 2 redirect to your primary site. For shared hosting, Dreamhost offers 1 plan. This plan will give you unlimited domains and sub-domains.
Assuming you use Dreamhost for you website, you would want to create a MySQL database with your domain name as the name. For example, if you have fsp.ws, then your database might be fsp_ws. WordPress uses tables, so your table for www.fsp.ws (your main site) will be www_. Even if you aren’t going to promote your primary site with the www, still used it with your database table. If you decide to add a new site (such as contact.fsp.ws), then your table will be contact_. The WordPress engine will create the necessary tables, and with this method for your subdomains will make managing and editing your SQL database easier as well. If you decide to drop contact.fsp.ws, then you could go into your database and delete all of the tables that begin with contact_.