Turning Your Cell Phone Into a Pocket Accomplice

Thanks to some new innovative services, your cell phone can actually help you lie more convincingly.

Cell phone service to escape a bad date

The date just started and you already want out. Desperately. Lucky for you, there's a vibrating sensation in your pocket. "This is your escape-a-date call," says the cellular guardian angel on the other end. "Just repeat after me and you'll be on your way"

For $4.99 a month, Cingular Wireless now offers escape-a-date calls that tell you exactly what to say to well escape your date. Here's how it works:

You arrange to be called at a preset time. The phone rings and you hear one of eight randomly chosen scripts being whispered into your ear telling you exactly what to say. And it's much more reliable than your bail-out-buddy Ted.

Fake background noises for your cell phone

Wake up late for work and want your boss to think you're caught in traffic? Now it's possible with Simeda's SounderCover service (mostly available in the UK). For a small fee, you can download convincing sound effects to your phone to back up your little half-truths like:

Fake static, stuck in traffic, near heavy machinery, caught in a thunderstorm, or even make your own background noise.