The present technology concerns cell phones and similar devices, and their use in conjunction with media content (electronic and physical) and other systems (e.g., televisions, digital video recorders, and electronic program directories). Some aspects of the technology particularly concern “second screen” applications that sense a television program being watched by a user, and present menus of complementary content on the phone touchscreen from which the user can select. This complementary content can include other video content, associated web pages, opportunities to buy merchandise related to the program, etc. This complementary content can be identified by a provider of the television program, or can be identified otherwise (e.g., by crowd-sourcing). In some embodiments, the phone instructs a remote DVR to record content of interest for later viewing. The technology also provides features for making TV watching a social experience—involving remote friends. A great number of other arrangements and details are also disclosed.