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March 28, 2024, 11:00:48 AM

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Which Smart Phone?

Started by Garfield And Friends, August 09, 2010, 08:59:18 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

Subtle Mocking

I've got the Nexus 5 now and I'm extremely happy with it. Was looking at the HTC for a while, but it's a good 30g heavier than the Nexus, and I'm not entirely keen on the HTC Sense skin. The Nexus has a very clean Android experience.

I finally finished my first ever contract, on the HTC One S, which works great and I was delighted to be able to stick their fucked up side grade offers up their fucking arse. I mostly use the Nexus 7 for Internet at home and have no requirement for a bigger or faster phone. This does everything really well and the rom is still supported and swagging to the max. I am saving myself twenty five quid a month which I have just wasted on replacement headphone ear pads. Who's laughing now? I will kill you.

Replies From View

Quote from: imitationleather on March 28, 2014, 01:18:35 PM
Yesterday I dropped my Samsung Galaxy s3 while I was having a shit and cracked the screen.

[...]

Any other up-to-date recommendations?

Just don't clasp things while you are having a shit next time.

Weird isn't it how having a shit is always up-to-date.  The world moves on and there having a shit still is.

MojoJojo

Quote from: Subtle Mocking on March 28, 2014, 02:09:38 PM
I've got the Nexus 5 now and I'm extremely happy with it. Was looking at the HTC for a while, but it's a good 30g heavier than the Nexus, and I'm not entirely keen on the HTC Sense skin. The Nexus has a very clean Android experience.

You can get the HTC One with stock android - can't remember what they call it. Although you may not be able to get that from a network.

I like my HTC One. Although it really doesn't justify being 3x the cost of a Moto G.

mcbpete

Quote from: imitationleather on March 28, 2014, 01:18:35 PM
Yesterday I dropped my Samsung Galaxy s3 while I was having a shit and cracked the screen. It's not that bad and I can still use it, but it's got me proper in the mood for the upgrade I'm due in three months. I'm a bit gutted this phone is no longer sellable, though. What a doughnut I am.
Pay to get the screen fixed, buy a nice protective case for it and when they're fixing it ask them to bung on Cyanogenmod 11. You'll feel like you've a brand new phone running Kitkat/Android 4.4 but at a fraction of the cost.

The Duck Man

Now then.

My phone is at death's door. It's been pretty shit for a while now, frequently dying in late afternoon if I've been online for ten minutes earlier in the day, but now it dies close to immediately after online activity.

I have long planned to buy a Nexus 5 outright, but my housemate claims that Google will soon be announcing the Nexus 6 and the 5 will drop in price. However the internet seems unsure as to when the 6 is coming out and I can't be bothered to wait that long. Does anyone have any ideas?

Meanwhile a colleague has been talking about this OnePlus One phone. Samsung Galaxy S5 spec (or so he claims), very cheap (£208 for 64gb) but you have to be invited by someone who owns one.

Subtle Mocking

Quote from: The Duck Man on May 28, 2014, 07:45:35 PM
I have long planned to buy a Nexus 5 outright, but my housemate claims that Google will soon be announcing the Nexus 6 and the 5 will drop in price. However the internet seems unsure as to when the 6 is coming out and I can't be bothered to wait that long. Does anyone have any ideas?

If it's anything like last year, I suspect it'll be in September. Probably around the same time as the new iPhone. As for price-drops, I don't quite know how it works with the Nexus phones, as they always seem to be discontinued immediately after the newest one is released, and it's pretty much only Google that actually stocks them.

The Nexus 5 would still be first in line for updates for at least another year or two, and it's fantastic value for what it is. There's no word on how much the Nexus 6 would be. Plus, the size of the current one is pretty much perfect for me right now.

Famous Mortimer

Looks like the 64gig Oneplus One is sold out, but they do look really nice. Might have to save up for when they go on proper release.

The Duck Man

Quote from: Subtle Mocking on May 28, 2014, 07:49:42 PM
If it's anything like last year, I suspect it'll be in September. Probably around the same time as the new iPhone. As for price-drops, I don't quite know how it works with the Nexus phones, as they always seem to be discontinued immediately after the newest one is released, and it's pretty much only Google that actually stocks them.
Thanks, he was said a few weeks ago they were bringing their release pattern forward so they released ahead of Apple. But then in the pub last night he claimed they had some press call a month or so back where they were expected to announce it was coming out in June, and then they didn't say that. He is prone to colossal loads of bullshit, so I wanted to check. He himself is now saying I shouldn't wait and just get the 5, and if they discontinue to the old model straight after a new release that's an extra incentive to just take the plunge.

momatt

Help please[nb]and apologies if this has already been answered[/nb]!

One of the major draws of Android for me is the ability to connect the phone to a computer and simply view the memory card or internal memory as an external drive on the PC/Mac.

I have read in a few places that this has been removed in the new version of Android.  Is this true, is there another way around it?  I suppose I can always take the memory card out to mess about with it, but I'd rather not.  Plus I hate any kind of auto-syncing software, don't trust it.

Would this apply for all new phones equally?
I'll soon be in the market for a new phone.  I like the look of the bigguns, like the Samsung Note 3, or the HTC One Max.

Steven

As far as I know this isn't true. I don't know what is the latest Android. I have 4.3  KitKat on my Nexus 7 and that still works as an external drive.

momatt

Hmmm, maybe it's just a Samsung/HTC thing then, bugger.
I think Kit Kat is the latest Android.  Are you connecting to a PC or Mac?  I'd like it to work with both really.

I'm certainly finding it tricky to get my girlfriend's new Samsung tablet to connect to my Mac.
Taking the memory card out is an option for her, but it'll be annoying doing this every day for a phone.

Looks like Android has gone down the Apple route in respect.

Steven

Using a PC, I'd bet it's something to do with using a Mac that's stopping you connecting. Also you should get the option to select whether the phone shows up as a mass storage device or media device when it's connected.

There's also the option that it just isn't seeing it on the USB port, on Windows if you have it connected and put the phone in USB debugging mode it might help it recognise it and install the right drivers to see it. If you don't have developer options available go into Android version details and repeatedly press the version number until Developer Options becomes unlocked in your settings menu. Don't know if that will work on a Mac though.

falafel

Don't you just need that Android File Manager or whatever its called? My note 2 didn't work with Mac natively but with the software it did.

Steven

Yes there are lots of apps that let you fileshare just over WiFi, it is slower though.

momatt

Quote from: falafel on June 01, 2014, 09:50:16 AM
Don't you just need that Android File Manager or whatever its called? My note 2 didn't work with Mac natively but with the software it did.

Well, yes there's loads of software that you can use, but with my current phone I just plug it in and it appears as a drive.  Is this too simple and easy to use?  You shouldn't need any sodding software.
I just don't understand their rationale.

whydotheyhavetokeepmuckingaboutwiththings...

mikeyg27

Quote from: momatt on June 01, 2014, 01:37:01 PM
Well, yes there's loads of software that you can use, but with my current phone I just plug it in and it appears as a drive.  Is this too simple and easy to use?  You shouldn't need any sodding software.
I just don't understand their rationale.

whydotheyhavetokeepmuckingaboutwiththings...

It's annoying in that you have to launch a piece of software to do it, but it's essentially the same as using the Finder once you've opened it.

momatt

Grrr...  Ok, thanks.
These things annoy me much more than they should.

Zetetic

I assume it's about more easily being able to observe changes to the filesystem (allowing, say, Picture and Music apps to update their libraries easily - notably they've disable certain parts of the API for refreshing these manually in recent versions), and not having to trust the computer not to fuck up the filesystem of whatever's being exposed over USB.

It might also be to do with (more easily?) presenting a unified approach between devices that do and don't have physically separate 'sdcard' storage.

MojoJojo

Is it actually true that it's an Android thing then?

I'd assumed it was just a manufacturer thing - commoditisation is coming so any way of tying you to a particular manufacturer instead of getting a cheap version is being applied - especially with stuff that is unlikely to have a major effect on most consumers. That is, if you find having to install software to use your phone as storage is an annoying change, it might mean you're willing to spend extra money on a Samsung in future to keep the extra crap that the software has shoved on you in future. Or so they're thinking.

I haven't explained that very well.

momatt

Quote from: MojoJojo on June 02, 2014, 09:41:22 PM
Is it actually true that it's an Android thing then?

I believe it's an Android thing, but one that HTC, Samsung etc. have found ways around in the past.  Now they either can't or don't want to.

I get what you mean, the software Samsung provide is specific to them, though you can also find plenty of generic android file manager type things.

Fuck 'em, I'll just take the memory card out every time I want to move files about.

imitationleather

Okay so now I can upgrade. What is the best smart phone TODAY, people? And I mean top end, not best for a budget. Come on, this is imitationleather you're talking to.

Subtle Mocking

Probably the HTC One mate, but I'm still more biased towards pure Android on the Nexus 5.

Hobo

I went for the Sony Z2. Having recently killed my ipod by dropping it in the sink, I was swayed by it being the most waterproof of the new phones. It also has 3gb of RAM, but does get quite hot when gaming.

Replies From View

Quote from: imitationleather on June 27, 2014, 03:10:16 PM
What is the best smart phone TODAY, people?

Do you mean today today, or today when it was yesterday?

presta didwicks

I narrowed my choice down to the Sony Z2 and the HTC mate.
Holding the Z2, it seemed a tad big and heavy in the hand, so I went with the mate, which I still felt was slightly bigger than I'd like. I know there's a mini, but the specs are significantly diminished.

I've had it a month now and it's a fucking blinder ! Stories about the camera being weak are guff. It has some cool photo processing options too.

I suggest installing a new memory card from day 1. I've just spent ages moving all my photos back into folders after transfering.

Don't buy the (£35 !) dot matrix case though, it doesn't fold flat behind the phone, or support the thing on a table in landscape position, very strange. Mine was thrown in for free though, so I can live with it.


presta didwicks

On reflection, I've grown to like the dot matrix case. The flap has a magnet which turns the phone on and off, and it also adds a little privacy . I've also figured a way of holding it open with the tip of my pinky.

I've cracked the screen on my phone and as it's a cheap clone it isn't worth getting it repaired. It has however got me used to a phablet size device so I'm looking at getting a oneplus one either by the shitty invite system or by going direct to oppomart and paying the £30-40 pounds extra.
Has anyone got the oneplus one yet? I had my finger hovering over the buy button on earlier but decided against it for the time being.

From what I've read the 4g only works on EE or 3 in the UK so I'd be looking at leaving giffgaff and getting a sim only deal on 3. What's the coverage like on 3 nowadays, it used to be dog turds but I've heard it's improved?

I watched a couple of reviews of the oneplus one on YouTube earlier. It looks fantastic for the price. One guy had reservations about a couple of bugs in the OS but CyanogenMod come up with frequent updates so I'm sure they'll be fixed in no time.

I wonder if the invite system is a marketing gimmick, though? At those specs and build quality you'd expect some of them appearing on eBay for a hundred quid profit.

I've seen invites on Gumtree today for £15 or you can get it direct from a Chinese website, but UK stock (so no duty)  for £289.