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StickFigs posted:Does the mT4G use a sim card? I'm wondering if I could just stick my AT&T GoPhone sim card in one and continue my $10/month 1000 texts plan? It uses a SIM card but you'd need an unlocked one to use on AT&T. However you're not getting any data, your data would be on EDGE and I don't think you have any minutes on that plan too. The MyTouch 4G is comparable to a Droid X in terms of power. The one big advantage of it over the Droid 1 is that it actually has RAM, meaning that your phone isn't continually closing apps in the background.
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Oct 20, 2011 11:05
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Godzilla07 posted:It uses a SIM card but you'd need an unlocked one to use on AT&T. However you're not getting any data, your data would be on EDGE and I don't think you have any minutes on that plan too. Is an unlocked Android phone just another word for a rooted phone? Or is there some kind of hardware difference and only certain ones can be unlocked? This sounds promising so far, all I need to do is find a used mT4G that isn't too expensive and doesn't have a cracked screen.
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Oct 20, 2011 11:14
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StickFigs posted:Is an unlocked Android phone just another word for a rooted phone? Or is there some kind of hardware difference and only certain ones can be unlocked?
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Oct 20, 2011 15:12
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Country/Provider:US. Most likely AT&T Current contract status:none Budget (phone/plan):Family plan, one smartphone($200 max) and one regular phone Features I know I want:Wifi, Android OS. I've finally decided to get myself a cell phone so when I'm looking for a job, employers can get to me easier. I plan to get a family plan with my mother and maybe add a third line for my brother. My mom wants to go with AT&T because she was with T-mobile before and didn't like their service. My mom wants a regular flip phone, and I would like to get a smartphone that I can play around with. I don't make a lot of calls besides calling family, neither does the others who are going to be on the plan. I would like to get a phone with wifi and hopefully avoid having a data plan, as I don't get online at all outside of work or home. I played around with an ipad2 before and I didn't like the iOS, so I would prefer an Android phone.
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Oct 20, 2011 22:27
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Revalis Enai posted:Country/Provider:US. Most likely AT&T Ok, first rule of wireless: With very few exceptions you cannot have a smartphone without a data plan. Sorry, but carriers like to overcharge and make money. Ironically, TMobile is the only potential exception to this rule. Honestly, if you don't make a lot of calls, you should at least look at prepaid. Let's seperate this between prepaid and post paid, you can decide what works best. Please note you have not mentioned where you are located, so i can't tell you who has what coverage. Prepaid: Virgin Mobile or TMobile. Virgin Mobile has 3 plans, there are no family packs but it still would be pretty cheap if you guys don't call much. All plans include unlimited text and data: $35 a line: 300 minutes $45 aline: 1200 minutes $55 a line: unlimited Note: you can mix and match, since they would be seperate. The big plus is no contract, VM uses Sprint towers but no roaming, so make sure you have good sprint coverage. Phone wise Motorola Triumph or LG Optimus are both good medium phones. No super phones on prepaid. TMobile: Honestly i like them, coverage varies on area. I'm fuzzy on their prepaid, but let me emphasize: they may not be what you are looking for, but never discount out until after researching. The exception to that rule is Cricket, do not get Cricket under any god forsaken circumstance. Postpaid: Sprint, Verizon, AT&T. I'm biased and work for Sprint, so i will list them first: Sprint: EPRP referral plan (note: consumer plans can be equal or better if you qualify for a discount): $109.99 base plan, $10 for smartphone for you, $20-30 to add your bro. Total of $119-149 depending on how many lines. Unlimited data and text, 1500 mins for landlines, any mobile any time so cell phones are unlimited. Way more mins than you need, so basically all unlimited. AT&T: (i think i have this right): Base plan: $69.99 for 700 minutes, AT&T mobile unlimited, rollover Exta 700 minutes: $20 a month (with texting this also gets you anymobile anytime) Texting: $20 for one line, $30 for family unlimited. All or nothing with texting. Data: $15 a month, 200MB ($10 per 200MB overage after that), $25 a month 2GB ($10 per 1GB after that) So basically, it varies on preference with AT&T. AT&T isn't bad if you use a lot of WiFi, but 200MB is pretty easy to go through in my opinion. Add on: $9.99 plus data (i think) Example: if you want to WiFi it: $69.99 + $15 a month = $85 a month. possible $20-30 for texting. Possible add a line. *****Wildcard: Use Google Voice for texting over 3G and you don't have to pay for texting. Personally this depends on whether your mom needs texting or not: i can't see a parent taking the time to learn google voice on a non smartphone. If your mom does NOT need texting, just use GVoice. Verizon: Base: $69.99: 700 mins extra 700 mins: $20 a month Text: $5 a line for 300, $20 a line unlimited, $30 for shared unlimited Data: $30 for 2GB of data, $10 per extra GB. Note: I think Verizon is a ripoff right now with the data cap. That leaves AT&T vs Sprint. Coverage between the two: check maps. In general, AT&T with GSM will have faster internet 3G speeds, Sprint with CDMA will have slower 3G but less drop call rates (again, my analysis and opinion) and can default to Verizon for roaming when need be. Sprint is great if you just want unlimited, given that that may be overkill for you, AT&T may be the best option. Do the math, look at the plans, pick what stands out the most. If you can get away with GVoice texting on AT&T that may be your best option, if not its a toss up. Personally, I recommend prepaid, worst case you sell the phones and go post paid later. This depends a lot on coverage in your area, for the record.
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Oct 21, 2011 04:05
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StickFigs posted:Does the mT4G use a sim card? I'm wondering if I could just stick my AT&T GoPhone sim card in one and continue my $10/month 1000 texts plan? Buy a Samsung Captivate off of craigslist and immediately load CM. Insert SIM, enjoy. Both a T-Mobile mT4G and an AT&T Samsung Captivate will poo poo on a Droid 1 in terms of performance, and they do so at a really pleasant price. kbar fucked around with this message at 06:59 on Oct 21, 2011 |
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Oct 21, 2011 06:56
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Duckman2008 posted:advice Thanks for the information. I'm located in Portland, OR. We would like to stick with a non-contract plan, since we plan to move to Texas spring next year. The Sprint plan looks like a over kill, so AT&T still seems to be the best choice. You mentioned the 200MB a month runs out quick, which I assume means even if I use my wifi at home and work, it will still count as part of the data usage? If that's the case, then I'll probably give up on smartphones.
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Oct 21, 2011 08:18
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Revalis Enai posted:Thanks for the information. I'm located in Portland, OR. No, Wifi usage doesn't count towards the data limit. Only data downloaded via the carrier's network counts. Either way, you're easily going to go through 200MB a month, even if you toggle data usage on and off, if you're heavy into social apps and browsing.
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Oct 21, 2011 09:42
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kalibar posted:I'm rolling my eyes hard here -- you just said in your last post you were looking for something that works on T-Mobile, which is why I recommended an mT4G. If you've got an AT&T prepaid plan that you want to keep, then you want to get an AT&T-compatible phone. T-Mobile's phones will technically work on AT&T, but they require a SIM unlock first and they don't have the right frequency 3G. This would probably work but a used Samsung Captivate is more than double my budget.
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Oct 21, 2011 13:48
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They're $150 on eBay, your budget is dropping by the post! Seriously just suck some dicks or something and get an extra 50 bucks.
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Oct 21, 2011 14:27
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"Revalis Enai" posted:Thanks for the information. I'm located in Portland, OR. If you are in Portland, virgin mobile would have decent coverage, so if you want prepaid go with that. ATT plans would get you better coverage than virgin, if you buy a phone off eBay they might let you on no contract, I really am not sure. Either way, a smartphone would get you more bang for your buck. "kalibar" posted:They're $150 on eBay, your budget is dropping by the post! This is an extremely accurate statement, investing an extra $50-100 is way better than getting a cheap lovely phone. If you get a lovely phone, it makes the entire point of a smartphone worthless because you will end up hating it. If you are gonna a monthly plan, an extra bit if cash one time us worth it.
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Oct 21, 2011 16:46
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Country/Provider:US. Verizon.. Current contract status: Nationwide Family Share Plan with my sister and mother, 700 minutes, 3 lines, two smartphone unlimited data plans (grandfathered), two 500 text messaging plans and one 250 plan. The phones right now are a Blackerry Bold 9650, a Motorola DROID 1, and an LG EnV 2. Budget (phone/plan): We're entitled to two upgrades (neither on the Blackberry), but the goal here is to save money where possible on the monthly cost while upgrading those two phones. No set amount, but the current contract is costing us about $200 a month. Features I know I want: The Blackberry will stay as-as for a while, but I'd like to see the Droid and EnV 2 become a newer Android model and a mid-level Droid/iPhone respectively. To clarify the current state of affairs, right now we have: code:On texts: I average about 302 a month, my mom averages 71, and my sister averages 897. In the past four months we paid $25 in overages just from her. On data: I'm grandfathered into the $30 per month unlimited plan, and my usage is about 4 gb per month. My sister has the corporate package for which she gets a subsidy from her office, averaging 40 mb per month in usage. My mom has no data plan. Do you see any opportunities for improvement? Is there a shared text plan we can get on that will save us money? Will I lose the $30 / month unlimited data if I upgrade to a 4G phone? If we upgrade the EnV to a smartphone, will we be able to get that on a data plan like mine? When is the right time to upgrade these phones, and what are the current/nigh options in the high end for me, and mid-low end for my mom? Should we consider skipping out on Verizon altogether? Thanks! Edit: I just asked my sister about the text message usage, and she says it's not possible unless you somehow count BBMs as texts... bam thwok fucked around with this message at 17:58 on Oct 21, 2011 |
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Oct 21, 2011 17:50
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kalibar posted:Buy a Samsung Captivate off of craigslist and immediately load CM. Insert SIM, enjoy. I did exactly this, and I was able to find a captivate with case and charger for $120, no haggling needed. I did need to pick up a new battery though (thanks, AT&T service center). It's been mostly great, but the GPS sucks rear end, and apparently there's little to nothing you can do about it.
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Oct 21, 2011 20:15
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rumspringa57 posted:I did exactly this, and I was able to find a captivate with case and charger for $120, no haggling needed. I did need to pick up a new battery though (thanks, AT&T service center). It's been mostly great, but the GPS sucks rear end, and apparently there's little to nothing you can do about it. May I ask where you found such a deal?
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Oct 21, 2011 20:59
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StickFigs posted:May I ask where you found such a deal? Austin Craigslist about a month ago. Back when I was looking I'd see them for $150 all the time.
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Oct 21, 2011 21:57
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Yeah the Captivate and Vibrant have some wonky GPS issues and are fully-equipped with an (un)healthy dose of Samsung Disease out of the box. But now that they're officially supported by CM and are so incredibly cheap secondhand, I think the performance per dollar you get is really worth it.
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Oct 22, 2011 00:27
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bam thwok posted:Country/Provider:US. Verizon.. If you want to stay on Verizon, you'll keep your unlimited data if you move to an LTE phone. You can move to a 5000 texts bucket for $20/month and that'll keep you from paying any overages, reducing your bill slightly. Data will be $30/month for 2 GB if you add another smartphone line. It's the cheapest data plan for Verizon smartphones, which is dumb. High-end, you've got the Nexus Prime coming soon. LTE, nice Samsung hardware and it'll be the first Android device running Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich.) There's also the iPhone 4S. The other option is Sprint EPRP. It'll be $155 for 3 lines with smartphones, $145 for 2 lines with smartphones. I believe you have to pay the per-line smartphone surcharge on EPRP, but one of the Sprint guys in here will confirm or deny this. It's $20/month cheaper than Verizon for mostly the same level of coverage. WiMax isn't that great though compared to LTE (indoors reception and speeds.) For you, you can get an iPhone 4S, or one of three Android devices. The Evo 3D isn't bad, and you don't have to use the 3D. The Photon has better radio reception which is nice considering WiMax's bad penetration, but can't really be customized with root like the Evo 3D. There's the Galaxy S II which seems like great hardware but Sprint's version seems bugged as of now because Samsung can't build a CDMA smartphone to save their lives. The Nexus Prime will probably come eventually, but who knows when. For your mom, and this applies for both Sprint and Verizon, get an iPhone 4 for $99. It's a lot simpler, and you won't have any headaches to deal with, such as "why is my GPS not working?" and playing the Android device roulette with her.
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Oct 22, 2011 00:33
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I'd have a hard time walking away from a grandfathered unlimited LTE plan, especially for Sprint and WiMax. Verizon will get you on SMS charges though. Basically if you're serious about saving money on text messaging, move you and your sister to Google Voice and pay nothing for text. Does your sister absolutely require the $45/month BlackBerry plan for work, or could she move to an Android phone? Barring that, could she be dropped down to a $30/month BlackBerry data plan? Her costs are really killing you guys. Also I don't think the 5,000 texts for $20 is shareable. But if you're less-serious about saving money on text, the $30/month plan that gives all lines unlimited would be a good bet -- you already pay $25/month, and the extra $5 would eliminate fear of overages and let you all text as much as you like. Do you still have access to a university EDU e-mail address? If so, you might qualify for a monthly discount on Verizon service -- it's 18% for me. It doesn't apply to everything (e.g. data plans), but it does make the unlimited texting bucket $24.60/month on my plan instead of $30/month. If you actually think you need to bump your mom up to a smartphone, staying with Verizon just gets grossly expensive because that's another $30/month for marginally nothing. If she definitely wants a smartphone, I'd be looking at T-Mobile coverage in your guys' area because it's just so much incredibly cheaper.
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Oct 22, 2011 01:07
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rumspringa57 posted:Austin Craigslist about a month ago. Back when I was looking I'd see them for $150 all the time. I'll have to check that out then. Is there anything I should be wary of when buying a used GSM phone on Craigslist? I know about the Clean ESN thing but is that only for CDMA phones?
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Oct 22, 2011 06:23
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kalibar posted:I'd have a hard time walking away from a grandfathered unlimited LTE plan, especially for Sprint and WiMax. Verizon will get you on SMS charges though. I can't speak for tmobile, but if his sister requires the blackberry BES server she kind of is stuck no matter what carrier: sprint Verizon and att all charge an extra $15 to $20 a month for BES and BES does not work on prepaid plans like virgin mobile. So if it's BES, all I can say is blackberry kind of sucks but that's the only options blackberry gives you.
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Oct 22, 2011 17:40
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I am looking for a new smart phone. I have had an iphone 3g since those were cool, but it now takes nearly a minute to open the browser. I currently use AT&T, but am not locked into a contract. I want another smartphone and am willing to pay up to $300 for the phone. I am, however, attracted to T-Mobile's advertising about $50/month data plans. I would like to get an android or something not made by apple because many of Apple's anti-competitive practices and yearly planned obsolescence have begun to bother me. I am pretty tech savvy and don't mind a device that one has to monkey with to get the best results. I jailbroke the iphone, and enjoyed the results from that. So, SA, what do you recommend? Or should I wait to buy anything until the week after Christmas when newer models will be available?
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Oct 23, 2011 15:18
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My iPhone 4 was stolen last week and I'm considering a few options right now. I'm thinking of maybe biting the bullet and upgrading to 4S; or maybe getting a Nexus S for cheap; Country/Provider: Canada / Telus Current contract status: 22 month left (x $15 = $330 upgrade fee) Budget (phone/plan): I'm thinking about upgrading to 4S. Don't know if it's worth it though, because it will cost $550 all told + a new 3 year contract. That's the most I'm willing to spend. To get the same phone I had, or something around the same level, I don't want to pay more than about $300. I'm not planning to change my plan. Features I know I want: I want a smartphone that's comparable to an iPhone 4. My friends have Nexus S's and that seems like decent a compromise. I'm a little confused about the "locked/unlocked" situation w/r/t Nexus S. Anyone know what the deal is in Canada? Whether they're all factory unlocked or whether there's a Big Telecom version and a little telecom version, as some people say? Thanks Smutton fucked around with this message at 18:45 on Oct 23, 2011 |
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Oct 23, 2011 18:35
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My mom is looking for a reliable and cheap dumbphone with good reception and I figured you guys might have some good suggestions. Network: AT&T USA Contract Status: Still has one more year on her contract. $$: She ideally wants to spend less than 50, doesn't mind used. Also, throwing in a thanks to this thread for recommending me the Optimus V on VM. It does everything I want it to and the network works well pretty much everywhere I go.
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Oct 23, 2011 18:49
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Live around: Seattle I've settled on getting an iPhone 4S, but I'm undecided between Verizon and Sprint. I move around in a large metropolitan area, so I imagine service will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood. Some people are getting slow data speeds on Sprint, but I know someone with a 4S who is not. I don't plan on heavy data use, though, so it might not be a big concern for me anyway. I'm leaning toward Sprint because it would be cheaper. Is there any news coming in the near future I should wait for? I'm pretty tired of my feature phone, so I don't want to wait too long. that Vai sound fucked around with this message at 01:20 on Oct 24, 2011 |
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Oct 24, 2011 01:08
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that Vai sound posted:I've settled on getting an iPhone 4S, but I'm undecided between Verizon and Sprint. I move around in a large metropolitan area, so I imagine service will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood. Some people are getting slow data speeds on Sprint, but I know someone with a 4S who is not. I don't plan on heavy data use, though, so it might not be a big concern for me anyway. I'm leaning toward Sprint because it would be cheaper. Well, iPhone vs Android is a personal preference, I would recommend researching the nexus prime on Verizon, HTC evo 3D and Samsung epic touch on sprint. network wise sprint is cheaper, although its closer if you use google voice for free texting on Verizon. Personally I think Verizon s current data caps are just awfully priced, which for me is a deal breaker, and doubley so if you are getting a non 4g phone like the iPhone., sprint speeds are slower right now, but Verizon 3g isn't that much faster. If you want an iPhone go sprint (and if the coverage is good Att should be considered as well). If you want Android the nexus prime on Verizon is still a drat good option.
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Oct 24, 2011 01:23
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that Vai sound posted:Live around: Seattle Sprint vs. Verizon: Sprint's cheaper and has unlimited data. Check out EPRP in the Sprint thread's OP if you don't have an employer discount to apply regularly. Sprint's 3G speeds are slower than everyone else's though. Verizon has generally good service, but it's pricey. If you've already settled on the iPhone, just go for it. LTE on Verizon is pretty nice, but you will go through 2 GB in the blink of an eye and LTE battery life sucks. Smutton posted:My iPhone 4 was stolen last week and I'm considering a few options right now. I'm thinking of maybe biting the bullet and upgrading to 4S; or maybe getting a Nexus S for cheap; The Nexus S is comparable to an iPhone 4. As for the hardware differences, it's similar to the iPhone in terms of memory: 16 GB or bust. The S-AMOLED screen is nice for colors but is PenTile which makes text appear fuzzy. Only some people see it, so if you want to check out Android and the Nexus S, look at it in person. With Android, you have Google Maps with free turn-by-turn nav and full Gmail. You can customize the hell out of Android too. One of the main complaints about Android, the UI will be fixed with the next version of Android. (The Nexus S will get it ASAP because it's a "pure Google" phone.) Android's still a second-rate platform for apps, especially games. I'd stay with the iPhone, especially if you're already entrenched into the Apple ecosystem with iTunes and a Mac. Otherwise, explore for yourself.
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Oct 24, 2011 01:48
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I've been living in Africa for the past 2 years and plan on moving back to the London very soon (approx 1 month). Right now I'm using a Blackberry and I loving hate it. It's now literally falling apart on me (Curve 8520 all the rubber bits on the outside are peeling). I don't really have any reason to have a Blackberry anymore. I don't really know how many minutes I'll be using, but will likely be going through quite a bit of texts. I have also come to hate contracts. Am I better off buying a phone outright and going with a sim only package or should I take advantage of phone 'deals'. I'm a Mac user, so I guess the 4S is a given, but I really like HTC phones (and Android as a whole) as well. Can I even buy an iPhone 4S without a contract right now? I'm thinking about picking up a Galaxy II S. How do they compare with the iPhone 4S? Any other phone recommendations in this range? Coverage in the UK is pretty solid on all carriers, right? Who has the most reliable / fastest internet network? Best deals on plans? • Country/Provider: UK • Current contract status: None • Budget (phone/plan): • Features I know I want: Internet. Good camera. Fast phone. angor fucked around with this message at 16:04 on Oct 24, 2011 |
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Oct 24, 2011 15:51
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My wife has had a Sony-Ericsson W760 for over two years, and it's falling apart, with random "Insert SIM" errors and restarts, and the battery is down to about a day between recharges. All she really wants is a phone with a good camera so she can take pictures of, I dunno, flowers and dogs I guess. It would be great if it was easy to use (most dumbphones I've used have poo poo interfaces, has that changed?) and had really good battery life - something that can go days (or weeks, is that possible?) without recharging. We're on a family plan, and I just re-upped my contract to get an iPhone last July. I don't know if that means we're *both* under a new contract, or if it's just my line. We have 450 min shared, and 200 texts+unlimited data on my line for about $110/mo, and don't really want to spend more than that, but if we can switch providers, and upgrade me to a 4S, and get her something decent for about the same price, I'm open to that.
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Oct 24, 2011 18:43
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Country/Provider: US Current contract status: too expensive. i'm able to walk away. Budget (phone/plan): as low as possible Features I know I want: 1000 voice minutes, 400 texts, don't care about data Any ideas? Also most people I know are on AT&T
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Oct 24, 2011 19:17
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Godzilla07 posted:The Nexus S is comparable to an iPhone 4. As for the hardware differences, it's similar to the iPhone in terms of memory: 16 GB or bust. The S-AMOLED screen is nice for colors but is PenTile which makes text appear fuzzy. Only some people see it, so if you want to check out Android and the Nexus S, look at it in person. Hmm, yeah I looked at my friend's Nexus S and the Kindle app was a lot harder on the eyes than the Retina screen. And yes, I have purchased a lot of apps and some music, so I'd be giving that up. I'm still on the fence though.. I think I might just wait a little bit and see what happens to the prices for iPhone 4 and Nexus S (once 4S has had more time to penetrate and once Galaxy is on the market). Thanks for your input!
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Oct 25, 2011 01:12
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dur posted:
Sprint is doing heavy buybacks with the iPhone 4, I think its $200 for the 16GB. You could get way more on Ebay, point is you can switch and sell your iPhone to pay your $300 ish termination fee. You can get sprint eprp or a regular plan with a discount, bout $130 a month for 2 smart phones, unlimited call to mobile phones, unlimited text ABC unlimited internet. The iPhone 4 S is slowly getting back in stock sprint wise, so you should be able to find it. For your wife: the 4s at $199, 4 at $99, nexus S at $99 evo 3D at $199 or epic touch at $199. Some stores can cut Android prices, iPhone prices are set in stone.
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Oct 25, 2011 14:30
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Hello! I am looking to replace my beloved but slowly dying Nexus One in the next month or so and I have like a million questions about confusing network ... compatibility and antennas and world phones and other random poo poo, I hope you heroically patient people who hang out in this thread will be able to help me because so far I've been mostly unable to help myself. I am based in and up until now have always lived in the US, but starting soon I will probably be taking some extended trips to Canada for weeks and maybe even months at a time (BC - Vancouver & Kelowna if that matters). There's also an outside chance that I may end up in London at some point in 2012 or 2013. My main question is how possible is it to future-proof my phone choice here? I guess it's not really of utmost importance since I plan to buy a phone off contract for flexibility, but still. I learned from my Nexus One that here in the US the 3G bands for T-Mobile and AT&T aren't compatible, so if your phone only has the antenna for one you won't get 3G speeds on the other. Right? I think I also remember reading that GSM carriers in Canada use mostly the AT&T bands but European ones use mostly the T-Mobile ones? Is that right? Right now I’m leaning towards getting a phone that gets 3G on AT&T since I know I’ll be here and I know I’ll be in Canada. I'm pretty undecided on iPhone/Android right now - I like my phone but some of the ICS screenshots are pretty offensive to mine eyes, and I think I'm more comfortable with the iPhone/N1 form factor compared to giant Galaxy slabs, but maybe I could get used to it. A coworker who's trying to evangelize me over to the iPhone is telling me how the 4S is a quad-band world phone and I'd be able to use it pretty much everywhere. Does this mean it has antennas for both GSM 3G bands? Or just the AT&T/Canada one, in addition to the CDMA one? She says if I get it on, say, Sprint here in the states, Sprint would "unlock" it or something (I have no idea how CDMA phones work) for me and let me put a SIM card in there when I go abroad, but which 3G band? Would I get Rogers (that's the "AT&T band" carrier in Canada, I think, right?) 3G this way? What about in the UK? If I buy an unlocked off-contract phone with a CDMA radio, iPhone or otherwise, can I ever put it on a CDMA network? Or do I have to get it from the carrier? Is the CDMA carrier (Telus I think) in Canada compatible with the frequencies here in the states or is that just not how it works? Whatever "quad band world" poo poo the 4S has going on, are there comparable flagship Android phones planned soon that have that same crap? Sorry if these questions are annoying and/or 101-level poo poo but I've had a real hard time sorting it all out. Any clarification would be appreciated. One last thing not related to networks and such: I am a frequent (though not particularly heavy in terms of data) user of the ability on T-Mo to turn my N1 into a wifi hotspot for free tethering, it’s a godsend in airports and long road trips. Does AT&T leave this enabled on their Android phones, or do you have to pay a bunch for it? What if I flash a vanilla rom onto there or something? What’s the current situation on how mad they get if you jailbreak an iPhone and do it? Oh god I know that was a ton of stupid poo poo. Thanks so much in advance. Sorry to words out in here. Taco fucked around with this message at 19:28 on Oct 25, 2011 |
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Oct 25, 2011 19:26
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The 4S only has AT&T/Canada 3G support, no T-Mobile 3G/HSPA+. Not sure if Verizon or Sprint will activate one that you don't purchase from them, that's a good question. I'm sure someone else here can field it. My gut tells me no. What's wrong with your N1? It's still one of the best Android phones out there, in my eyes. Durable, understated, and nearly-limitless support from the community. It'll surely run ICS.
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Oct 25, 2011 21:12
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kalibar posted:What's wrong with your N1? It's still one of the best Android phones out there, in my eyes. Durable, understated, and nearly-limitless support from the community. It'll surely run ICS. Mainly that I couldn't get 3G in Canada which is about to become important to me. Also it's just kind of old and beat up - I haven't treated it too nice. Battery's going a bit, it acts funny now and then. I could buy a new battery and reformat it or w/e and see if that helped but instead I'm just looking for a new phone cause of the first thing. Also, unless ICS feels and works a lot better than it looks, I don't know if getting it on my phone would be a positive :p
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Oct 25, 2011 22:00
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kalibar posted:The 4S only has AT&T/Canada 3G support, no T-Mobile 3G/HSPA+. Not sure if Verizon or Sprint will activate one that you don't purchase from them, that's a good question. I'm sure someone else here can field it. My gut tells me no. Verizon/Sprint is a no go unless it is an official one for either respective carrier. Theoretically you can activate the CDMA part on other CDMA carriers like Cricket, Metro PCS, etc and probably CDMA carriers in China as well. What is a bit looser on that is the programming involved to get it to work on any of them, which is probably way more of a hassle than its worth for a $600 phone (last I flashed phones anyway). Pop Trivia: C-Spire (formerly Southern Cellular) is the first small carrier in the US to carry the iPhone (because they use the same bands as Verizon/Sprint), so they would potentially take it if you happen to visit Alabama or Mississippi. I would not wish visiting those places on anyone though. And again: flashing is slightly risky.
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Oct 25, 2011 23:11
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Duckman2008 posted:Sprint is doing heavy buybacks with the iPhone 4, I think its $200 for the 16GB. You could get way more on Ebay, point is you can switch and sell your iPhone to pay your $300 ish termination fee. You can get sprint eprp or a regular plan with a discount, bout $130 a month for 2 smart phones, unlimited call to mobile phones, unlimited text ABC unlimited internet. The iPhone 4 S is slowly getting back in stock sprint wise, so you should be able to find it.
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Oct 26, 2011 01:45
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dur posted:I appreciate the info on Sprint, but I guess I should have phrased the question more as "what's the best dumb phone that as close to free as possible?" My wife reallly doesn't want or need a smartphone. I mean, she doesn't even text more than a few times a month. Sprint is the cheapest if everyone uses smartphones. It isn't "expensive" if you are using a feature phone, but if you have 1 smartphone 1 feature phone then AT&T and VZ do compete pretty closely. Just a general fyi. No "omg bad" choice, but price wise they are closer. Since you are in contract with AT&T, the only way for you to get a 4S is to switch though. So compare plans and all that, Sprint still matches what you need. For her on Sprint, the Sanyo Vero or LG Rumor Touch are the best dumbphones, personally I'd recommend the Samsung Replenish. Its a smartphone, but no extra fees and then she gets easy texting and navigation to boot. You can find the phone for $50 with $50 back or probably even free out the door.
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Oct 26, 2011 02:55
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Taco posted:I am looking to replace my beloved but slowly dying Nexus One in the next month or so Taco posted:I learned from my Nexus One that here in the US the 3G bands for T-Mobile and AT&T aren't compatible, so if your phone only has the antenna for one you won't get 3G speeds on the other. Right? The "AT&T/Canadian" Nexus S also supports three bands, two North American (850, 1900) and one European (2100). Its 3G works on AT&T, Bell/Rogers/Telus in Canada, and most nearly everywhere in Europe. It's true that the "T-Mobile" variant has better European support due to the inclusion of 900 band support, but I think 2100 is available nearly everywhere in Europe so it'll still work. Now, the Galaxy Nexus is rumored to be a pentaband UMTS phone. That is, it supports all five UMTS bands that the "T-Mobile" and "AT&T" Nexus S phones do if they were combined into one. Folks have been waiting for an Android phone with this capability for a long time, and if these specs turn out to be true, there really isn't another device to consider. Taco posted:I think I also remember reading that GSM carriers in Canada use mostly the AT&T bands but European ones use mostly the T-Mobile ones? Furthermore, there's only four bands in the world where GSM service is traditionally deployed, and pretty much every GSM-compatible Android phones supports all of them. That's why any GSM-compatible Android phone works for voice and slow data on any GSM carrier, but might not support their that carrier's 3G service. Anyways, back to your question, Bell/Rogers/Telus use the 850 & 1900 bands for UMTS service, as does AT&T in the US. T-Mobile uses the 1700 (AWS) band, as does a number of smaller Canadian providers like WIND, Mobilicity, Vidéotron. European UMTS service is mostly deployed in the 2100 band, which is totally separate from any of the ones used in North America. Some European providers also deploy 3G in the 900 band, which has better building penetration. Folks who claim that T-Mobile and European providers use the same band for 3G service are mistaken. The mistake comes from the fact that the 1700/AWS band uses ~2100 MHz for downlink (and ~1700 MHz for uplink). So there's confusion over what "2100" means when listed as a supported UMTS band on a device, but it always refers to European support. To be honest, I think referring to the bands numerically is outright confusing, but that's the convention. Here's a list of the UMTS service bands, their numeric names, the actual frequencies they use, and the providers that support them. Perhaps that's helpful. Taco posted:A coworker who's trying to evangelize me over to the iPhone is telling me how the 4S is a quad-band world phone and I'd be able to use it pretty much everywhere. Does this mean it has antennas for both GSM 3G bands? Anyways, the iPhone 4S is quad-band UMTS: 800, 900, 1900, 2100. So it supports AT&T in the US, Bell/Rogers/Telus in Canada, and both European 900 & 2100 service bands. It's comparable to any "AT&T-compatible" Android device in terms of the number of providers it supports, but will be able to get better 3G service on the 900 band in Europe when you step inside a concrete bunker (if that provider supports 900 band UMTS service). The iPhone 4S does not support the 1700 (AWS) band, so it will not be able to use 3G service on T-Mobile, and won't be able to get any service on some of the smaller Canadian providers that only run AWS UMTS networks (e.g., WIND). Also, are they going to sell unlocked iPhone 4Ses in the US? Traditionally they've been locked to AT&T, but all past devices have been released while the AT&T exclusivity agreement was still in place. I'm not certain what's going on now. Taco posted:She says if I get it on, say, Sprint here in the states, Sprint would "unlock" it or something (I have no idea how CDMA phones work) for me and let me put a SIM card in there when I go abroad, but which 3G band? CDMA service/phones don't use SIM cards, unless they also support LTE or GSM/UMTS (i.e., CDMA world phones, the "world" implies GSM/UMTS support as well), and then they only use a SIM card for LTE/GSM/UMTS service. Second, the top-two CDMA carriers in the US, Verizon and Sprint, will only let you activate "branded" phones on their network. This means the phone must actually have a Verizon or Sprint logo on the front of it to work. Now, the iPhone doesn't have said logo, but they're still effectively branded and you can't take a Verizon iPhone over to Sprint. Now, as for Sprint, traditionally their world phones come already-unlocked for European service. That is, you can take a Sprint world phone to Europe, pop in a European SIM, and it just works. The same phones are, however, locked from North American GSM/UMTS service, so you have to use them on Sprint or a Sprint roaming provider in Canada--can't just pop in an AT&T SIM. I can't say exactly which bands they support, but it's irrelevant since you can't use North American GSM/UMTS service anyways. The Sprint iPhone is even worse. Sprint claimed, at first, that the iPhone would be locked for all GSM/UMTS service, even in Europe. So you'd have to use a Sprint roaming provider and pay absurd roaming rates. I don't know if they've changed their minds on this subsequently, but it's definitely something to check. Also, if you sign up for Sprint service you're obligated to sign a two-year contract even if you purchase a phone at retail price (you're just eligible for a subsidized upgrade right away). So Sprint isn't a good provider if you're planning to move to Canada or elsewhere soon. If, for some reason Sprint was your only option, you could probably do a transfer of liability with an existing Sprint service holder who is looking to move to a different provider to avoid getting into a contract, but that's a pain in the rear end. I don't know about Verzion's situation with regard to locked/unlocked world phone capability in their 4S, but it wouldn't surprise me if they were as restrictive as Sprint is on that front. Taco posted:If I buy an unlocked off-contract phone with a CDMA radio, iPhone or otherwise, can I ever put it on a CDMA network? There are other smaller CDMA carriers in the US, like US Cellular, MetroPCS, Cricket, all three of whom I think will activate any CDMA phone. Generally their service is inferior to the nationwide providers though, and actually getting a CDMA phone to work on an off-brand carrier requires "flashing" it, a pain-in-the-rear end process that doesn't always work right. I'd avoid this route. Taco posted:Is the CDMA carrier (Telus I think) in Canada compatible with the frequencies here in the states or is that just not how it works? Taco posted:Does AT&T leave this enabled on their Android phones, or do you have to pay a bunch for it? Verizon and AT&T have been cracking down on unauthorized tethering. T-Mobile started to at one point (putting up a paywall if they see you tether) but they may not right now? Sprint is the only provider that hasn't actively tried to prevent unauthorized tethering, but they easily can and may very well do so in the future. Of these, AT&T is the worst. They've been cracking down on folks tethering with grandfathered unlimited data plans, sending folks a warning letter and then slapping an absurd ($45?/mo) tethering rate to bills. Anyways, this has nothing to do with the phone, whether tethering is a built-in feature or requires jailbreaking or whatever. The providers can, and do detect tethering regardless of how you do it. The only way to surreptitiously tether without a carrier finding out is to encrypt everything. If, for example, you had a VPN box and could run a VPN client on your phone, you might be able to get away with it for free, but only if your settings are configured exactly right and there's plenty of room for mistake. Now, that said, many folks are using various workaround to still unauthorize tether on carriers who are actively blocking it. In general, these workarounds are hacks against what-folks-believe-to-be the current method of detecting tethered connections. But this could, and likely will turn into a cat and mouse game of folks tethering with new-workaround-of-the-week and carriers catching up with them that's really not worth playing. ExcessBLarg! fucked around with this message at 17:43 on Oct 26, 2011 |
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Oct 26, 2011 17:36
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ExcessBLarg! posted:Evangelize, dear lord, why do people do that? I don't give a poo poo whether you get an iPhone or Android, there's pros and cons to both. Get the one that's right for you, which might not be the one that's right for her or me. ExcessBLarg! posted:Here's the deal: do not expect to get free tethering on any of the four nationwide US carriers, either now or in the near future. Man, that's a bummer. I never had any problem at all doing it with my N1/T-Mobile. I'm not some kind of crazy person trying to use their 3G as primary internet, it's just nice to be able to do things I'd be doing on the phone anyway but on a larger screen when I'm stuck in an airport with unfree wifi. Stupid dickhead carriers. I guess what I've gleaned from your (informative & much appreciated) post is that, network-wise, the main advantage of the Galaxy Nexus is that I'd be able to stay on T-Mobile in the US and milk the liberal tethering as long as I possibly can. If I got an iPhone I'd probably have to switch to AT&T. But they'd fare equally well in Canada and Europe? So I guess now I just have to sit under a tree and meditate on how much nerd poo poo I'd be willing to give up for iOS and whether or not I could ever get used to a gigantor Samsung phone (side note, that link you linked describes the Galaxy Nexus as having "average dimensions" ... for heaven's sake what's above average then?). Or wait for a more modestly proportioned ICS device, I guess. Thanks very much for your help.
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Oct 26, 2011 20:04
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Taco posted:I guess what I've gleaned from your (informative & much appreciated) post is that, network-wise, the main advantage of the Galaxy Nexus is that I'd be able to stay on T-Mobile in the US and milk the liberal tethering as long as I possibly can. Taco posted:If I got an iPhone I'd probably have to switch to AT&T. But they'd fare equally well in Canada and Europe? Taco posted:that link you linked describes the Galaxy Nexus as having "average dimensions" ... for heaven's sake what's above average then?). Taco posted:Or wait for a more modestly proportioned ICS device, I guess. Another option is a used Nexus S which is a much smaller form factor and should get an ICS update fairly quickly. But it's older hardware and you still have the T-Mo vs Canada network compatibility problem.
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Oct 26, 2011 20:34
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