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Ok, went and sorted out with a 10 gig plan, with a work discount coming in at about 106$ (plus bunches of taxes and fees, of course), so that is nice. Tried Samsung, Nexus 6, and MotoX, and all three of them had shameful shutter lag and slow focus that even in reasonably brightly lit indoor settings resulted in blurry children. Played with the iphone 6+ and generated a whole lot more usable pictures in the same number of attempts. Not a comprehensive test, and I don't use my phone camera all that much, mostly because it sucks. But maybe I would use it more if it were better. Didn't see a sony in the store, is that worth another trip to look at, or does nobody make a competitive android camera/software setup? Was I fooled by gimmickry and the iphone 6+ camera isn't as good as it seems? I've never used ios anything, and have 4 years of knowing roughly where things are on a droid phone, anybody have an iphone on a largely PC and android house network with some experiences to share? Is there anything really annoying and dumb about switching to a new iphone from an android that I didn't spot in 10 minutes of trying to ignore the sales guy while I poked at things?
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Jan 7, 2015 02:32
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LastInLine posted:LOL, I've never heard of this. Are you serious? I can answer this. Basically AT&T had a big focus on wifi spots like comcast now does (back in the day when the network was getting crushed by the iPhone 3G). So all AT&T phones are programmed to connect "for free" to all those spots nationwide. The problem is most of those spots are literally 1MB downloads and just awful. Honestly, no idea if they are pushing them, maintaining them or eventually ditching them, but you should be able to go to wifi and select it to not auto join.
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Jan 7, 2015 02:46
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Slo-Tek posted:Ok, went and sorted out with a 10 gig plan, with a work discount coming in at about 106$ (plus bunches of taxes and fees, of course), so that is nice. Yeah, Android hardware is a bag of compromises. The Nexus 6 and 2014 X have great software, but their cameras are the worst out of the current crop of flagship phones. On the other hand, the LG G3 and Galaxy Note 4 have cameras in the same ballpark as the iPhone's, but they're gigantic and LG and Samsung have bad reputations when it comes to software. The Xperia Z3 is a reasonable compromise, with a camera that's a step below the top tier of smartphone cameras and a good, but not great software experience. But for you the Z3 is only available unlocked. For more words, Apple and Nokia historically have made the best phone cameras. But Windows Phone has always lagged, and right now people aren't sure if Microsoft cares at all about Windows Phone (e.g. the Windows Phone version of Office is actually behind the iOS and Android versions right now.) The 6 Plus is a really good phone if you're fine with iOS. As far as going from Android to iOS, you don't have to touch iTunes at all with iOS now, except if you want to sync local music from your computer. I switched from Android to iOS last year, and with iOS 8, the pain points have been mostly removed (inter-app communication, widgets, interactive notifications.) It's fine to switch if you're not a stickler about iOS' openness.
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Jan 7, 2015 06:09
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Duckman2008 posted:I can answer this. Basically AT&T had a big focus on wifi spots like comcast now does (back in the day when the network was getting crushed by the iPhone 3G). So all AT&T phones are programmed to connect "for free" to all those spots nationwide. The problem is most of those spots are literally 1MB downloads and just awful. Honestly, no idea if they are pushing them, maintaining them or eventually ditching them, but you should be able to go to wifi and select it to not auto join. Why would anyone put up with this for even a second?
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Jan 7, 2015 07:11
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LastInLine posted:But if you make it so your wifi won't auto join then you'd have to leave open wifi notifications on and manually connect every time you want to use wifi instead of just turning it on and leaving it on and it working flawlessly in the background. Sorry, not auto join to that specific wifi. My iPhone joins on all wifi networks but ATT's. It is regarded either way.
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Jan 7, 2015 15:19
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Duckman2008 posted:Sorry, not auto join to that specific wifi. My iPhone joins on all wifi networks but ATT's. 
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Jan 7, 2015 15:30
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Just saw that AT&T announced a data rollover plan, following T-Mobile. After looking at my historical usage (1-2 Gb/mo.), I'm starting to think that it doesn't make a lot of sense to hold on to my grandfathered unlimited plan. Is there any particular reason that I should?
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Jan 7, 2015 19:07
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If you're not using anything close to unlimited and it would be cheaper to get a new plan (probably!), then not really.
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Jan 7, 2015 20:23
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Kobayashi posted:Just saw that AT&T announced a data rollover plan, following T-Mobile. After looking at my historical usage (1-2 Gb/mo.), I'm starting to think that it doesn't make a lot of sense to hold on to my grandfathered unlimited plan. Is there any particular reason that I should? Your plan is probably $40 for voice, $20 for texting (unless you have an old texting plan), $30 for data, so $90 a month. If you needed a new iPhone 6 it is $200 (for this example). New plan I would recommend is $65 for call, text and 3GB. The only downside is you basically buy phones outright, so that iphone 6 is $27 a month over 24 months. However, in this comparison the new plan is still the better pricing for you, and when you aren't buying a phone you just keep the lowered rate (or just buy cheap unlocked phones).
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Jan 7, 2015 22:13
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Duckman2008 posted:New plan I would recommend is $65 for call, text and 3GB. The only downside is you basically buy phones outright, so that iphone 6 is $27 a month over 24 months. However, in this comparison the new plan is still the better pricing for you, and when you aren't buying a phone you just keep the lowered rate (or just buy cheap unlocked phones). I just got the iPhone 6 with upgrade pricing. I posted earlier that I was thinking of changing to add a line and potentially tethering. Is this monthly phone payment thing the way it is now? I like paying $200-ish every two years for a new iPhone, and would rather continue to pay upfront than spread across multiple payments. It's not the end of the world if that's the only way, though.
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Jan 7, 2015 22:32
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Kobayashi posted:I just got the iPhone 6 with upgrade pricing. I posted earlier that I was thinking of changing to add a line and potentially tethering. Is this monthly phone payment thing the way it is now? I like paying $200-ish every two years for a new iPhone, and would rather continue to pay upfront than spread across multiple payments. It's not the end of the world if that's the only way, though. The $65 a month is no contract. So if you are in contract, it goes to $80 a month until the contract is over, and then goes back to $65. Basically, you'll pay outright for the phone one way or the other, it's just still overall cheaper.
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Jan 7, 2015 22:40
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Country/Provider: USA/Verizon Current contract status: 4 months to go with a basic flip-phone Budget (phone/plan): I would prefer sub $60/month, and maybe $200-300 for a phone Features I know I want: I need a smartphone. I probably won't be doing much media watching on it, maybe the occasional youtube video, but I will be doing quite a bit of reading. I'm not sure if this is possible, but something that can store PDFs and access them from the phone would be great. I was thinking that since I'd be doing quite a bit of reading on it something with a screen somewhat bigger than an iPhone would be goodA phone that has a lifeproof case, or similar, would be awesome as well. As far as the plan goes, not having had a smartphone before I don't know how much data I will be using, but it will likely be 2-3 hours a day browsing internet/reading PDFs/checking&sending emails. Where I spend 70% of my time has good TMobile coverage, and the other 30% of my time Tmobile has 2g coverage. I don't particularly have any loyalty to Verizon, and whichever carrier would be cheaper is fine with me. I am a current graduate student, so I'm not sure if that can help with getting a discount at any carriers. I've had the same plan for about 10 years and a flip phone for that entire time so the number of phones/carriers/plans is a bit daunting.
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Jan 8, 2015 04:27
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How's AT&T coverage in your area? You'd probably be best served by getting a 2013 Moto X (they're $200-300 brand new on eBay - search for XT1053) and getting either a prepaid T-Mobile or Cricket (AT&T-owned prepaid carrier) plan. You'll be well within your budget on both phone and monthly costs. Cricket will have better coverage than T-Mobile, but slower speeds since they cap at 8 Mbps, though that is still more than adequate for anything you might be doing on a phone.
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Jan 8, 2015 15:14
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What I'm looking for Provider: Looking at AT&T and/or Cricket (or some other MNVO), something GSM Plan: Prepaid / No Contract. Prefer unlimited talk/text and I use 2-3GB data, but I can do X minutes if it gives a better deal (~1000+) Cost: Cheaper is better, but $$ isn't a concern if it's worth the cost. Phone: Unlocked, No Phablets (Usable with 1 hand), Pure Android (no bloatware) OS: Android I'm ditching Verizon, plan on moving in ~6 months, and have no idea where I'll end up (maybe even overseas!) so wanting a GSM phone / carrier. Eyeballing AT&T since I find myself on the road a lot and T-Mobile is garbage outside of cities; plus the uncertainty of where I'll end up AT&T seems like a safer bet to not have to gently caress around with carriers and potentially poor reception. Currently have a Galaxy S3. Biggest thing is I want is a phone that's unlocked, has good battery life and none of the bloatware companies like to fill it with. Also a phone I can use in one hand, so no monster sized phablets (i.e. Nexus 6). I don't really know much about the best offerings out there to meet what I want, I looked at this article briefly and didn't even realize before that that there were more phones running stock android than just the Nexus. I was eyeballing the Nexus 5 because it was the obvious choice but I'm also a little hesitant since it's running on over a year old now and I dislike the small storage capacity (and relatively flimsy phone, from what I've gathered)? I also think I'll like the OnePlus One (looking on Swappa, which I've seen recommended here); which is hesitantly my current pick. It seems to be about the top end my size requirements though. I've heard the Moto X is good, but haven't really looked into it; I think it's a phablet? Any other phone (and carrier) recommendations?
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Jan 8, 2015 18:54
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The 2013 Moto X was easily the smallest flagship Android phone that year and the 2014 is still quite a bit smaller than a Oneplus One, so I'm not sure where you got the idea that they're phablets. Don't buy a Oneplus One, especially if you don't want a phablet, considering it's about the same size as a Galaxy Note 4. You can go here to see phone sizes, complete with a calibration tool to use against your current phone. Most of the phones in that article are very low-end phones (at least one is an Android One phone, which is about as cheap as you can get), which I wouldn't recommend unless money is super tight. If a 2014 Moto X is in your budget ($500?), that's a very good option, if not, the 2013 is under $300 brand new. The Nexus 5 is still a good phone, though there's not really good reason to get it over a 2014 Moto X at this point if you can afford it.
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Jan 8, 2015 19:51
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I've got a friend that has a OnePlus One invite - is that worth it over a 2013 Moto X and would it work on cricket?
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Jan 9, 2015 01:50
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Endless Mike posted:Don't buy a Oneplus One
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Jan 9, 2015 03:08
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Can you elaborate on why?
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Jan 9, 2015 06:54
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Mr. Crow posted:Can you elaborate on why? Everything that doesn't show up on the spec sheet is a red flag.
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Jan 9, 2015 07:48
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Country/Provider: USA/ Straight Talk Current contract status: N/A Budget (phone/plan): Preferably Sub $100, 60/mo plan Features I know I want: Reception! I live in Blacksburg Virginia and basically Verizon is the only company that remotely gets service here, though the fact I'm using an old iPhone 4S doesn't help. I'm sick of having to hang around a window to make calls and my monthly rollover so I figure I'll upgrade. I'm not really too attached to apple because iOS has kinda been less than impressive lately and also their phones are a little over my budget at this point. I like my Galaxy Tab so I was thinking of getting the S5 since Amazon has it for $80 (It was $50 like a week ago too...) Edit: I also travel to Canada relatively frequently, so bonus points if a phone is easy enough to root that I can hotswap to a prepaid SIM with no fuss. Solis fucked around with this message at 00:02 on Jan 10, 2015 |
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Jan 9, 2015 23:58
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Solis posted:Country/Provider: USA/ Straight Talk Get a Verizon single-line plan and buy a 2014 Moto X. If camera isn't a priority, the X is the best phone you can buy. It has the best software on Android, with useful additions to stock Android and updates only slightly behind Google's for their Nexus devices, and Verizon's grubby hands don't really touch the Moto X like they do with other phones. Its cell reception is notably better than other phones to boot. All Verizon phones with a SIM slot are SIM unlocked, so you'll have no problems using your phone in Canada.
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Jan 10, 2015 03:57
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Hey so my US Verizon two-year contract is expiring in about a month and I'm eligible for an upgrade that is desperately needed. My iPhone 4 (not 4S... 4) is so outdated it crashes while trying to read an article on safari while doing nothing else. I'm willing to pay $200 for a new phone. My priorities are nice camera, RAM / Not Crashing / Responsiveness, and sorta well rounded usability? I don't want it to be completely obsolete before my next 2 years are up. I use my phone for pretty much everything so it's hard to prioritize. I like the form and software of the HTC One M8 and Moto X 2014 but having a good camera is important to me and the former is nearly a year old so I wonder if it's going to get replaced soon by a newer model soon. I've compared basically every phone on the market right now to hell and back and my concerns are that going from a 3.5 inch screen to any of these newer massive phones is going to make them hard to use. Even the 4.7 on the iPhone 6. The pockets on my old navy "Diva" jeans aren't particularly deep but I'd like to be able to fit my phone in them. (I have to turn my current phone sideways or it sticks out). But I'm also getting tired of watching android users in feature envy. I want to able to modify and customize my phone and not be so locked down. I'm a coder for god's sake let me into the back end! I like that android apps aren't one-at-a-time only and you can do things like chat heads and skinning and arranging your home screen how you like it. Does anyone know if those 5.2 inchers are not as scary as they seem? Do they still fit in women's jeans fine enough or do you need massive baggy kakhis to fit them in your pockets. Also is February even a good time to get a new android phone? Are new ones going to be announced soon? I know MWC is in March so should I try my best to deal with my dying phone another month and see if I can get an HTC One M9 with the snapdragon 810? Or should I just get an iPhone 6 now and be patient that eventually iOS 9 will come out and bring more of the features that android has. Thoughts?
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Jan 10, 2015 19:31
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Country/Provider: USA, AT&T Current contract status: None? Eligible for a fresh contract or their Next plan.. Budget (phone/plan): $500/phone? Features I know I want: I want a new phone and prefer to buy something unlocked. Android, nothing giant. I was really waiting for the replacement for the Nexus 5 but it turns out the Nexus 6 is a hilariously large phone/tablet thing :/ An SD card slot would be nice. Something rootable that runs Cyanogenmod 12. I was looking at the Sony xperia z3 and z3 compact. The One Plus One looked neat as well but everyone here seems to think it is a hit or miss piece of hardware. Is the Sony a bad thing?
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Jan 11, 2015 00:13
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Associate Christ
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QueerPope posted:Hey so my US Verizon two-year contract is expiring in about a month and I'm eligible for an upgrade that is desperately needed. My iPhone 4 (not 4S... 4) is so outdated it crashes while trying to read an article on safari while doing nothing else. Best android phone right now is the Moto X 2nd Gen. Personally, you don't need to worry about rooting and modding anymore. You can customize it however you want otherwise. I don't think it's that that big, but you won't find a good smaller phone anyway. Now is still fine to buy for Motorola, if you want Samsung or HTC you would want to wait. Kaluza-Klein posted:Country/Provider: USA, AT&T Also look at the Moto X?
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Jan 11, 2015 02:35
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Kaluza-Klein posted:Is the Sony a bad thing? You don't want to run CM when good phones exist out of the box anyway.
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Jan 11, 2015 08:25
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I've decided to go onto Cricket, as T-mobile coverage is decent, but AT&T coverage is solid for everywhere I'm going to be. It looks like there aren't any Cricket sellers in my area (their websites show some RadioShack stores, but I don't think RadioShack still actually does Cricket based on what I've read). Does doing the entirely online activation work fine? Any special considerations if coming from Verizon that still has a few months on contract? Will the number pull work fine? I still need to get a phone that will work on AT&T/Cricket network, but was a bit concerned about not having a store around I could chat with someone at.
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Jan 11, 2015 20:32
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There won't be any problem with the number port, but be sure to have the phone and SIM in-hand before doing it since if they're like T-Mobile, they initiate it as soon as you tell them to. What is your current phone on Verizon? It might actually work on Cricket.
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Jan 11, 2015 21:15
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In order to get a SIM card they need the information about my phone - will they start the transfer as soon as the sim card is ordered?
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Jan 11, 2015 23:51
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Massasoit posted:In order to get a SIM card they need the information about my phone - will they start the transfer as soon as the sim card is ordered? Most likely no. They will wait until you have the SIM in hand and either call them or go to a brick and mortar store with it, at which point they'll initiate the transfer.
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Jan 12, 2015 01:56
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I'm in Canada. My HTC One I bought in 2013 is loving poo poo now. The battery just dies within 3 hours, even though I've got it on Power Saver mode and I'm only using it to text, check Snapchat once in a while, and hop on Facebook from time to time. I really liked the phone tho, before the battery went to poo poo. What is the latest good go-to Android phone?
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Jan 12, 2015 04:00
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I'd say a 2014 Moto X, but I understand distribution of those might not be great in Canada. Barring that, I guess there's the Galaxy Note 4 or S5, though the S6 is due around March along with potentially the next HTC One. There's also the above-mentioned Xperia Z3 or Z3c. Or just a Nexus 5.
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Jan 12, 2015 04:07
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Hey guys, I got my first smartphone 3 years ago (a Galaxy Nexus), and it's borderline unusable at this point, so I'm looking to get a new one.
-Size. A little bigger is okay, but I don't want anything too gigantic. -Flexibility. If something isn't just right, there's probably a way to change it somehow. I've rooted it and changed firmware in the past. On the other hand, I've never used any extra features of custom firmware, and only used rooting to block ads and tether a couple times, so it's probably not a huge deal. I've disliked: -Battery. It can't last a full day even with constant WiFi. Without WiFi it can't last half a day. I need a phone with a much better battery. -Camera. It's awful. I don't have a point-and-shoot anymore, so I'd like a phone with a solid camera for the majority of time when I'm not carrying my DSLR. I surprisingly don't care much about : -Apps. I barely use any. I've actually never purchased an app. I just use the main suite of Google apps, a browser, and a random collection of about a dozen other smaller ones. -Durability. I pretty much never drop things, so I'm not concerned about breaking anything. -Apple. I've never owned an Apple product. At this point, I'm totally open to getting an iPhone if it turns out to be the best choice, but I don't have any loyalty to the company, use Windows in general, and refuse to download iTunes. I don't know much about current phones, so any recommendations are greatly appreciated!
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Jan 13, 2015 08:39
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2014 Moto X, Droid Turbo, iPhone 5S, or iPhone 6 (not the plus). All are available in the carrier store, go check them out and see which one you like more. Based on what you said, probably the 2014 Moto X will work best for you. Edit: hit this up if you like the X, it's affordable off contract so you can keep unlimited if you choose to: https://www.motorola.com/us/motomaker?pid=FLEXR2
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Jan 13, 2015 09:02
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I'm not sure if this is the best place to ask, but is it "stupid" to buy an Android phone if somebody already has an iPad Air and MacBook Pro (Retina) ? For some reason, I find the iPhone 6 to be a little too small and the iPhone 6 Plus to be a little too big. I recently tried a OnePlus One and it's pretty amazing, but I feel like I need to stick to Apple since I already have a couple of Apple products...
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Jan 13, 2015 22:04
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The OnePlus One has a 5.5" screen, just like the 6+. Unlike the 6+, the OnePlus One is a piece of garbage with perpetually broken software that's made by a lovely company. There's lots of people in this thread that use Apple and Android products together so it's fine if you want to mix it up but don't buy the OPO.
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Jan 13, 2015 22:13
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My two years is up so I'm due for a new phone later this month. Currently have an iPhone 5, looking to move away from Apple. I really like the idea of running vanilla Android without any carrier added bloat, so I was considering the Nexus 6. It's so loving big though, I think I'd prefer something closer to the iPhone 5 in size. So I was thinking the Nexus 5, but why would I wanna buy a 2 year old phone? So I'm not sure what to get, what else should I look at?
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Jan 15, 2015 01:31
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In-laws are looking to join the new century and ditch their old sprint flip phones for something "smart." They are less than enamored with sprint, so really AT&T and Verizon are the big providers in the area (N. VT). Since this is their first foray into smart phones and texting etc, I really don't see them being big utilizers. With that in mind I'm thinking it may be ok for them to go prepaid, but since I never went that route, I don't know a lot about what is out there. Clearly, they won't need flagship phones, but something solid (and not used) is going to be the big sticking point. We may even opt to bring them into our AT&T plan (currently 3/4s of that bill gets expensed to work), but I'm a bit hesitant to do that. Just seeking some initial input to help decide a strategy for them. Help me goons!
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Jan 15, 2015 02:13
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Country/Provider: USA/Verizon Current contract status: In a 2 year contract, way overdue for a new free phone Budget (phone/plan): N/A Features I know I want: Smartphone equivalent of a 'grocery getter' car. My phone guy can get me either a Galaxy S4 or an HTC One for free. I'm currently using a Galaxy S so that should tell you how long I tend to keep phones and how little I really care about having the newest/best phone. Is one of these either super great or super terrible, or should I just flip a coin?
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Jan 15, 2015 21:02
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Prolonged Shame posted:Country/Provider: USA/Verizon I'm pretty sure the Galaxy S5 has been free on contract for sales, probably don't get the S4. The HTC One from 2013 isn't great either. How about a Moto X 2013 or 2014 or HTC One M8 or LG G3? Also consider spending $50-100 on a new phone, it will usually get you something significantly better than what is "free."
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Jan 15, 2015 21:13
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Prolonged Shame posted:Features I know I want: Smartphone equivalent of a 'grocery getter' car. Screaming 2014 Moto X right here.
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Jan 15, 2015 22:32
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