Buying new phone...advice?

[johnnya24]

Actually that is not fully true. The Droid Razr now comes with a 1780 mAh battery which is amazing with the phone being only 7.1 mm - 11 mm (0.28 in) thick. Still 4G LTE eats at a battery, but at least with that size of a battery you can last a good part of the day.

Your prices in the Europe way surpass us. We pay $25 month for 2 GB of data on top of at least another $40 for the cheapest voice plan.

I've heard the new Quad core phones using 4G are horrific for battery usage, especially when the phone has been in regular use for a few months.

[Piney Boy]

I've heard the new Quad core phones using 4G are horrific for battery usage, especially when the phone has been in regular use for a few months.

I have not kept on the new Quad core phones since they are so new in development. Even my wife's tablet is dual-core Tegra from Nvidia. Phones are just like a car. You do not buy the first one. You wait to get the bugs out either software or hardware. If that is true then I am glad I do not have an upgrade till next year for the quad core phones.

[JudeBaldo]

No problem just remember there are 2 versions of the Galaxy S II. The regular runs on the HSPA+ bands which is basically 3.5G and the S II Skyrocket which is 4G LTE. With you living in Austin now and moving to Houston they are both 4G LTE markets so go with the Skyrocket. The screen on the S II is amazingly excellent. I use my phone now more than my home pc which I would think in time you will also.

In time everyone will. Hence iCloud and Windows 8. I use to lug my 15" MacBook Pro to the library every time I went but after getting my iPhone 4S, I've found there's no need.

[Kevin Seitzer]

No the big 2 have not gone that route YET. They are claiming getting pinched by more data usage so they are dropping the unlimited plans for new users. You can get grandfathered in to keep it. I have HSPA+ here in the Philly area with AT&T. 4G LTE is not available yet and probably will not reach me in the middle of the pine barrens of NJ. I have another year and 1 month left on this contract before I will upgrade.

If I was KS I would resign a 2 yr with AT&T to get the Skyrocket for $199 if he can do that. If not the S II will do him fine.

Oh KS - you can try some of the coupons online and get your Skyrocket cheaper. There is a $100 coupon out there that might work. I used one last year for the Inspire and got $50 off.

It's been eons since I got my current phone (in 2006), so I'm eligible to upgrade to the S II for $99 and the Skyrocket for $199, according to the AT&T site. I'll look into the coupons. I'm also planning to go to the AT&T store and look at some of these phones in person.

Thanks, guys! You have been a lot of help.

[cardboardbox]

this is a great android rom if you are looking to customize your phone http://en.miui.com/

[heyelander]

this is a great android rom if you are looking to customize your phone http://en.miui.com/

what's a rom?

[Piney Boy]

I have mine modded to Cyanogenmod 7.1 and overclocked to 1.3ghz. It was a very simple process, but I am glad I waited to do since the early process was a bit confusing. It does not look good for Cyanogenmod 9 for my snapdragon processor. Seems the team will not supports these older processors for ICS.

[Piney Boy]

what's a rom?

Took this from another board:

Literally it stands for Read Only Memory, in this case referring to the phone's internal memory where your firmware/apps are stored. When people say they're flashing a new ROM, it means they are flashing a new version of the firmware onto their phone - the two terms are interchangeable.

Basically it is user that changed the google OS to what he wanted.

[Mithrandir]

I have mine modded to Cyanogenmod 7.1 and overclocked to 1.3ghz. It was a very simple process, but I am glad I waited to do since the early process was a bit confusing. It does not look good for Cyanogenmod 9 for my snapdragon processor. Seems the team will not supports these older processors for ICS.

?????? What did you just say?

[cardboardbox]

what's a rom?

what piney said...

It just changes the look and feel of your phone and typically makes it much better than what the phone came with.

[JudeBaldo]

what's a rom?

http://www.escotal.com/memory.html

Above is an excellent answer for your question. With pictures and diagrams.

[TranaGreg]

here are my observations:

like johnnya24, I have a HTC Desire; had it for a year & a half now; smartphones are truly transformational devices ... I shop with it, I plan when I need to catch the next bus with it, use it as a GPS in my car, I get my baseball updates with it ... and oh ya, I check email & even sometimes use it as a phone.

re: the iphone vs android debate, IMO it's irrelevant; what matters are the apps, and both now have a huge catalog with excellent developers building quality apps. there are some hardware differences (e.g. if you plan on using videochatting you need to consider the camera issue), but to me how it feels matter more (weight, size, esp. if you plan on keeping it in your pants pocket as you said). Plus I love the widgets available with Android (you don't have to open an app with a widget, it shows key info right on the screen). see below for a pic showing some widgets (mind you these are windows, not Andriod, but the idea is the same).

A couple of things I would change about my phone, & I will be looking for these when I upgrade (these are probably specific to Android phones):

1 - memory; most phone come with ability to load data on a separate memory card (microSD card) which is great for bringing music & video along, but parts of the apps installed need to stay on the main phone memory. The Desire has only half a GB of internal memory - I didn't realize that would be limiting, but it is. I'm at the point where if I want to add more apps, I have to delete some. Most new phones have a larger amt of internal memory, but be aware that this is a factor.

2 - power button (I'm pretty sure this is specific to HTC phones, & maybe just to the Desire); this may seem trivial but it's a real nuisance; I can't tell when my phone is off vs. sleeping (the screen is off); the only way to check is to press the power button. so in the evening I'll want to turn the phone off, so I first press the power button to bring the screen on ... except that sometimes I've already turned the phone off so pressing the power button starts the power-up sequence ... so I have to wait for the phone to fully power up before I can turn it off. it's a pain.

Having said all that - these things are amazing. I work in the tech field, & I'm still amazed with what they can do.

[Mithrandir]

I have to ask...is life better with the capability to access all of this stuff all of the time? Some of the things are really handy like the GPS...but do we really need to check our email 25 times a day? See the scores every 15 minutes?? Tweet and Facebook all day long? Do these things make life more hectic and more stressful, especially when said technology doesn't work quite like we want it to?

I see the amazing things these phones can do, but is staying THIS connected better than the way it used to be 20-30-40 years ago?

Is is more enjoyable to see the scores instantaneously or wait until the next day and crack open the paper to see the boxscores?

Just wondering

[TranaGreg]

I have to ask...is life better with the capability to access all of this stuff all of the time? Some of the things are really handy like the GPS...but do we really need to check our email 25 times a day? See the scores every 15 minutes?? Tweet and Facebook all day long? Do these things make life more hectic and more stressful, especially when said technology doesn't work quite like we want it to?

I see the amazing things these phones can do, but is staying THIS connected better than the way it used to be 20-30-40 years ago?

Is is more enjoyable to see the scores instantaneously or wait until the next day and crack open the paper to see the boxscores?

Just wondering

yes. hope this helps.

[Piney Boy]

yes. hope this helps.

:goodpost:

I agree. I also use it alot to communicate with my store manager since I am only PT and can only work nights mostly.