Author Topic: Looking for smartphone (Read 169996 times)

Ath · « **Reply #125 on:** September 30, 2017, 11:22 AM »

He's trying to catch up to mouser's number of posts.
-4wd (September 30, 2017, 06:43 AM)

Let's hope he's not

irkregent · « **Reply #126 on:** October 04, 2017, 11:19 AM »

I recently picked up a refurbished LG V20 for cheap ($280 USD) and am really pleased with it. The removable battery was one of the key features for me. I also like that LG allows one to alter the "soft buttons" at the bottom of the screen, selecting which buttons and in what order they appear. It has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.

One downside is the circular power button on the back of the phone, in that without a case it is hard to find without looking. But a case will solve that annoyance.

One thing to know is that the top and bottom of the screen are slightly curved, meaning that a glass screen protector cannot cover the entire screen surface. That has not been an issue for me, however.

Ath · « **Reply #127 on:** October 04, 2017, 02:23 PM »

The removable battery was one of the key features for me.
-irkregent (October 04, 2017, 11:19 AM)

Do you keep a replacement battery in store? Or is there another argument for having a removable battery?

wraith808 · « **Reply #128 on:** October 04, 2017, 02:49 PM »

The removable battery was one of the key features for me.
-irkregent (October 04, 2017, 11:19 AM)
Do you keep a replacement battery in store? Or is there another argument for having a removable battery?
-Ath (October 04, 2017, 02:23 PM)

Having one in store, and/or having the ability to do so, I'd think. If your battery unexpectedly has problems, you don't really have a choice other than to replace the entire phone on most current devices.

irkregent · « **Reply #129 on:** October 04, 2017, 03:24 PM »

The removable battery was one of the key features for me.
-irkregent (October 04, 2017, 11:19 AM)
Do you keep a replacement battery in store? Or is there another argument for having a removable battery?
-Ath (October 04, 2017, 02:23 PM)

Having a few spare, charged batteries available when I travel is a real plus. I can go longer without having the phone tethered to a wall socket. I recently went on a week-long camping trip, and with four spare batteries on hand (that combined still weighed less than an external phone-charging battery) I never needed to worry about trying to find some place to charge my phone overnight.

Ath · « **Reply #130 on:** October 04, 2017, 03:35 PM »

Having a few spare, charged batteries available when I travel is a real plus. I can go longer without having the phone tethered to a wall socket. I recently went on a week-long camping trip, and with four spare batteries on hand (that combined still weighed less than an external phone-charging battery) I never needed to worry about trying to find some place to charge my phone overnight.
-irkregent (October 04, 2017, 03:24 PM)

Well, that's a valid argument indeed, but I'd expect needing that on camping trips only. And I don't do camping trips

mouser · « **Reply #131 on:** October 04, 2017, 10:27 PM »

Having a few spare, charged batteries available when I travel is a real plus. I can go longer without having the phone tethered to a wall socket.

Actually for that it would seem to be far easier, cheaper, and more flexible to simply buy one of the many large-capacity usb battery pack chargers.
These can charge any device that charges over usb (all mobile phones made in the last decade it seems), many times over.

I have one of these devices, and it can charge/power a phone, tablet, etc. as well as jump start a car, be used as a flashlight, etc.

tomos · « **Reply #132 on:** October 05, 2017, 04:36 AM »

I have one of these devices, and it can ... jump start a car
-mouser (October 04, 2017, 10:27 PM)

I'm impressed --
have you ever had occasion to try it ?

Ath · « **Reply #133 on:** October 05, 2017, 05:17 AM »

It probably brews his morning coffee as well

tomos · « **Reply #134 on:** October 05, 2017, 05:55 AM »

It probably brews his morning coffee as well
-Ath (October 05, 2017, 05:17 AM)

or he plugs in to it ;-)

rgdot · « **Reply #135 on:** October 05, 2017, 01:55 PM »

Jump starts the car but the device itself is done for

mouser · « **Reply #136 on:** October 05, 2017, 02:01 PM »

I posted about the one I have here: https://www.donation....msg413317#msg413317

MilesAhead · « **Reply #137 on:** October 05, 2017, 04:19 PM »

Having a few spare, charged batteries available when I travel is a real plus. I can go longer without having the phone tethered to a wall socket.
Actually for that it would seem to be far easier, cheaper, and more flexible to simply buy one of the many large-capacity usb battery pack chargers.
These can charge any device that charges over usb (all mobile phones made in the last decade it seems), many times over.

I have one of these devices, and it can charge/power a phone, tablet, etc. as well as jump start a car, be used as a flashlight, etc.
-mouser (October 04, 2017, 10:27 PM)

One of my Computer Repair professors is very into phones. He has an induction charger. In the morning he puts the charged batteries in his pocket. In the evening he puts the spent ones on the induction charger. I guess he is quite adept at shutting down his phone when the battery is low and snapping off the back. The removed battery goes into the jacket pocket designated for the discharged ones. It may seem like overkill but in his defense he likes to learn to do all function with all phones to keep up to date.

4wd · « **Reply #138 on:** October 06, 2017, 02:01 AM »

In the morning he puts the charged batteries in his pocket. In the evening he puts the spent ones on the induction charger.
-MilesAhead (October 05, 2017, 04:19 PM)

Sounds like he needs a phone that's better at battery management.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #139 on:** October 06, 2017, 08:32 AM »

In the morning he puts the charged batteries in his pocket. In the evening he puts the spent ones on the induction charger.
-MilesAhead (October 05, 2017, 04:19 PM)

Sounds like he needs a phone that's better at battery management.
-4wd (October 06, 2017, 02:01 AM)

He's running multiple phones. Windows, IPhone and Android based. Sort of like Leo La Porte on a smaller scale.

kalos · « **Reply #140 on:** November 10, 2017, 07:46 AM »

I am having a strange and serious problem with my Redmi Pro 3. I call my voicemail number and it asks me to enter my phone number. But while being on call, I cannot enter the + sign! The + appears below 0 in the keyboard, but holding the 0 does not type the +! It seems I am only allowed to enter digits during a call! Is there a solution for this?

Ath · « **Reply #141 on:** November 10, 2017, 09:29 AM »

I would expect that your provider only allows local numbers, not international notation with a + in front. Many countries use the 0 instead of +<countrycode>, I'm not sure what your country/provider expects.

4wd · « **Reply #142 on:** November 10, 2017, 06:27 PM »

In the UK it'll be 07..........

But the question is why it asks for the number in the first place, it should be getting it from the SIM directly, eg. I only have to dial 101, (or #101#, or reply with a blank SMS), to access VoiceMail and that's in any country. Just have to ensure you're dialing out from the SIM that matches the VoiceMail you're trying to connect to.

kalos · « **Reply #143 on:** November 12, 2017, 12:52 PM »

I am roaming now, so I call the international voicemail number. It asks me to enter my mobile number in international format, even though I am calling from the same SIM. It's a UK number so it should be +447.... What can I do?

Ath · « **Reply #144 on:** November 12, 2017, 01:16 PM »

Type it in another app using the standard keyboardlayout, like whatsapp, select and copy the number, then paste it where you need it.

kalos · « **Reply #145 on:** November 12, 2017, 01:56 PM »

Yeah, I did try that but you are not enabled to paste anything in the dialpad while there is active call.

4wd · « **Reply #146 on:** November 16, 2017, 06:13 AM »

I'm also looking for a new android phone. Is there any suggestion, I will use for working only, but it needs to run fast, quality camera, call for long hours. My budget is 300 dollar
-DidierAubin87 (November 16, 2017, 03:45 AM)

It would help if you gave a country, not all mobile networks are the same, ie. the bands available in one country might not be available in another thus limiting what model to buy and where from.

Quality camera in a phone less than $300 isn't going to be easy unless you buy a previous (older) flagship model.

Dual SIM
External Storage (Hybrid slot or dedicated in the case of Dual SIM)
Sensors (eg. Gyroscope, eCompass, etc)

From my earlier post:

Work out what you want to do with the phone, then work out what functions the phone has to have to fulfil them.
eg.

If you're going to take 360⁰ photo spheres with the camera, then it has to have gyroscope.
If you want photo metadata that shows which direction you were facing when you took the photo, then it requires a compass.
If you want to play games that require tilting/moving the phone, then it has to have an accelerometer.
If you want to navigate, it has to have a GPS receiver.
If you just like playing with gadgets, get everything.
etc

I currently use a Moto G5 Plus (AU version link, other countries have different specs), battery lasts two days (probably three if I didn't play games on it), Quick Charge 2.0 for fast charging, Dual SIM + dedicated uSD slot (4G/3G on the SIMs), pretty close to stock Android which makes it fast, can use the fingerprint scanner as single button navigation (no need for Back, Home, Recent buttons), camera is decent (same sensor as the Samsung S7), 4K video, NFC (great for Android Pay), network unlocked, and it cost less than AU$300 (~US$230).

wraith808 · « **Reply #147 on:** November 16, 2017, 07:22 AM »

It would help if you gave a country, not all mobile networks are the same, ie. the bands available in one country might not be available in another thus limiting what model to buy and where from.
-4wd (November 16, 2017, 06:13 AM)

It would seem to be Japan from the signature...

wysiwyg125 · « **Reply #148 on:** November 16, 2017, 08:29 AM »

I'm also looking for a new android phone. Is there any suggestion, I will use for working only, but it needs to run fast, quality camera, call for long hours. My budget is 300 dollar . But I don't really Samsung pretty much.
-DidierAubin87 (November 16, 2017, 03:45 AM)

I've had the Moto X Pure/Style for close to two years, it's a pretty solid device. And since it's a few years old you can probably get it for cheaper.

Just a few days ago I took the plunge into the world of custom ROMs and installed LineageOS. Much faster and more responsive, thus far. Not saying I recommend it for everyone but if you do get it you have that option.

Tuxman · « **Reply #149 on:** November 16, 2017, 09:20 AM »

I'll totally get a OnePlus 5T as soon as possible. They officially support custom ROMs.