My "dilemma" is that I am looking for a solution that will provide communications in a lot of places and not just be dependent on WiFi. I have had several Android tablets and both versions of the iPad at one time or another (primarily setting them up for family), and up to now have relied on a PHS-300 and a USB WiMax stick for communications for the tablet, and an Optimus V on Virgin Mobile for phone/VOIP.
So I have two solutions I am considering in a couple of weeks when I get my XMas bonus. In both cases I am planning to us T-Mobile as the provider using their new $30/month plan for 5 gigs of 3G/4G data and 100 minutes of voice, and GrooveIP to do VOIP (which is what I have used on my current phone).
Solution A is to get a Samsung Exhibit II, set it up with WiFi tethering, and then get a Transformer Prime. This will require me to carry a bag with the Transformer, and means I may sometimes have to rely on the phone where it isn't convenient to lug the Prime. On the other hand, the quad-core Prime may eventually let me do things I can't do on a dual-core machine, and it is a 10+ inch screen which should make for easier reading.
Solution B is to get a Streak 7 4G model and a stereo bluetooth headset. This would mean I'd have the tablet with me all the time (I borrowed my wife's Kindle Fire and confirmed it fits in my pants pocket), although calls might be a bit inconvenient if I don't have the headset handy. That is a dual-core tablet, and at this time, I don't know of many things in the Android market that I would need more than that to do.
Solution A runs around $800-$900, while solution B runs around $500-$600. So is Solution A worth the extra $300-$400 and the occasional inconvenience? Anything you know about any of the mentioned devices I might want to be aware of?
Thanks in advance!
I think its down to how much money you are willing to spend. I would personally go with solution A as you wont regret it. The transformer prime is a fantastic tablet which is future proof, so you won't need to replace it for a year or two. The Samsung Exhibit II is also a fine phone. I think the deal is worth the extra $400. You won't have buyers remorse when there is hundreds of new quad core devices coming out soon!
Related
Hey all, I'm considering an Optimus V on VMUSA's Beyond Talk plan when AT&T lets me off my leash next month, and just wondered how others are feeling who have made the transition.
I've heard positive things from at least one XDAer on, well, mainly the price, but also how their phone performs with AOSP/CM7.
I talk very little and text quite a bit, so the plan seems like a good fit, and I'll probably put some AT&T prepaid minutes on one of my current phones for back-up, and route it all through a Google Voice number.
What are my chances of tethering the Optimus V's data connection to my Nook Color (Android tablet, CM7)?
works great with asop and teathering a transformer on it.
So since Sprint makes it far too easy to return these things before 30 days is up... the question is keep or return. I like it. I just am getting a bit concerned I will like it for 2 years!
I hear conflicting info/opinions in regards to a v3.2 upgrade. I also am having issues with certain apps just not working (HBO GO, certain games not using the screen real estate because of bad programming).
So the general question is... if all of you ahd the option to keep or return... what would you do? Should I return and get Puccini? Its a question I ask daily.
skywalkr2 said:
Its a question I ask daily.
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Click to collapse
Do you get answers daily?
Seriously, there are already several threads exactly like this.
If you are going to have buyers remorse every time there a "new model of the year", you may as well not buy anything, because that is always going to happen. Its the treadmill of technology.
If, on the other hand, you want to use an awesome device NOW instead of waiting around for an upcoming device that does not even have a release date, then keep the View.
Besides, have you used any Honeycomb tablets? They are all disappointingly laggy compared to the Flyer. HC has some nice features, but Gingerbread is faster and smoother. I'm not so sure I want HC on my Flyer, at least not in its present state.
Also the 7" form factor versus the 10" one is a completely different feel. The 10" ones are much heavier and much less portable. Check some out at the store, to see if you even like them. More screen real estate can be nice for couch surfing. But for portability, the Flyer is superior. Personally, I also tend to prefer the smaller form factor for general use, which is very easy to hold with one hand. But its largely a matter of personal taste and preference.
I actually looked and didn't really see what I was looking for which is I why I asked. The reason I got it was BECAUSE of the 7 inch size which I find much better than 10 inch.
My biggest issue has been the applications either missing (netflix (sideloaded), facebook) or not working (hbo go, some games).
All in all I like it. I think $399 is a good deal for it considering it has the wifi/3g/4g & pen input (a major plus) & 32gig of space.
Just wanted to make sure there wasn't somethign I was missing. I've checked on HTC Flyer forums across the net and most of them (except this one) seem pretty dead... which was a bit of a scare as well.
These threads are a bit old, but contain plenty of arguments for keeping the View/Flyer which may set your mind at ease:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1109074&highlight=galaxy
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1165803
And honestly, I would not even worry about keeping the device for 2 years. I personally seem to be on a 1 year cycle with smartphones, and other folks on here buy phones much more frequently than that. I'm probably going to plan on a similar 1-year cycle with my tablet. Heck, some people upgrade devices as often as they change underwear!
I've never tried to get out of a Sprint contract with a year left on the contract. Maybe its easier than I assume.
So, it's not so much whether or not you like the Flyer, but whether you want that 2 year contract? I'd be with you on that. Perhaps return it and buy a Wi-Fi only unit?
Phone_Junkie said:
So, it's not so much whether or not you like the Flyer, but whether you want that 2 year contract? I'd be with you on that. Perhaps return it and buy a Wi-Fi only unit?
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Good point. I do like the 3g enabled part, though. That's one of the main things I like about the iPad... 3g without a contract.
Buy a WiFi Flyer and activate tethering on your phone.
Starting today, Sprint customers have the option to pay for data access on the Sprint 3G and 4G networks using the HTC EVO View tablet by the day, week or month with no long-term contract. Customers can choose the 3G/4G Day, Week or Month pass that fits their needs:
Day: $14.99 for 150 MB of on-network usage in a 24-hour period (includes 50 MB off-network roaming usage)
Week: $29.99 for 500 MB of on-network usage in a 7-day period (includes 100 MB off-network roaming usage)
Month: $49.99 for 1.5 GB of usage in a 30-day period (includes 150 MB off-network roaming usage)
These options are available for both businesses and consumers.
And there are no overage charges to worry about. Once you hit your data limit, or the end of your day, week or month, the data access automatically turns off.
http://community.sprint.com/baw/community/sprintblogs/announcements/blog/2011/08/22/get-sprint-3g4g-access-for-a-day-week-or-month-with-no-long-term-contract-on-htc-evo-view
r0ck09 said:
Starting today, Sprint customers have the option to pay for data access on the Sprint 3G and 4G networks using the HTC EVO View tablet by the day, week or month with no long-term contract. Customers can choose the 3G/4G Day, Week or Month pass that fits their needs:
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In that case, $399 for an Evo View isn't a bad deal, seeing as how you don't ever have to actually use the data plan if you don't want.
skywalkr2 said:
I've never tried to get out of a Sprint contract with a year left on the contract. Maybe its easier than I assume.
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I never said anything about getting out of any contracts. I was thinking you can someday upgrade to another Sprint device and pay full the unsubsidized price for it, and keep the existing contract. Or buy a device from a 3rd party, if Sprint will let you switch service to that device. Not sure how WiMax works on Sprint. I'm used to the GSM/HSPA phone service I have on AT&T. I can buy a phone anywhere, as long as its compatible with AT&T's network and unlocked; and just slip my SIM into it and use it on my existing contract.
I think the main point is how you want to use your tablet. You want to use it at home or outdoor, on the go? Do you prefer mobility over big screen or in another word do you want to carry a bag for your tablet all the time you are out or not?
I bought the Flyer because I like the 7 inch size portability ( I had an Archos 70 IT). I would like to use the tablet for ebook reading, web surfing, stylus sometimes for taking notes and diagrams at work, ... Right now, Dual core is not really effective and Honeycomb might look a bit nicer than GB but the performance is worse. HTC also promised to update the Flyer to Honeycomb later, which I would expect in next 2-3 months.
In your case, because you are thinking about buying a 3G version tablets, I guess you would like to use it a lot on the go. So it seems that 7 inch tablets suit you better.
Technology is developing very fast. You will never know what will come out in 2 years time. So it's better to know what to expect from your tablet in +-1 year. Then you probably won't be very much disappointed.
So I'm in an odd place in that my Sprint phone no longer gets a signal in the area that I'm going through cancer treatment, and I'm in need of a GSM phone to use on Straight Talk for the few months that I'll be in treatment.
My question is what kind of phone is out there within that price range? I have until the end of the month to get something, so I don't have a LOT of time available. (My oncologist LOVES when I crack that one in his office)
So far the only things that I've been able to find (new or used) are things like the Xperia Play, Xperia Mini Pro, etc.
I know I'm going to be giving up a huge amount of processing power over my GNex from Sprint, but I only have a very limited budget until the end of the month when I port my number to Sprint andi can try to sell/trade my GNex.
So, XDA, what type of devices am I of thinking of that are a bargain, but are going to give me something to tinker with while I'm in treatment and won't make me want to throw it out a window? Thanks all for reading my uber long message, I really look forward to some of your responses since I KNOW I'm overlooking devices.
Sent from my Amazon Kindle Fire using Tapatalk 2
there is a new nexus 1 on ebay it is unlocked and 171$ and got one and here is the item number 190699344387
:good::good::good::good::good::good::good::good::good::good::good::good:
So I have until about the middle of next month to decide if I'm keeping this or getting something better. I started a new Sprint contract (welcome me to the club?) and the Photon 4G was free with new activation. I've always been a big fan of Tegra 2 devices, I used to own a Transformer but I had to sell it to buy college books.
Now, I have the extra money to either buy a Nexus 7 tablet in that time (or whatever competitive tablet to the Nexus 7 is out at that point) or the S3 and maybe a cheap Allwinner tablet or something. Now if the phone is really THAT good, I could pony up for the S3 and still get a Nexus 7 but I'm trying to get the best 'bang for buck' performance.
My question is, is the S3 worth it? Would an over-clocked Tegra 2 hold its weight? Is the S3 even better for gaming? I was under the belief that the Snapdragon S3 processes faster than the Exynos quad core, the GPU on the Exynos is actually better. I do play games.
The one thing I don't like is that it seems like all the cool roms, like CM 10 hashes and heavily modded roms, tend to kill 4G. I actually am in a spotty 4G area but it's here and there so I like to have it when I can. I also feel like the dev support isn't as high as HTC/Samsung devices but root/unlock is there so it's not that big of a deal to just mod minimally and let apps take care of the rest.
The screen size isn't huge but it's big enough and while the resolution isn't 720p, it's a phone so that's not TOO big of a deal.
The thing is, I'll be locked to whatever device I get for at least 20 months and that's a long time, especially if LTE drops in San Diego.
The one thing holding me back is that while the device is great NOW, what about 8 months from now? Even the S3 will be skipping a few beats in 8 months.
What do you guys think? Pony up and potentially skip the Nexus 7, keep the Photon 4G, mod the crap out of it and pick up some cheap Allwinner tablet for my book reading or man up and buy both?
Essenar said:
So I have until about the middle of next month to decide if I'm keeping this or getting something better. I started a new Sprint contract (welcome me to the club?) and the Photon 4G was free with new activation. I've always been a big fan of Tegra 2 devices, I used to own a Transformer but I had to sell it to buy college books.
Now, I have the extra money to either buy a Nexus 7 tablet in that time (or whatever competitive tablet to the Nexus 7 is out at that point) or the S3 and maybe a cheap Allwinner tablet or something. Now if the phone is really THAT good, I could pony up for the S3 and still get a Nexus 7 but I'm trying to get the best 'bang for buck' performance.
My question is, is the S3 worth it? Would an over-clocked Tegra 2 hold its weight? Is the S3 even better for gaming? I was under the belief that the Snapdragon S3 processes faster than the Exynos quad core, the GPU on the Exynos is actually better. I do play games.
The one thing I don't like is that it seems like all the cool roms, like CM 10 hashes and heavily modded roms, tend to kill 4G. I actually am in a spotty 4G area but it's here and there so I like to have it when I can. I also feel like the dev support isn't as high as HTC/Samsung devices but root/unlock is there so it's not that big of a deal to just mod minimally and let apps take care of the rest.
The screen size isn't huge but it's big enough and while the resolution isn't 720p, it's a phone so that's not TOO big of a deal.
The thing is, I'll be locked to whatever device I get for at least 20 months and that's a long time, especially if LTE drops in San Diego.
The one thing holding me back is that while the device is great NOW, what about 8 months from now? Even the S3 will be skipping a few beats in 8 months.
What do you guys think? Pony up and potentially skip the Nexus 7, keep the Photon 4G, mod the crap out of it and pick up some cheap Allwinner tablet for my book reading or man up and buy both?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While getting photons ICS drivers complete our JB and ICS builds is seemingly inevitable, we don't have that same promise for an unlocked boot loader. So if by all means you 'need' 4g but still want to mod the hell out of your phone, go on and get the S3. In many ways, the Photon is a much better phone in my (perhaps biased) opinion. An extra two cores in your processor is well and good and all, but will those cores make a huge difference in the every day use of the phone? Would you be able to tell the difference past being able to crank up the settings in the games you play? Probably not enough to justify dropping 200 bucks and getting a totally different phone. The photon is already a beast at stock and blazingly fast after some modifications. And if Moto drops those drivers next month, **** is about to get really exciting up in here soon. Besides, its September, the new Nexus will be getting announced in like a month and a half. If you're considering a new phone, that would probably be the device to wait patiently for. As for me, I'm jump on board with whatever Nokia wp8 device drops in sprints lap (if it ever does).
Get the S3. It will last you much longer and you won't regret it after you get it. If you have to spend the money, spend it. You will get a greater return on your investment over the next 2 years.
Sent from my HTC One XL using xda app-developers app
Acvice said:
While getting photons ICS drivers complete our JB and ICS builds is seemingly inevitable, we don't have that same promise for an unlocked boot loader. So if by all means you 'need' 4g but still want to mod the hell out of your phone, go on and get the S3. In many ways, the Photon is a much better phone in my (perhaps biased) opinion. An extra two cores in your processor is well and good and all, but will those cores make a huge difference in the every day use of the phone? Would you be able to tell the difference past being able to crank up the settings in the games you play? Probably not enough to justify dropping 200 bucks and getting a totally different phone. The photon is already a beast at stock and blazingly fast after some modifications. And if Moto drops those drivers next month, **** is about to get really exciting up in here soon. Besides, its September, the new Nexus will be getting announced in like a month and a half. If you're considering a new phone, that would probably be the device to wait patiently for. As for me, I'm jump on board with whatever Nokia wp8 device drops in sprints lap (if it ever does).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The lines are even blurrier than that.
The US Galaxy S3 doesn't have a quad core so it's Tegra 2 vs. Snapdragon S4 Krait dual core. The S4 dual core is hands, feet, shoulders and head better than the Tegra 2 in terms of CPU performance. However, the S4 GPU is actually 'worse' than the Exynos and Tegra 3 GPU. So the question is where the Tegra 2 GPU stands against the S4 GPU. And the game settings are absolutely part of the reason I'll choose one over the other. I plan on playing the latest games, PSX roms, etc with the device over the two years I own it. That's also why I'm considering if even the Galaxy S3 is powerful enough.
The other issue is LTE network. I have NO idea when Sprint's LTE will drop in San Diego but I know it won't be two years. Once LTE drops, I'll be on the archaic, spotty inconsistent WiMax 4G connection. I miss LTE and I'm not sure if the Photon 4G will be LTE compatible.
I also wonder if it's worth it to just pick up a clean-ESN Photon 4G on Craigslist or Ebay and using that until the US quad-cores drop because the S3 maybe isn't 'enough' of an upgrade to justify the two year commitment when new phones might be on the horizon.
Essenar said:
The lines are even blurrier than that.
The US Galaxy S3 doesn't have a quad core so it's Tegra 2 vs. Snapdragon S4 Krait dual core. The S4 dual core is hands, feet, shoulders and head better than the Tegra 2 in terms of CPU performance. However, the S4 GPU is actually 'worse' than the Exynos and Tegra 3 GPU. So the question is where the Tegra 2 GPU stands against the S4 GPU. And the game settings are absolutely part of the reason I'll choose one over the other. I plan on playing the latest games, PSX roms, etc with the device over the two years I own it. That's also why I'm considering if even the Galaxy S3 is powerful enough.
The other issue is LTE network. I have NO idea when Sprint's LTE will drop in San Diego but I know it won't be two years. Once LTE drops, I'll be on the archaic, spotty inconsistent WiMax 4G connection. I miss LTE and I'm not sure if the Photon 4G will be LTE compatible.
I also wonder if it's worth it to just pick up a clean-ESN Photon 4G on Craigslist or Ebay and using that until the US quad-cores drop because the S3 maybe isn't 'enough' of an upgrade to justify the two year commitment when new phones might be on the horizon.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Photon unfortunately doesn't support lte. And if it makes you feel better I check out all the latest games and run psx ROMs all the time without a hitch. Most are developed for tegra 3 and almost all seem to be tegra 2 compatible and the ones that arnt usually note that they will be. Iono man, I just seriously advise against using your two year upgrade on the s3. I can almost promise that within two months something will come out that you'll be like "damn I really want this phone, I should have waited". One thing I've figured out about technology over the years is that after doing your research, if the product doesn't absolutely speak to you, just sit tight for a product that does.
If you are still within a time frame that you can switch out your photon for an SG3, than you might be also within the timeframe to cancel your contract without ETF reprecussions.
Based on the available phone lineups and uncertainty (LTE in sandiego, etc), locking in on a 2yr contract would be a poor investment. I would recommend going with a prepaid cell provider and getting a phone for that network that has a pretty good resell value.
examples:
pentaband galaxy nexus from google play store - tmobile walmart plan ($30/month)
CDMA phone from craigslist/ebay - straightalk
Try to get a photon 4G off craiglist!! I got mine for 80$ u can later sell it for an upgrade photon is a GSM phone more options to sell than the s3 from sprint and later in couple of months perhaps u can upgrade. Am also waiting on a better gsm/lte option from sprint as the photon Q has the gsm sim card embedded
Sent from my MB855 using xda app-developers app
i get one SAMSUNG S6 edeg live demo unit can i flash this phone to work like normal phones
version oh phone
AP:G925XXXU1AOD3_LLK
CSC:G925XPAP1AOD3_LLK
hitibiti said:
i get one SAMSUNG S6 edeg live demo unit can i flash this phone to work like normal phones
version oh phone
AP:G925XXXU1AOD3_LLK
CSC:G925XPAP1AOD3_LLK
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No...
They lack the modem. Others have tried and ended up with bricks.
There's a reason people are selling these significantly cheaper.
If they could be flashed and magicked into working devices - people would do that and sell them for more money.
Common sense guide you.....
Who in 2015 actually uses phone calls and SMS when you have what's app, Skype etc? Might as well buy a demo unit for significantly cheaper
lite426 said:
Who in 2015 actually uses phone calls and SMS when you have what's app, Skype etc? Might as well buy a demo unit for significantly cheaper
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Because you don't walk around with wifi? Do you live under a rock or wut...?
We've got wifi pretty much everywhere where I live , and for those who don't you can carry a cheap wifi dongle thing. Or you living under a rock?
lite426 said:
We've got wifi pretty much everywhere where I live , and for those who don't you can carry a cheap wifi dongle thing. Or you living under a rock?
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Lmao you have free WiFi whenever you're on the move? Dam.. You high tech man. Rest of us using cellular and 4g lte must be living under a rock...
Yep, get out from under your rock and get with the times, phone and SMS are outdated now. With the money you save from buying a demo unit (£300) it will cost a mere fraction of that to buy wireless dongle and a cellular SIM with data plan, I remember T-mobile had a deal where you could buy a SIM for £20 and get free data for a whole year. Not sure if they stil do it, but I'm sure there are loads of other bargains around. If you want to go ahead and waste your money buying a phone though, be my guest.
lite426 said:
Yep, get out from under your rock and get with the times, phone and SMS are outdated now. With the money you save from buying a demo unit (£300) it will cost a mere fraction of that to buy wireless dongle and a cellular SIM with data plan, I remember T-mobile had a deal where you could buy a SIM for £20 and get free data for a whole year. Not sure if they stil do it, but I'm sure there are loads of other bargains around. If you want to go ahead and waste your money buying a phone though, be my guest.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep because walking around with a wireless dongle, with a charger because battery life on them is never stellar + your phone is just so much more convenient a solution than buying 1 device where it all just works.
Jumping through hoops to save money and end up with a solution that actually offers less functionality is such a practical solution.
As for phones being outdated now, I guess that's why they sold hundreds of millions of them each year globally, because they're an outdated concept.
The battery on them is fine if you buy a good quality one, you can call it "jumping through hoops", but if you really want to spend £300 more just to avoid carrying another thing, which you can just slip into your backpack or suitcase or whatever, then you have more money than sense.
Millions of phones are sold because people don't see a new smartphone and go "oh wow, look how well it makes calls and does texting!" They're impressed by the screen, the specs etc. which could all be had in a demo unit for much less.
If those millions knew they could get live demo units for two thirds less, with identical specs except for cellular, and they were savvy enough to know how to carry external wifi and download free phone apps, then I'm sure not all those millions would've have bought the phones. Common sense guide you...