Smartphone advice needed

[Dobri 55]

Hi guys

 

After some gruelling 7 months worth of night shifts in Germany with my (good, erhm...) old Nokia 2625, I decided to make a big jump in quality and finally get a decent smartphone. The big question is which one. There are many decent smartphones around, and the more I read, the more confused I get.

 

In any case, Android seems the best smartphone system. Plenty of free stuff, plenty of options and good updates. However, Windows mobile comes with MS office, and that's good for business people.

 

As for the smartphone itself, so far the big dillemma is between Samsung Galaxy Sacred 2, HTC Sensation and Motorola RAZR Droid. Nokia didn't manage to impress me much, but I am certainly open to the possibility if there's a decent one. HTC is the cheapest, with 768 MB RAM, 1 GB memory and a very decent 1.5Ghz dual core processor. Samsung has 1GB RAM and 16-32GB integrated memory, which is quite a big chunk, but the battery doesn't last that long and the processor is dual 1.2Ghz. Motorola RAZR Droid is pretty, looks cool, has the longest battery life, 1GB RAM, 16GB internal memory, but the processor is poorer and I think it's single core.

 

What will I use it for - conversations, messaging, browsing, photos, and probably a game or two inbetween, because the travel time from home to work is over 40 mins.

 

If anyone has some of those, or can share ideas or info, I will be very grateful

Edited November 23, 2011 by Dobri

[chattius 2,522]

I wanted one which can survive in -40Celcius(forest work mainly on hard frozen ground, so soil is less damaged) and in +80(car in hot sun) also. Using with gloves should be possible, also shock resistant, able to smash a car window in emergency, or in a real emegency to open a beer bottle .... Last 2 ones after modifying the case a bit

 

http://darkmatters.org/forums/index.php?/topic/17288-what-phone-do-you-have/

[Dragon Brother 619]

Well, all of them are meant to be good phones (if this is the motorola you mention then it also has a dual core). I think that the best way for you to choose would probably go into a phone store and try them out. Get a feel for which one's screen suits you best, size, feel and the responsiveness of the device itself. As to the windows phone having office, there's lots of apps you can get for that on androids, my htc came with an office suite preinstalled.

 

Have you not considered an iPhone, I know some people are against them, but they are a good phone, could also be worth a play with.

[Stormwing 40]

Hmm, from personal experience I can warmly recommend Samsung Galaxy S 2. Been using it for couple of weeks and I'm sold. ^^ There's just about everything I need from a phone and more.

I'd say the battery time really depends how you use your phone. I'm sure one could drain just about any smartphone in a day if used certain way. With a little moderation mine lasted about 3 days without charging.

once again, IMHO, Nokia doesn't really offer anything to truely beat the newest Androids, namely SGS2 and the like.

Can't comment about that Motorola as I've never seen it's specs, though I'll try to dig some info from it. But for the time being, I'd say your money's not wasted in Samsung.

[Dobri 55]

Well, I will surely go to the phone store again today to check the options and get a feel for everything, but I certainly appreciate the insight I am getting here.

 

My cousin already set his mind to HTC and ordered it. Me... I'm kind of a slow buyer. I collect info, get a feel for everything, compile reports and so on, before I finally reach a decision.

 

My worry with the IPhone4 is that it's a bit too pr for its own good. I am also interested to buy the phone right away, without monthly installments, as I am going to select a mobile phone plan later - why pay 700€ over 2 years for a 520€ phone.

 

As for the RAZR, that's exactly the thing I have been looking at. It's really cool, I must say. Great view, slick design, decent resolution, and quite light for its size as well. To compensate for that, it's more expensive than both Samsung Galaxy 2 (lol, forum made S 2 to sacred 2 ) and HTC (or so I see here in Germany).

 

Decisions, decisions

Edited November 24, 2011 by Dobri

[Stormwing 40]

Yeppo, spontaneous purchases aren't really in place with smartphones. I too gatherd quite alot intel about GS2. And so far so good. Never had such

a smooth phone experience. I've also heard good things about Motorola's older phones. And the specs look good too.

I'd say that on could really put a good fight with Galaxy.

Please do tell us what you'll think about it after a closer look. I'll be interested to hear.

[Epox 2]

I can recommend LG OPtimus x2 because I did not like the plastic SG2 thier is really not the major diffrence between those to other tha SG2 has a 0,3 bigger scren and 0,2 biger processor

[Timotheus 416]

Personally, I've just moved to the smartphones myself, I bought a second hand HTC Desire HD from a former colleague of mine when he wanted to upgrade. I don't think I want to go back to a dumbphone again.

 

I really like Andriod, personally I would never get an Iphone because they are too expensive and I like the openness of Android a lot more. The only thing which sucks a bit are the ads so far, some free apps are sponsored. But then again, you could buy apps, just like with the Iphone.

I really like it, the fact that it doesn't have state of the art specs anymore doesn't really bother me as for my personal use it's perfect. Data is pretty expensive now here in Holland, so I try not to get too crazy with browsing as that's the biggest data hogger. That's all.

 

A big fan of the HTC designs, they aren't that iPhoney like the Apple or Samsung phones.

 

Have you considered Nokia's latest offering, the Lumia with Windows Phone 7? That's also worth a look at.

Not my choice design-wise, but it's getting some pretty darn good reviews here.

Edited November 24, 2011 by Timotheus

[Dobri 55]

As of yesterday, the big thinking and the big story around the smartphone is over... After tons of consideration, checks and battles with my own feelings and thoughts, a winner emerged victorious.

 

I chose the Samsung Galaxy S 2.

 

I personally found all of them great. HTC had power and bigger screen, the Droid had great battery life, awesome look and a bigger screen as well than the Samsung, but somehow the Samsung won me over. It was as simple as that - I liked how it worked, how everything was positioned, the size and weight, how good it fit in my hand, and last, but not least, the fact that Samsung gets the Android 4.0 system first. I don't know if that's so big of a deal, because every smartphone with Android gets it sooner or later.

 

Now I am really very happy. Took me a few hours of roaming through the free (and not so free) applications in the Android market, but I believe I got it to work the way I want. Now it can read books, play music and videos, as well as various games, I always know where am I, I always reach my goal, and I am rarely bored - lots of games, lots of applications, there's always something to do with that smartphone. Now I know why people, who once got a smartphone found it difficult to go back to a simple walk-and-talk handy. The only downside is that the battery expires quickly, but if you don't overwork the phone, you will always find it fully charged and ready to amuse you throughout the day as soon as you wake up.

 

Sheesh... Come to think of it, I spent more time on the smartphone than on my laptop these two days... I'm really starting to think that in about 5-10 years all of the PCs and laptops will expire and everyone will use a smartphone...

Edited November 26, 2011 by Dobri

[Stormwing 40]

Epox: You ain't the only one who's stated oppinions against the material choises. Dunno, they're just fine with me. Doesn't feel frail or anything like that. But tastes do vary alot.

 

Gratz on the great purchase, Dobri. ^^ I'm sure you'll be satisfied with it. There are few things to consider with the battery life, as is with all smartphones. For instance the display and browser brightness. Saves a lot battery.

Also, the power saving options seems to be working just fine. There is heaploads of stuff to absorb but it'll be worth it. And don't get me started with the camera, I'm sure you'll find it useful. Only minor complaint is the display-integrated camera button. But it'll work just fine when one gets used to it.

 

I wouldn't go that far as PCs ceasing to exist. Phones are still out of their league with overall performance, although I have to admit, I won't be switching my laptop on very soon, now that I have GS2.

 

Timo: If only Lumia wasn't made with Windows Phone.. Dunno, the desing of the user interface just gives me the hives... I mean the phone itself looks fine and all and I used to like Nokia's other phones in the past.

Still, would get me a N9, if only for experiments and all. Meego looks just good.

[Timotheus 416]

...

 

Timo: If only Lumia wasn't made with Windows Phone.. Dunno, the desing of the user interface just gives me the hives... I mean the phone itself looks fine and all and I used to like Nokia's other phones in the past.

Still, would get me a N9, if only for experiments and all. Meego looks just good.

 

I for one have not tried the WP7 interface, but I am curious. Mostly because Windows 8 is about to use that same interface as well.

 

And as for a review: here is the conclusion of a hands on review from the major Dutch tech website Tweakers.net:

 

Conclusion: The new Nokia

 

 

The Lumia 800 is the new Nokia of the new Nokia. The Finns finally seem to understand that in smartphones it is about good looks, smoothly operating software and a download store full of apps.

 

The Lumia 800 is in many ways a good phone: the sound quality is better than other Windows Phones, the camera is quite reasonable and the unit is not the fastest, but feels pretty smooth. The battery performs reasonably. There are also some drawbacks: the navigation could be much better, the buttons on the side to feel wobbly and some white on the screen is not true white.

 

However, the downsides are dwarfed by the 'wow'-effect of the Lumia 800. The combination of well-finished, sleek design and the smooth, beautiful Clear Black Display makes the Lumia 800 - in real life even more than in the photos - feel like a modern, even futuristic phone. That's a feeling that Nokia has not been able to generate in the recent past.

 

All in all, the Lumia 800 with the top of the market competition. Those who opt for performance on the Windows Phone platform are better off with an HTC Titan. The compact 800 Lumia is however for most people the most attractive option - and can take on the competition with the top of other platforms, with good specifications and good looks, with confidence.

[Stormwing 40]

I for one have not tried the WP7 interface, but I am curious. Mostly because Windows 8 is about to use that same interface as well.

 

That is something that makes me break cold sweat. Though as long as there is even a slight possibility to change back to older GUI, I'm all for Win 8.

It might be that I'm sorely mistaken, the appearance from the sneak peeks just rubs me the wrong way...

Blocky interface was something I got enough after Win 3.11. So anything other than that for the future OS:es.

[Dobri 55]

Thanks, guys

 

I must admit I can't get enough of this smartphone. It's cool, it works great, it helps me in everything I do, including work, because I already installed a few dictionaries and books to keep my german up to speed. Now I wonder how I lived without such a useful gadget...

 

Many thanks on the useful tips, Stormwing. I must admit at was quite astonished at first when I saw the phone's batery getting depleted so quickly. Than I asked a colleague in the hotel I work in (she has Samsung Galaxy 1) and she said it's completely normal to charge the phone almost every day, sometimes even twice per day when you overwork it. That relaxed me a bit. However, I will certainly use the power saving options - I need no bluetooth, and I use navigation, maps and wifi only when sorely required. That will certainly help me a lot. I also set the power saving mode at 70% battery to prolong its life. Should do fine