Need help choosing new phone (upgrade).

globalds

Sublime wrote: »

Thanks. Screen size definitely matters to me. I prefer to go into the t-mobile store rather than buy online, as they offer good deals.

Its good to hear positive feedback regarding the Desire. This is the deal I was interested in.

I could have had the phone free with 600 minutes unlimited texts and internet at £25 a month for 24 months.

I asked for £20 if I reduced minutes ..He said OK for £45 up front.

So originally a bit better than that £30 deal for £25.

Sublime_2

That is a good deal. :beer:

I would need more minutes so for me the £30 deal would be fine (esp with unlimited calls to landlines as my flexible booster). It would save me £7 a month minimum off my landline (virgin) costs, not too mention giving me 600 minutes worth of other calls.

Is the calendar any good? The xpress music one isn't, and its something I use a lot.

globalds

Sublime wrote: »

Is the calendar any good? The xpress music one isn't, and its something I use a lot.

It is a bit different with android as things are mostly apps that you just download from the market , either free or paid.

So you could chose from a range of calendar apps and googling or reading the feedback would give you a clue as to how good each one was....If you don't like the one you try , just delete and try another.

So for example the original G2 camera was a bit rubbish , took ages to focus , with android just download another camera app and use that instead.

...Every now and then android itself will upgrade ...a bit like vista to windows 7 ..desire is on 2.1 ...I think the latest is 2.2.

G2 upgraded from 1.5 to 2.1 last month , feels like a new phone.

Sublime_2

Thanks for the replies. I've narrowed it down to 3 now anyway. In order of preference:

1. Nokia N8
2. HTC Desire
3. Samsung Galaxy S (although I will check if the freezing issues been fixed)

I'll just have to see what they offer me in the shop next week now. :rotfl:

monkeychip

The Samsung Galaxy S is the best android handset at the moment.

earlier models had some problems with the buggy firmware but they can all be sorted quite easily with a firmware upgrade..and soon you will get another major update from Google.

The HTC Desire is very good but it is also hugely popular and so the prices aren't coming down as they should.

You should be able to get the Galaxy S for free if you are nice to the staff.

And at this stage, for a smart phone there should only be three choices 1.Android 2. WP7 (not to be confused with WinMo) and 3. iPhone iOS

Forget the Nokia N8..seriously.

Sublime_2

Thanks for the info regarding the galaxy. Any reason for avoiding the N8?

Each firmware update has improved things with my Xpress music (although still occasional probs due to slow processor). The hardware is good for the N8.

The reviews for the N8 appear mixed. Either loved, or given a luke-warm review, but with praise for the hardware.

Jeff_Bridges_hair

ive been using the HTC Desire for a little while now and its fantastic!"!

monkeychip

Sublime wrote: »

Thanks for the info regarding the galaxy. Any reason for avoiding the N8?

Don't get me wrong, the Nokia N8 is a good handset hardware-wise.

The only thing is that it is running symbian which can't match the other smart phone OS's for functionality or even looks.. (OS= operating system)

Android has a lot going for it and it won't die out (in fact it is growing rapidly) while I'm not sure what the future holds for Symbian. And especially if you are having to use the same handset for the next 18-24 months, I would invest in the OS that has a brighter future.

The 12MP camera doesn't really mean much...on phones 5MP is more than enough..actually it is about enough for stand alone digital cameras as well!

So I would definitely advise against getting the Nokia and would suggest that you get an HTC Desire or a Samsung Galaxy S both of which provide much better value not only in the short term but more importantly in the long term..
(Galaxy S is a lot faster and has the Super AMOLED vs the Desire's AMOLED)

Sublime_2

Thanks. (I know what os means btw ).

To me a camera is vitally important, as I use my phone rather than my now ancient digital camera, and the music sound is good with the N8.

I was reading this review, and it looked quite promising until it came to the mobile browsing experience (although better than what I've got now), as that is one of the annoyances that I have with my Xpress music. A faster processor, and more internal memory would have made it more attractive.

So going for your recommendations, my new order of preference:

1. HTC Desire
2. Samsung Galaxy S
3. Nokia N8 (I'm dazzled by the camera, and still love a lot of the features, so can't put it out of the running yet. I will see if I can have a go in the shop).

monkeychip

Hey Sublime, sorry if I came across a bit patronising with the whole OS thing...it's sometimes difficult to know where people are with technology especially on a general forum like this one!

If you are looking at the camera as the main feature of the phone, then you complicate a few things...I don't know much about the Nokia N8's camera since I've never used it but I have used both the HTC Desire and the Galaxy S's cameras and so i'll give you a breakdown of it.

HTC Desire has an LED flash while the Galaxy S doesn't.. the LED flash is useful but to a limited extent..it tends to illuminate very unevenly across the picture...

Neither camera is better than a cheap standalone but in a well lit environment, the galaxy S is better than the Desire.. also you get more functions with the camera on the galaxy S ie face recognition, panorama shots (which works really well and i use more often than i thought i would), 720p recording and more options/settings etc

So it's quality vs the use of an LED flash... the galaxy S is pretty dismal in low lighting and while the desire may take lesser photos and have fewer functions, at least that LED is there if you need it!

Not sure about the N8 but NOkia's high-end phones used to be pretty good with imaging.

For music, I'd say galaxy S better than HTC Desire but not sure again for the N8. The galaxy S comes with built in storage with the option of a microSD card, the Desire relies on the microSD card. Also Samsung phones generally have good sound (they have a sizable share of the DAP market)

Before, it was a no-brainer for me...now that you mention the camera, I don't know which to suggest