mid range phone recommendations?

latecomer

100 mins definitely isn't enough for me. Do like the look of the Razr but I'm not sure Orange offer it.

Nokia again is an option. didn't get a chance to call Orange yesterday or so far today. Going to try them shortly so hopefully the lines are still open

latecomer

Spoke to them twice tonight - first one put me on hold and never came back. Second one looked into it and said they couldn't offer the S3 mini at anything like the £20 handset price that was offered but did say I could keep my existing package (minus the photo messages) for £6.98 a month - downside is I have to pay for basically any handset.

Options he gave me were

Galaxy Ace 2 - £50
Xperia J - £60
Desire C - £50

Are any of the above worth paying for? Looks like the Ace 2 sells for around £80-100 on fleabay so its possibly not a bad bet - I could always just sell it and then buy a decent phone.

He did mention a Nokia Asha (I think) for free. Might see what else is available for free.

I'm probably going to agree to the contract as its ideal for what I use and I dont think I could get as good a deal sim only.

As always would appreciate folks thoughts on this

latecomer

Decided today that I would try for the new Xperia SP as it was the same price as the S3 Mini on the Orange site for PAYG and available free on the same monthly contracts - finally got through and it would be £150 for the S3 Mini and £200 for the Xperia SP as apparently the handset prices go up in £50 increments when you get over the £100 mark. Guy basically said that he wouldn't pay that much for one and did his best to talk me out of it. Have to say I was prepared for £150 but £200 is just a step too far.

What he did recommend was the Huawei Ascend P1 which would have a handset price of £70. Got to say the specs look pretty good and I know who the company are (much to the surprise of the CS rep) so the name doesn't bother me. I think the guy said its the 4G version but should probably check.

Spec wise its better than the S3 Mini on paper and I apprecaite it wont be worth much in 18 months but then for £70 on a £7/month contract I'm not that concerned.

So seems like a good deal to me at £70 vs £150 for the S3 Mini?
Anyone think the others are a better option?

Cisco001

Ascend P1 has far better spec than s3 mini. And it is 4G.

latecomer

That was my thoughts and much as I'd like the latest and greatest there isn't really much point sending another £80-130 to get something I'm not really going to benefit from.

thanks for the reply.

rolstherat

I have the Ascend P1 LTE version. Its not bad but not great. Its worth considering as a cheap possibility. I am happy enough with it but has some annoyances

latecomer

Cut a long story short - couldn't get the Ascend so ended up going for the Xperia J. Dont think there was much to choose between it and the Ace 2.

katejo

latecomer wrote: »

Cut a long story short - couldn't get the Ascend so ended up going for the Xperia J. Dont think there was much to choose between it and the Ace 2.

Are you happy with it ? I am considering replacing my old Nokia with an Xperia when my contract runs out soon

latecomer

Dont have it yet - going to be delivered tomorrow. I'm sure it will be fine as it will be a big step up from my current LG P500

latecomer

katejo wrote: »

Are you happy with it ? I am considering replacing my old Nokia with an Xperia when my contract runs out soon

A long overdue response - finally got the replacement phone last week.

First impressions are good - the only thing thats not great is the camera in low light but then thats no great surprise. The screen is a vast improvement over my old phone and general surfing is much better - partly due to the larger and higher res screen and partly due to it being quicker.

The video and pictures I've taken in good light are perfectly acceptable for my use (generally updating the grand parents on their grandson's development!)

Emails are unchanged. Apps are the same obviously.
I dont watch video/films on my phone so cant comment on that.

If you've got any questions just let me know.