iOS + Android (and others) MEGATHREAD

[Retardobot]

So, it's that time of the year where the handset releases are coming thick and fast.

So far we have:

The HTC One: http://www.htc.com/www/smartphones/htc-one/
Blackberry's Z10: http://us.blackberry.com
Sony Xperia Z: http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/phones/xperia-z/
Samsung Galaxy 4: http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s_iv-5125.php
Apple's iPhone 6?: Nothing yet.
(Any Windows 8 flagship phones?)

I'll be looking at picking up a high-end smartphone sometime around March/April and have my heart set on the HTC One (depending on price) as I'm currently using a Huawei Ascend G3. But in all honesty, I am really looking forward to what Apple offer. They really can't afford to release another iPhone 4. I love the physical design of the iphone 4 & 5 which is why I am really interested in the HTC One and the Z10.

[Growler]

I have been doing heaps of research on the entry-mid range phones $250-400 bracket. Fuck me there are a heap of options.

The ones that come up recommended the most are the:

Sony Xperia Sola : http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/phones/xperia-sola/
Sony Xperia P: http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/phones/xperia-p/
Huawei G600 : http://www.huaweidevice.com/worldwide/productFeatures.do?pinfoId=3442&directoryId=6001&treeId=3745&tab=0
LG L7 (P705) : http://www.lg.com/nz/mobile-phones/lg-Optimus-L7-LG-P705
Motorola Atrix 2 : http://www.motorola.com/us/consumers/MOTOROLA-ATRIX-2/73912,en_US,pd.html

I have looked and errrr over them all, but in all honesty I have 0 knowledge on android and their phones.

On paper the G600 reads the best, but people say the atrix 2 when on sale at $200 is by far the best value mid range android phone on the market.

Any input from people with a clue would be great!

[Retardobot]

The Atrix appears to have it in the bag.

qHD 4.3" screen coupled with the handset design does it for me. It has the same CPU as the others (bar the G600 with its 1.2GHZ DC).

[Growler]

What's the difference in all the screens and types, care to do a rough laymans breakdown?

Also, what's the NFC/NGC?? thing that's in phones.

[Retardobot]

NFC = Near Field Communication.

It doesn't really have a place yet (by which I mean I have yet to see it take off in the public domain), but it lets phones communicate with devices by simply being in close proximity.

As for differing screen types - http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/best-phone-screen-display-tech-explained-951855

A lot of them change due to handset size.

[Benji77]

NFC tags are great.

I use a couple. Got one in my car that turns on bluetooth, gps. It turns off wifi and turns up the brightness.
Just put the phone in the holder and its ready to go. No need to do anything with it.

[Retardobot]

Oh sweet! I love the tech, just haven't seen it being deployed in common places yet.

[Growler]

Thanks Rii

[toofast]

Yea i would buy the atrix. Getting it for $200 would be a great deal.

EDIT:Wait no JB? Is it on the cards for a release. A cortex A9 1gb ram should run it nicely.

[swindle]

High end phone?

S4 or bust tbh. Anything else (bar the the Sony for its toughness if that is a factor) is borderline on a waste of time.

Only phone I'd drop 1g into is Samsung flagship. Was very tempted to on-sell my S3 in favor of the Nexus 4, but don't feel its worth the time/hassle due to the S4 being ever so close.

Nexus 4 is a design and feel that makes me spray semen like a fire hydrant all fucked up.

The S4 will kill it in DPI/Resolution/CPU/RAM.

And, iPhone Rii? Gutted dude. That phone can fuck right off. I'd rather be in control of my phone. Dual-booting 2 versions of Jellybean on my S3 now. Custom as fuck. Battery life is epic and my UI is EXACTLY how I want it.

[Retardobot]

I didn't say I wanted an iPhone, just very very interested at what Apple does to keep its fans spending money. Because Apple lovers are on the edge, if they're given another re-hash, even they're going to walk.

I'd love a Galaxy Note 2, but that shit is expensive.

[swindle]

And a re-hash they will get. They stray any other way, they'll look like they're going back on themselves. Android is already half the market, the S4 (and a few other devices) will kill iOS, at least imo.

They better have a deep, amazing hat full of tricks we ain't seen yet, cause once you enter a world of custom Android, anything iPhone looks like a fucking joke.

That shit is for old people man. People who care not to think, not to try, not to be interested, but to look they are smarter then they are.

[Retardobot]

I'm going to order a Nexus 4 with YouShop. $299USD + $12.50NZD for the YouShop service.

I just need a US based VPN so I can use the Google Play store.

Any recommendations on a easy to use VPN?

[swindle]

Nexus 4? You fucking champ. Enjoy the awesomeness of pure awesome.

VPN? No sir. Ask Spacemonkey? I'm a reacharound will get him over the line

[.osiRiS]

Ive been using iOS for 3years now and might make the change to android, iOS 6 has been nothing but annoying and the JB community has been slow to follow suit so my custom themes and tweaks aren't as I want them.

S4 looks promising but why so goddam big.

[Growler]

That shit is for old people man. People who care not to think, not to try, not to be interested, but to look they are smarter then they are.

you know some people just want a phone that works out of the box and continues working? Like derps with PC's! And that's where a iPhone fits in.

 A small miniority of users are probably power users like your self swindle? android or ios.

Rii, VPN for store? is the store ip blocked?

I use these guys for netflix etc.  http://www.unotelly.com/unodns/pricing

[Retardobot]

Yeah, Google Play Store for devices is IP locked. I got in and could order but - Nexus 4 is not available. Apparently it's not shipping for another 3 weeks. Stock levels are dead I assume.

I ended up using a free one - HideIPVPN, worked a treat.

[Growler]

So will the nexus 4 never be available here?

Derp, sorry, just way fucking more expensive!

[Retardobot]

So will the nexus 4 never be available here?

Only through importers for a massive premium. PriceSpy has it listed at $600+

Google are having difficulty supplying to the US so I don't think it's ever going to make its way here in a retail capacity.

[Retardobot]

Well, I put an order through anyway.

Apparently Google ship before the estimated time of shipping and don't charge before it's shipped. So I'll see how it goes. I may cancel if I get antsy.

I'll post updates if you're keen, Growler. It's come to about $390 total (including shipping and YouShop's fee/shipping). It may not ship for another 2 weeks but for that price you get:

DISPLAY: True HD IPS Plus capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors, 768 x 1280 pixels, 4.7 inches (~318 ppi pixel density)
MEMORY: 8 GB storage, 2 GB RAM
CAMERA: Primary 8 MP, Secondary 1.3 MP
VIDEO: 1080p@30fps
OS: Android OS, v4.2 (Jelly Bean), upgradable to v4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)
CPU:   Quad-core 1.5 GHz Krait
GPU:   Adreno 320

[Growler]

It's huge overkill for me mate, I need a phone, alarm, true gps, a shitty camera for onsite photos with instant outgoing email. The only other thing I will use it for is camera control.

I will literally never do anything else on it, never be incoming emails synching etc, will never browse on it etc etc etc.

Oh I might do a weather forecast on it once in a blue moon.

Plus I think 4.7 is too big. How big is an S3? I had a play wtih Jontys and all I could think was that it was so fucking massive that it was impractical to me.

Hell though in saying that I'll give swindle $250 for his S3

[Retardobot]

True.

It would be overkill. But it sits within your budget of $250 - $400.

[Growler]

good point!

so $200 Atrix vs $400 nexus

[swindle]

Once you use a 4.5"+ screen, you won't go back.

Its not actually that big, you're just not used to it. Once you are, you love it, and smaller screens seem pretty impractical on a device that can do so much.

Remember when a 24" LCD monitor for a computer was massive? I was happy with my 19", and didn't see a need to upgrade to anything larger. Now look, a 24" is bog standard.

You can buy my S3 off me for $250, but when the S4 is available that is  *serious buzz though, my S3 will be going cheep once that S4 is out, so feel free to PM me in regards to queuing it up*

[Growler]

sure bro, how long till S4 is out?

I think it may be too long thou, I really need to do something in the next few weeks.