New phone

[wiggy]

I have a Samsung android and it is the mutts nuts

[Iffy's Onion Bhaji]

I have a Samsung android and it is the mutts nuts

Which one? I've heard some really good things about the new Galaxy S2. Fastest phone out there by a street apparently.

[Nomoreheroes]

Might sound a bit daft, but what do you use these fancy phones for (apart from talking and texting people)?

[Iffy's Onion Bhaji]

Might sound a bit daft, but what do you use these fancy phones for (apart from talking and texting people)?

Facebook and Twitter and TEF.

[Simon Pieman]

Might sound a bit daft, but what do you use these fancy phones for (apart from talking and texting people)?

Pretty much anything. It's like having a mini computer.

There's the obvious email, internet and social networking. You can use it for maps and navigation. Music, video and taking the odd photo. There are also loads of apps for various things, I have a habit of losing my guitar tuner so I often use an app I have on my phone. Or if I'm watching F1 I can have the live timings app open if I want to see what's happening further down the field at any given time. There are apps for things like paypal and live football scores - they just make accessing particular information quicker than on the internet.

I was a complete skeptic until I got one. It hasn't changed my life but it is really useful.

[Sippo]

Might sound a bit daft, but what do you use these fancy phones for (apart from talking and texting people)?

It's amazing what apps you can get now. For example, [gay] I use the baby centre app..[/gay]

[wiggy]

Which one? I've heard some really good things about the new Galaxy S2. Fastest phone out there by a street apparently.

I have a Samsung Europa, which is a bit smaller than the Galaxy and the processor is only half the speed. It is noticeably slower for general internet use (this forum for example) but is still quick if you are accessing info through apps (sports news, facebook, twitter etc).

Although you could probably get a better deal now, it is costing me £20 per month and came with a PS3. It was the PS3 which swung it for me, I was going to get a Galaxy but my boys' old PS2 had finally given up the ghost.

[sonicyouth]

Thanks all. I'll have a look at some android phones as well.

[Chubbs]

im an iphone convert, I have bad mouthed them for years and almost 2 years ago i went for a HTC HD2 (win mob) but since my missus got me an ipod touch for my birthday i've been converted and will more than likley get an iphone in november.

[The Grim Reaper]

If your used and happy with the iPhone 3 or 3gs i would stick with the iPhone 4 ( or iPhone 5 due later in year). I changed to HTC Desire which was ok but took it back within 2 weeks and got iPhone 4 as i just couldnt get on with it at easily/happily as I did with the iPhone 3gs. Plus i'm a big user of iTunes with the mp3 player on the HTC not half as good as iPod etc.

[jonny72]

jonny - why does he wish he bought an iPhone instead? What issues does he have with the Windows 7 phone?

I'm leaning towards the iPhone, I must admit. I've never found that iOS has any limitations that bother me aside from the lack of flash.

- Partly due to our piss taking as he's the only one with a Windows phone.
- Partly due to it being a bit picky when it comes to connecting via Active Sync to MS Exchange.
- Partly due to the lack of apps.

To be fair there is some good stuff on it like the Office support but all round it's a poor choice at the moment.

[jonny72]

Apple seem to be losing ground in the smartphone market though. Their actual phones in terms of specs compared to some of the latest Android phones are pretty poor. The apps aren't all free like they are on Android either. People are starting to slowly realise that you don't have to pay £100 plus on top of a contract just to get a decent phone and OS. A lot of the iPhone's success has been down to many Apple fanboys. Without them their market share would be a lot lower than it currently is.

The spec comparison comes down to Apple's product cycles more than anything. They only update their iOS products once a year and when they do they're generally ahead of the competition. Others release as new tech becomes available so they jump ahead. But it's not that clear cut, Apple have the resources in house to design custom chips solely for their OS which gives them an edge and then there is the volumes they sell and their cash which aids in purchasing.

Don't get the fanboy angle - they only account for a small percentage of their iOS sales. It's also misleading to do a straight sales comparison between iOS and Android as everyone is making Android devices rather than the one company making iOS devices. Apple must be doing something right as they take something like 50% of the profit made by the mobile phone industry as a whole.

Not sure what the problem is with app pricing either. Find it hard to believe that apps you have to pay for on iOS are free on Android - doesn't make sense. Or do companies like EA give away all their games on Android?

[magicroundabout]

have you tried turning off the 3g to see if signal improves? i had to do that with my vodafone contract here untill i swapped to O2 and now get 3g everywhere i go.

[sonicyouth]

- Partly due to our piss taking as he's the only one with a Windows phone.
- Partly due to it being a bit picky when it comes to connecting via Active Sync to MS Exchange.
- Partly due to the lack of apps.

To be fair there is some good stuff on it like the Office support but all round it's a poor choice at the moment.

Cheers.

The lack of apps is one of my concerns.

[Samdy Gray]

If your used and happy with the iPhone 3 or 3gs i would stick with the iPhone 4 ( or iPhone 5 due later in year). I changed to HTC Desire which was ok but took it back within 2 weeks and got iPhone 4 as i just couldnt get on with it at easily/happily as I did with the iPhone 3gs. Plus i'm a big user of iTunes with the mp3 player on the HTC not half as good as iPod etc.

I ditched my iPhone 3G for a Desire and absolutely love it. I thought I'd struggle without iTunes, but honestly I'm much better off without it.

You say the music player on the Desire is not as good as the iPhone, but I actually find it much better.