Cell Phones

[kaboom]

Yes......I know......MOTORCYCLE forum......

Anyway......the wife and I are thinking about getting internet enabled cell phones.......and I figure someone here might know a little about them.....

We are looking at Straighttalk pay as you go and AT&T Iphones......

The total price per month is not significantly different.......but there is no contract with pay as you go......so if money gets tight we just don't pay it.......not an option with AT&T......

The straighttalk phones give you mobile internet......apparently the Iphone gives you regular internet.......what is the difference? Is it worth getting a contract? Anyone ever use both types and can give a comparison? Is there something better I am not considering? Why do they make this so hard?:bang head:

 

[gamorg02]

typically mobile web just means its capable of accessing the web via your mobile device as far as i know. i've alwasy felt like the support and quality of service of a pay as you go is spotty at best, no real concrete evidence just kind of a gut feeling. its gotta be significantly less expensive yes?

it looks like straighttalks only mobile web phone is like $400....

 

[kaboom]

typically mobile web just means its capable of accessing the web via your mobile device as far as i know. i've alwasy felt like the support and quality of service of a pay as you go is spotty at best, no real concrete evidence just kind of a gut feeling. its gotta be significantly less expensive yes?

it looks like straighttalks only mobile web phone is like $400....

Apparently......the Iphone gives you internet like a laptop .......but from what I am hearing the Straighttalk does not.......you have to use mobile versions of Ebay and Weather.com and sites like Vmaxforum don't work and stuff looks different...

Straighttalk has a Samsung slider for $120.00 or so......that is capable of mobile internet.....

The monthly fees are not much different $90.00 per month pay as you go unlimited.......About $110.00 or so for AT&T with more than we will ever use but not unlimited.....

As for service........The Net10 phones we have now work well.....no problems......and Straighttalk is the same company.......I just don't want some hamstrung, useless version of internet

 

[gamorg02]

hmm. those apps can sometimes be pretty nice but if they don't have the apps for the sites/tools u use its pretty useless. i'm happy with my sprint deal so far, i haven't ever used straightalk so its tough to tell. i know everyone that has an iphone loves it.

 

[davidon]

Personally if I did it over I would just go back to my phone with no internet.

 

[PATMAX]

Kaboom, I used to have the shitiest, cheapest do nothing pnone money could buy Nokia cell phone for the longest time. I have a few family members that got iphones and I thought it was cool to be able to ebay on the go. Well, my wife surprised me with one when our AT&T contract was ending and I have a standard 3G with no texting and unlimited internet. I am constantly on it, have no dropped calls, have over 1,000 songs on it, a decent camera I do all my ebay and email pictures with and have not had a single issue. For 99 bucks, and a thirty dollar monthly fee, you cannot go wrong. I think it is a truly standard setting piece of technology and I try to sell everyone I know on them. Millions of people cannot be wrong. I will never be able to go backwards. Single drawback is battery life. Patmax

 

[mattness]

i actually sell phones all day long where i work, out every 10 phones we sell 9 are ST, good luck finding any of them other than the 39 dollar one.

straight talk is 45 bucks a month for unlimited everything, minutes, texts, and data, any time to any network.

they are owned by net10 and tracfone but use VERIZON SIGNAL

)))some contract phones are 40 bucks for data ALONE!!!(((

if ur low on cash you can buy the 30 dollar card, which would give you 1000 minutes, 1000 texts, and 30 mb of data.

or, just dont pay it at all, its ur choice and wont bomb ur credit.

if u break your phone, no biggy, just buy a new one for 39 bucks.

they are 39 bucks for a very basic phone with a crappy browser and no music, it just beeps. if the phone breaks you can sell the battery for 30 bucks alone and the charger is worth 15

79 dollar one plays MP3s and has a much better broswer, it slides up vertically to show its keys, but you can answer a call without opening it.

99 dollars gives you the slider samsung, it slides horizontally so you have a massive full keyboard to type with. when it is slid open the screen flips so the screen is big. you can also answer calls and view messages without sliding it open.

the 330 dollar ST phone has the rowdiest broswer of all. i havent played with it yet but it looks like a touch screen with a few keys at the bottom.

since theyre wal mart only u can return em no problem. i think pre pay phones are 90 days.

the cards dont roll over so youll need to get one once a month (duh)



ST for the unlimited everything only costs 540 a year



tracfone is 20 dollar for 60 minutes. a text is 1/3rd of a minute. so you can send 90 and receive 90, and the card is done. i use around 200 a day. 20 dollars a day for 30 days... 600 dollars for one month. 7200 a year just for texts if u buy minimum cards... ouch!!



verizon and At&T pre paid are 25 cents a minute 20 cents a text
the first package is $1 per day and 10 cents a minute and 10 cents a text

so if you talk for 30 minutes thats 3 dollars, and use 50 texts(25 sent, 25 received) thats 5 dollars, AND your 1 dollar charge... thats 9 dollars a day

270 dollars a month. or 3200 a year















the iphone if you were to do bare minimum minutes(i believe 600 minutes no nights and weekends no mobile to mobile) for 49.99, add data for 29.99 and unlimted text for 10.00, plus your deposit and activation fee, and the 100 to 200 dollars for the phone out right... is expensive.

the cheap iphone is slow as balls and is only 8gigs of space, the 16g 3gS is much faster, 40% at least, and holds twice the space, and has many more features.

the web broswer is nice, but thats all it is. the iphone is flashy and the kids love it.



if u cancel the data plan they turn off your phone

we have punk kids come in and buy ipods that dont own a single song lol just to be cool


so for this phone, plus insurance, and your package, and the initial cost and activation fees, is prolly gona be around 1600 a year after tax for minimum minutes package.


several phones can use this website and watch youtube videos, you dont have to use the iphone, i would honestly try to use the 99 dollar ST phone if u can find one and see what it can do. for 45 bucks a month even if the phone sucks... its 45 a month.... half what the other phones cost.

 

[kaboom]

Mattness......Thanks.....wow lots of info.....I'll see if I can find someone with a Straighttalk phone:clapping:

 

[EvilD]

Good info Matt. Kaboom, what ever you do, don't buy a Blackberry Flip, mine has been replaced (for free) 4 times in the last 9 months, big pile of shit.

 

[RaWarrior]

I have an old(er) Verizon horizontal flip-phone, the kind that opens sideways to reveal a keyboard inside. It's the original "enV", which I've had for about 3 years now. Some of the buttons on it died about 6 months in and I got a replacement for free, otherwise it's been good. I don't play games, watch TV, or have to update facebook every 5 seconds. I use it as a phone, and every so often send some text messages.

I had been considering one of the new Droid smartphones, but ended up getting a ipod touch instead(which is an iphone, sans the phone part). It gets email, internet, all the same apps, ect. Plus, there's no monthly fee for any of it past the initial purchase.

The iPhone is rather expensive if you actually want to make use of its features. Sure, you can get the basic, stripped down cheapo service for a limited number of minutes a month, and pay-per-megabyte for all the data(which is extraordinarily expensive). Just loading a website on the browser could cost you a dollar or two in data fees. The unlimited data package is like an extra $30 a month.

Plus, the iPhone has really shitty battery life compared to "regular" phones. My 3 year old enV(still original battery) will easily go all week without a charge, and easily is good for 5-6 hours talk time.

Straight Talk is one of the better deals out there for pay-as-you-go. I'd go with them if you want to avoid contracts and just want basic phone features.

I've been looking at now one of Verizon's Casio G-shock phones. They're completely waterproof, extremely shock-resistant, and supposedly won't crap out in cold temperatures like my phone likes to do now. It's also got some neat gadgets like a thermometer, barometer/altimiter and some other stuff. I've held onto my phone for 3 years now without losing/killing it, but it looks like it's been through a war.

 

[mattness]

our crappiest phone is the sony ericcson, so many problems... randomly the signal turns red and you cant make calls or text. theyre dead if u drop em from more than 5 feet. just complete garbage. samsung phones are gonna last your full 2 year contract. nokias are going to lose all their paint in 6 months, Motorolas and sonys are going to fall apart. LG seems to be average. blackberry and iphones seem ok, however i get a lot of iphones back with cracked screens from the person bending their leg while its in their pocket. someone paying 500 bucks for a new phone is sad

our crappiest laptops are ACERs, lines in screen, keys breaking from tapping too hard, hard drive failures.. etc. out of every 10 laptop returns that i test maybe 5 actually have something wrong with them and i bet of those 5 two to 3 are acer. .... HPs are too dumbed down to break... honestly i bet emachine has the best track record... and theyre cheap!

anything RCA is a pile of shit. i might sell 3 RCA tvs a month and theyre almost always returned. the rca cd players wont lock after you open/close them 20 times... the hook is soft plastic and it shaves it off... the rca mp3 players take about 3 minutes per gig of music on your player to load so u can even get to the starting menu.

sony and samsung TVs almost never come back. i had one kid return a samsung that wouldnt fit in his dorm room and he bought a size smaller. i get sonys back when the price drops on them.. they rebuy them.

phillips tvs blow too. just got another one back last night with a speaker not working. i get several back with really dim bulbs or even completely burnt out backlights. they must reuse old bulbs to save cash in the factory when they do warranty work and tear the tvs down.

VIZIOs honestly arent all theyre cracked up to be. i sell quite a few but i get quite a few returned also. especially the 120hz models. they make things have red shadows... particularly the 55 inch model. ive only sold 5 personally and 2 have been returned with that same problem. they are fine on 60hz.

we also had some smaller vizios where the buttons were falling through the inside of the tv... so u had to poke an ink pen inside to change the channel.


our best track records for TVs are sony samsung and sanyo... its to the point now that theyre all only 100 bucks apart at the most. id just get a sony and not look back.



also dont buy anything on black friday that you actually want to keep and use. check the model numbers and see if they end in "WM" or "BF" walmart and blackfriday
chances are youre getting a complete piece of shit.

if u buy a dell from walmart... youre paying top dollar for cheap stuff

 

[project85]

I use T-Mobile who have an unlimited plan for 49.99 with no contract. They are also a GSM network like AT&T. Which just means you use a sim card in your phone and anytime you switch phones or have to get a new one all your numbers are stored to the sim card...

I also use the IPHONE, yes I said the Iphone on T-Mobile. All you have to do is buy an jailbroke and unlocked IPHONE (lots on ebay, I just did it myself with the tons of free online help and software that does it for you) and put your T-Mobile sim card in it and whala. T-Mobile also has a 10 dollar unlimited internet plan that is only supposed to work on there plain phones without full web like featers, but because the Iphone is unlocked it gets it all since you can tell the Iphone what cellular data network to use and it also has WIFI.

I used to work for T-Mobile back in the day and no all the ends and outs of most big cell phone companies. I will tell you if you just a plan phone kind of guy then you will hate the IPHONE, I did for about the first week or two. Then you start to figure it out and learn how things work and now I cant stop using it. If I wanted to I could of wrote this whole post using my Iphone... Plus all the cool make your life easy APPs. Like me and the wife love to use REDBOX movie rentals and if were just out driving we can use the REDBOX APP and pre rent the movie on the go. Not to mention the GPS, MAPS, MP3's, Weather, Calender, TV, and everything else you could ever think of is on this phone or can be with an APP. Just the other night I downloaded an APP that lets me use my IPHONE as my mouse and keyboard for my computer/laptop. So when my laptop is hooked up to my big HD TV and I want to watch some of my movies or shows I have dowloaded I can just sit back and use my Iphone as the mouse and keyboard. And if your like me and have 6 different remotes to controle your TV, Cable, Sound, DVD and so on, there is a APP that will make your Iphone do it all for you....

I just fell you can not go wrong with an Iphone, but its one of these things you get what you pay for...

Just my 2 cents
Robert.

 

[dkw0417]

I will second the tmoble bit. I have never had a problem with it, although they are considered the cheap brand and behind the times. They are also always behind on getting good phones. That being said they do have several android powered phones, which are really cool. I personally use a G1 and love it, full keyboard, touch screen, built in GPS with voice turn by turn directions. I would love to get an Nexus 1 but can't afford the 430 for the phone from goggle. The android phones are getting better everyday and it is amazing how fast they are catching the iphones and blackberries.

The difference between mobile internet and regular is pretty simple. Only some sites have mobile versions. If you have only mobile internet you can only see the site with mobile versions(most main stream sites have mobile versions). Regular internet is just like it sounds, minus anything that contains flash. You can see youtube on most phones because they have made youtube work on phones, but most things that are made using flash won't show on a phone.

After saying all this I am kinda staring to feel like phones are like motorcycles, everyone has their own taste and needs. You just gotta take your timeand find what fits you.

 

[RaWarrior]

Wow mattness, I totally agree with everything you said--I've noticed a lot of the same things. You work in an electronics store or something?

I used to have a Samsung flip-phone, which was when the camera-phone just came out. I still have it(deactivated) but totally functional. It went in the lake three separate times and came back after each one. After the second the small outer screen got really faint and blue-tinged, but the main screen was fine and it worked fine.

I've had two models of LG's and four phones...two of each. One was an older flip-phone, when the "media MP3 player" phone was new. That one kinda sucked. The keyboard went totally dead after like 6 months, and the battery life always sucked. The music quality was so-so at best. I got a replacement, but the charging jack ripped out of that one after like a month, which apparently completely killed the phone.

I have a tube-type Philips TV that's okay, though honestly I rarely use it anymore. Have an older Sanyo tube that's still good as new probably 10 years later.

I stopped buying RCA stuff a while ago- after buying one of their mp3 players. Quality was shitty, loading took ages, and it died after falling like 2 feet onto carpet. I bought a Philips 'GoGear" mp3 player after that, which worked great for a cheapo player, before finally breaking down and getting an iTouch. The parents bought a RCA tube tv a while ago and the tube "died" after like 3 months. It looked like a TV in a bar that's been on nonstop for years, all faded and the color was messed up. They got a replacement, then that one's remote sensor worked for a full week before crapping out. Then the tube died in a similar fashion. They bought a JVC, and that's had zero issues, and my dad is quite the couch potato, so to speak.

Have a 42" Vizio in my dorm room. Works fine, built in speakers are surprisingly decent, though it's hooked up to an external stereo. I have to wonder if all the "discount" HDTV's aren't all made by the same company. I have a tiny 17"(though still 1080p...bought it for my PS3) Polaroid branded tv on my desk. Got it 2 years ago for $150 brand new at wally world. It was in the clearance bin. Still haven't seen another small screen that gets full 1080, and have yet to see one under $200, even now 2 years later. Works great, picture is really sharp and very minimal motion blur. Though the on-screen menus look virtually identical to the big Vizio, which also look the same as a friend's "Element" branded tv.

Didn't know about the WM and BF tags...I'll have to keep an eye out for those. Think the BF labeled ones are actually refurbs or "seconds"?

 

[kaboom]

Well......The wife just made the decision for me.....contract and 2 Iphones.....:biglaugh::damn angry::confused2:

 

[mattness]

congrats on the iphones. buy a rubber case to protect it from impact shock and youll get an extra 2 months out of the phone easy.

p.s. just got another philips tv back tonight. screen randomly flashes white on and off. got a compaq laptop back that had several random keys not working, they just bought it too. weird

oh and one more thing.

SCREEN PROTECTOR!!!! i cant stress enough how important these are. i recommend the "writeright" brand. if ur gonna buy the precut iphone ones you only get 2 and are more expensive, but you save time. i wouldnt open the damn thing til it had a screen protector on it

 

[kaboom]

congrats on the iphones. buy a rubber case to protect it from impact shock and youll get an extra 2 months out of the phone easy.

p.s. just got another philips tv back tonight. screen randomly flashes white on and off. got a compaq laptop back that had several random keys not working, they just bought it too. weird

oh and one more thing.

SCREEN PROTECTOR!!!! i cant stress enough how important these are. i recommend the "writeright" brand. if ur gonna buy the precut iphone ones you only get 2 and are more expensive, but you save time. i wouldnt open the damn thing til it had a screen protector on it

Thanks for all your help......and all the tips:clapping:

 

[4gasem]

I have had ALL 3 iPhones and they are ALL great. I currently have a 3Gs 32gb and it's a great phone. I can surf all my forums and they look exactly the same as a standard computer. The AT&T network in my area is strong and works very well but I realize that certain areas are weak, but that can be said for any carrier.

My buddy just got the new Motorola Droid which is a lot like an iPhone and he loves it. It's a little less easy to use than the iPhone IMO but still the best non iPhone I've seen...

Chris

 

[mattness]

another thing to remember is all cell phones use lithium batteries just like laptops. so dont let them die. if u keep them above 50% charge... they will last much much longer.

for example, most cellular batteries are 3.7volts(thats how much a single pouch of a lithium battery produces, compared to alkaline.. 1.5 volts, and nickel.. 1.2) they are full voltage until they start to die.. they fall on their face!!

at 100% battery life they read 3.7 volts
at 75% battery life, they read 3.7 volts
at 50% battery life, they read 3.7 volts.
at 25% they read 3.69
when your battery says it is low... the voltage cut off turns your phone off. (this is why u can keep turning it on over and over and it shuts itself back down....)

if u let the battery droop down to 3 volts, you just damaged its TOTAL life and charge caspacity be 30%

if u let it reach 1 volt, it will hold a charge for 20 minutes maximum.

if u let it reach any lower than 1 volt, throw it away, it will never hold a charge again. the cathode got smacked... literally... the anode touched the cathode... they will never separate again.


lithium batteries are actually in a "pouch", the plastic around them is a case to protect it. if u expose a LI-Ion battery to oxygen, it will catch on fire!!! fun fun fun. it is very violent.. they actually sit there and burn like a sparkler until the battery reaches 0 volts



an alkaline battery loses power gradually. when they are full they make 1.5 volts,
at half dead, they made .75.

the problem with that, especially in cameras and such, is the camera needs at least 1 volt (for example) to take a picture... even though the battery still has half its life remaining.. the camera thinks it is dead. you can pull that battery out and use it in your tv remote for another 2 years.

alkaline only lose 1 to 2% of their battery life per month.... if u keep them refrigerated.... they only lose 1 to 2 % a YEAR!!! alkaline performs very poorly under high drain devices, like RC cars or cameras. it is very good in emergency equipment though because u can pick it up in a year when you need it and it will still have a charge


Nickel produce 1.2 volts, and lose power gradually, however they have much more current, so even though they produce less voltage than an alkaline.. their power is identical.
it really shines in a high power device pulling a lot of amperage, these will hold a charge much longer in a camera or RC car, 40% or more

now there are 2 types, Ni Cd and Ni Mh

NiCd has a memory effect. if u charge it when its only half dead... it remembers that... and will no longer hold anymore than half a charge

when you charge.. it produces tiny crystals in the paste of the cell... however if u keep charging at half capacity(think a cordless house phone for example, every night you oput it on the charger.. even though its not dead) the crystals build up in one spot... blocking off the rest of the battery. that is why when you put them in a battery tester, they still read 1.2 volts... even though they appear to be dead.


NiMh has no memory effect, so u can charge it whenever you want. the crystals push off of each other(electricity.. think magnetic..) preventing a blockage


heres a few tricks for anyone who has read this far...

if u need more voltage because ur about to get eaten by a lion and ur battery is dead... put it in your arm pit... heat the battery up,
heating the battery causes the chemical process to react faster... producing more voltage for a short time

to have a longer battery life on a single charge... charge it slower.. a house charger for example.
charging a battery is like building a ladder... the faster you charge it... the less steps you have to climb up... however, you also have less to climb down on..
the slower you charge it, the longer it will last.

the heavier the battery, the longer the life. literally. especially true with NiCd and NiMh



(when we raced RC cars, if we had a short 3 minute race.. we would charge them at 6 to 10 amps... (a 3 minute charge) and the 7.2 volt batteries would read as high as 10 volts, but by the time we got the battery in the car and on the track they were at 9 volts. for the first few laps we would have a very fast car, but it would lose its charge fast, by the final lap the battery would read 6 volts.

for long races we would have special batteries we charged over night... they only read 7.3 or 7.4 volts.. but we could do a 10 minute race and test the battery and they would still read 6 volts.)



dont charge your battery while discharging it. if u feel any heat, that is wasted electricity.. literally, that is how electricity dissipates.. through heat. youre hurting your batteries life.


i have a certificate in DC electronics(direct current... battery power) lol
im waiting on electric cars

 

[kaboom]

I used to race RC cars too!!!!!:eusa_dance:

Nobody does it around here anymore:confused2: