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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Feb 15, 2017 9:34:58 GMT -5
Looking for suggestions, guys ... currently using a Blackberry Classic and I'll be moving on from BB ... see a lot of people using Samsung these days ... thanks in advance ...
Cheers.
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Post by blny on Feb 15, 2017 12:52:45 GMT -5
Dis,
I had been with Bell from 2004 through most of 2015. As far as network quality and strength goes, they're hard to beat. The contract cost was just too much though. I was pay about $65/mo for the smartphone plan I had. I'd gone a year month to month and in 2015 looked to upgrade my phone.
First things first, I was going to have to move to a different plan. The plan was more expensive ($75), offered less features, and I was going to have to pay an upfront, reduced cost for the phone I wanted. No loyalty offering for a customer of 10 years. Nada.
So, I shopped around. Eastlink is a cable/internet/landline provider that started out east, but has moved to other areas including Ontario. A comparable plan was $45, and I could 'tab' the cost of the phone based on a contract over the two year contract. For whatever reason, I didn't pass the credit check. I passed it to buy a car in the spring, but I digress lol. That meant buying the phone outright, at full cost. So, I sat down and worked it out. Over a two year contract, buying the phone for $800 and signing with Eastlink was still $400 cheaper than staying with Bell. So I left. Eastlink uses the Roger's network for the cellular business. I haven't had any issues with it. Rogers might be a little weaker in rural areas, but I'm usually in a built up area so it's a non-issue for me.
Both my parents have moved to Virgin Mobile. Virgin doesn't tend to offer the most current phones, but their plans are excellent and typically affordable. They're on the Bell network. If you go to one of their wickets in Walmart, they typically offer good incentives. My parents upgraded this winter. They got new phones AND $100 gift cards to Walmart.
One of my sisters just moved to Eastlink and got a new iPhone 6s. She's happy.
I am presently using a Samsung Note 5. It's a good phone. It's large, but my hands are big enough that it isn't an issue for me. The biggest knock is that the battery is sealed. So, if the battery fails, the phone's done. You can't replace the battery. I'm due for upgrade in September and may look at the LG 5 for that reason. The Note doesn't have a slot to expand storage with a micro SD card either.
I get two days out of a charge and basic use. If I'm on it a lot, I'll likely need to charge before end of day. The Note does allow for 'fast charging'. Not all smart phones do. It cuts the charge time dramatically. From dead, fast charge typically takes about an hour to get to 100%. It's about half, or even less, than a standard charge time. The screen is the killer of course. Android typically isn't too hard on battery life. There was a system update in the Fall that caused some issues. It was chewing battery life after it. I killed a bunch of stuff, but nothing really seamed to cure it. There was a second smaller patch that came out and did. So, I'm back to my typically charge span.
If there's a phone you're interested in, type the name into youtube. You'll find a slew of reviews.
Hope that helped some.
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Feb 17, 2017 8:25:05 GMT -5
Thanks for getting back to me, BLNY ... the current BB Classic I'm using is very limited in what it can do ... the camera is terrible and I see a lot of companies aren't making apps for it any longer ... I'm looking at a Samsung but I'm not sure which model ... I used to own an LG window-based phone before and I liked it a lot ... thanks again ...
Cheers.
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Post by PTH on Feb 17, 2017 8:43:48 GMT -5
I'm with Koodo and I find their plans competitive and very transparent (Koodo is on the Telus network).
I've only had a galaxy III and I've liked it, so I'm likely to go for a galaxy 7 at some point.
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Post by blny on Feb 17, 2017 9:48:20 GMT -5
I'm with Koodo and I find their plans competitive and very transparent (Koodo is on the Telus network). I've only had a galaxy III and I've liked it, so I'm likely to go for a galaxy 7 at some point. The Galaxy 7s are where the significant battery issues exist. Just beware of that. Samsung is still stuck on sealed units with their top models. If you keep a phone longer than 2 years, that's something to consider. |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Feb 17, 2017 9:50:26 GMT -5
I'm with Koodo and I find their plans competitive and very transparent (Koodo is on the Telus network). I've only had a galaxy III and I've liked it, so I'm likely to go for a galaxy 7 at some point. Thanks PTH ... my son also mentioned Koodo ... I'll give it a looksy ... thanks again ... Cheers. |
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Post by blny on Feb 17, 2017 9:55:30 GMT -5
Thanks for getting back to me, BLNY ... the current BB Classic I'm using is very limited in what it can do ... the camera is terrible and I see a lot of companies aren't making apps for it any longer ... I'm looking at a Samsung but I'm not sure which model ... I used to own an LG window-based phone before and I liked it a lot ... thanks again ... Cheers. Welcome Dis. It's harder than buying a car lol. Plans, contracts, phones, add-ons, etc. Can get very complicated. |
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Post by PTH on Feb 17, 2017 17:02:35 GMT -5
I'm with Koodo and I find their plans competitive and very transparent (Koodo is on the Telus network). I've only had a galaxy III and I've liked it, so I'm likely to go for a galaxy 7 at some point. The Galaxy 7s are where the significant battery issues exist. Just beware of that. Samsung is still stuck on sealed units with their top models. If you keep a phone longer than 2 years, that's something to consider. thx for the heads up on that. |
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Post by PTH on Feb 17, 2017 17:03:42 GMT -5
Thanks for getting back to me, BLNY ... the current BB Classic I'm using is very limited in what it can do ... the camera is terrible and I see a lot of companies aren't making apps for it any longer ... I'm looking at a Samsung but I'm not sure which model ... I used to own an LG window-based phone before and I liked it a lot ... thanks again ... Cheers. Welcome Dis. It's harder than buying a car lol. Plans, contracts, phones, add-ons, etc. Can get very complicated. I try to break it down into pieces - the phone is one thing, the plan another. That's one reason I like Koodo, you have some pricing transparency and can work out what works for you. |
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Post by blny on Feb 17, 2017 17:23:15 GMT -5
Welcome Dis. It's harder than buying a car lol. Plans, contracts, phones, add-ons, etc. Can get very complicated. I try to break it down into pieces - the phone is one thing, the plan another. That's one reason I like Koodo, you have some pricing transparency and can work out what works for you. Yep. The bigger guys like to bundle plans like cable contracts and make it as confusing as possible. The smaller carriers, like Koodo and Virgin make it as simple as at gets because they know they have to go further to get people to see them. Eastlink is pretty good for that. |
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Post by blny on Feb 17, 2017 17:24:20 GMT -5
The Galaxy 7s are where the significant battery issues exist. Just beware of that. Samsung is still stuck on sealed units with their top models. If you keep a phone longer than 2 years, that's something to consider. thx for the heads up on that. NP. I don't know if they have all of it sorted yet. I haven't read up on it since Christmas. I'm sure there are techies keeping a watchful eye. |
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Post by Cranky on Feb 17, 2017 17:47:32 GMT -5
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Post by Cranky on Feb 17, 2017 17:55:57 GMT -5
Dis, I had been with Bell from 2004 through most of 2015. As far as network quality and strength goes, they're hard to beat. The contract cost was just too much though. I was pay about $65/mo for the smartphone plan I had. I'd gone a year month to month and in 2015 looked to upgrade my phone. First things first, I was going to have to move to a different plan. The plan was more expensive ($75), offered less features, and I was going to have to pay an upfront, reduced cost for the phone I wanted. No loyalty offering for a customer of 10 years. Nada. So, I shopped around. Eastlink is a cable/internet/landline provider that started out east, but has moved to other areas including Ontario. A comparable plan was $45, and I could 'tab' the cost of the phone based on a contract over the two year contract. For whatever reason, I didn't pass the credit check. I passed it to buy a car in the spring, but I digress lol. That meant buying the phone outright, at full cost. So, I sat down and worked it out. Over a two year contract, buying the phone for $800 and signing with Eastlink was still $400 cheaper than staying with Bell. So I left. Eastlink uses the Roger's network for the cellular business. I haven't had any issues with it. Rogers might be a little weaker in rural areas, but I'm usually in a built up area so it's a non-issue for me. Both my parents have moved to Virgin Mobile. Virgin doesn't tend to offer the most current phones, but their plans are excellent and typically affordable. They're on the Bell network. If you go to one of their wickets in Walmart, they typically offer good incentives. My parents upgraded this winter. They got new phones AND $100 gift cards to Walmart. One of my sisters just moved to Eastlink and got a new iPhone 6s. She's happy. I am presently using a Samsung Note 5. It's a good phone. It's large, but my hands are big enough that it isn't an issue for me. The biggest knock is that the battery is sealed. So, if the battery fails, the phone's done. You can't replace the battery. I'm due for upgrade in September and may look at the LG 5 for that reason. The Note doesn't have a slot to expand storage with a micro SD card either. I get two days out of a charge and basic use. If I'm on it a lot, I'll likely need to charge before end of day. The Note does allow for 'fast charging'. Not all smart phones do. It cuts the charge time dramatically. From dead, fast charge typically takes about an hour to get to 100%. It's about half, or even less, than a standard charge time. The screen is the killer of course. Android typically isn't too hard on battery life. There was a system update in the Fall that caused some issues. It was chewing battery life after it. I killed a bunch of stuff, but nothing really seamed to cure it. There was a second smaller patch that came out and did. So, I'm back to my typically charge span. If there's a phone you're interested in, type the name into youtube. You'll find a slew of reviews. Hope that helped some. Love the note 5 speed but without the micro, I'm not impressed. One thing I want now is more real estate. I wish I could get a 6" and cut down on bringing my tablet everywhere I go. If I change to Public Mobile, I'm going to hunt this one down... www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_c9_pro-8347.php |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Feb 17, 2017 23:50:05 GMT -5
Looking at that right now ... hmm ...
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Post by Cranky on Feb 20, 2017 21:21:27 GMT -5
Talked to Freedom. I'm now grandfathered for unlimited US and Canada talk, international texting, 5gb and $250 towards another phone for....$35
No direct threats, no complaints, no whiniing, just a threat gentle reminder that I know people who know hitman people that post in Kill4Profit Habsrus.......and they are hemeroging losing people to Public Mobile.
I'm now called of the hits a happier customer.
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Post by Polarice on Mar 2, 2017 14:45:18 GMT -5
Looking at that right now ... hmm ... Not sure if you switched yet...but speaking from experience, stick to the big guys, Bell or Rodgers. Telus isn't too bad but we've had problems with them. As for phones...I wish BlackBerry were still in the game, they had fantastic phones!! But when in doubt buy Apple!! |
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Post by Cranky on Mar 3, 2017 18:22:46 GMT -5
Looking at that right now ... hmm ... Not sure if you switched yet...but speaking from experience, stick to the big guys, Bell or Rodgers. Telus isn't too bad but we've had problems with them. As for phones...I wish BlackBerry were still in the game, they had fantastic phones!! But when in doubt buy Apple!! Huh? I've had nothing but perfect experience with Samsung and Android. So far, 3 S2 and 3 S4, all working, never a problem. Add on top 6 Samsung tablets. All working, never a problem. That's 12 devices. The old S2 needed new batteries but other that, work fine. One thing that may or may not be the issue. My wife simply hands me the phone to update and modify to her liking. With an iPhone, it is what it is and that's it. So the difference may come down to wanting devices that one can personalize/modify them versus just buying and using a "standard issue". . |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Mar 7, 2017 8:37:57 GMT -5
Thanks again, fellas ... I'm leaning towards a Samsung S7 right now ... avoiding Apple ... I find their support services to be convoluted ... still have 11 days to make up my mind, though ... still have to check out the Motorola line ... more to follow ...
Cheers.
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Post by Polarice on Mar 7, 2017 9:29:05 GMT -5
Thanks again, fellas ... I'm leaning towards a Samsung S7 right now ... avoiding Apple ... I find their support services to be convoluted ... still have 11 days to make up my mind, though ... still have to check out the Motorola line ... more to follow ... Cheers. That's weird...I find Apples the best (if you have an apple store near by), You buy apple warranty and you have no worries. Anything goes wrong they either fix it then and there or give you a new one. The other phones like Samsung, have to send the phones away to get fixed and they don't give you a loaner. |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Mar 7, 2017 10:19:51 GMT -5
Thanks again, fellas ... I'm leaning towards a Samsung S7 right now ... avoiding Apple ... I find their support services to be convoluted ... still have 11 days to make up my mind, though ... still have to check out the Motorola line ... more to follow ... Cheers. That's weird...I find Apples the best (if you have an apple store near by), You buy apple warranty and you have no worries. Anything goes wrong they either fix it then and there or give you a new one. The other phones like Samsung, have to send the phones away to get fixed and they don't give you a loaner. Actually, I got online and the Galaxy S7 has a replaceable battery and interchangeable SIM card ... I hadn't heard of the servicing problems, but I'll take a look for sure ... the LG 5 is on the list, as well ... thanks, Reap ... |
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Post by franko on Mar 7, 2017 10:32:27 GMT -5
Dis, the major benefit of the Android over Apple (as I see it) is the opportunity to add a memory card. my daughter has an i-phone with smaller memory and it's full; she can't do anything with it. she keeps deleting pictures and videos to make space for new ones. avoids putting music on as well. mind you, her budget was limited so she didn't get top of the line.
I had an S-3 and was fine with it but when my wife wanted to upgrade the provider offered me a free HTC M-8. it was OK, but we've both recently upped to S-7s and are quite happy with phone and especially camera quality.
Reap is right about Apple's warranty -- but you're paying $8-11 a month for the privilege of trading in instead of having the phone sent away for repair. of course, should I need to do that I have the M-8 as a back-up.
and when upgrading with any of the "big 3" my question is always "is that really all you can do?".
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Post by blny on Mar 7, 2017 12:07:46 GMT -5
I like that I can drop my android phone and not worry about it shattering. I also like not being chained to iTunes. I loath iTunes.
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Post by Cranky on Mar 7, 2017 16:52:54 GMT -5
I like that I can drop my android phone and not worry about it shattering. I also like not being chained to iTunes. I loath iTunes. Huh? Unless you have one of the Motorola phones with plexi instead of glass, all phones are capable of breaking their glass faces. If you dropped it and it hasn't broken then it's only matter of luck. I have an Otterbox Defender and tempered glass on the face. Dropped it a few times on concrete and no problems. If it hits the floor on a edge or the face on rocks, i got myself an expensive hockey puck. Aside the fact that it cost a lot of money for something that will be obsolete in five years, I try to buy two generation old phones simply because I can lose it or turn it into a hockey puck....I cry less for $300 then $1000. |
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Post by Cranky on Mar 7, 2017 17:03:24 GMT -5
Dis, the major benefit of the Android over Apple (as I see it) is the opportunity to add a memory card. Priceless. 200gb card and all my work files, sales records, drawings, etc. Of coure, all heavily encrypted. When I started my business, if someone told me I can carry everything related to business on my phone, I would of laughed. Now, I can access every single transaction while sitting on a "porcelain throne" in a foreign land at 6 in the morning. What's next? |
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Post by Willie Dog on Mar 24, 2017 14:55:51 GMT -5
With the Nougat update for the S7 the battery life is better and some of the features are really good. Plus the apps run faster imo. A new feature called data saver helps limit apps chewing through data in the background... like friggin Facebook.
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Mar 27, 2017 12:03:49 GMT -5
The winner was LG G4 ... android and a lot less limited than my BlackBerry ... the only one I didn't check out beforehand was the Motorola line ... I have some friends who use them and they won't go back to anything else ... the S7 has a kick-ass camera on it and they sorted out the battery issues from what I understand ... if I had the coin and the need for one, I would have probably considered DTEK60 BlackBerry ... however, I just cant justify the forking out that kind of scratch for a cell phone ... not for what I use it for, anyway ...
Cheers.
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Post by seventeen on Mar 27, 2017 12:25:16 GMT -5
Dis, the major benefit of the Android over Apple (as I see it) is the opportunity to add a memory card. Priceless. 200gb card and all my work files, sales records, drawings, etc. Of coure, all heavily encrypted. When I started my business, if someone told me I can carry everything related to business on my phone, I would of laughed. Now, I can access every single transaction while sitting on a "porcelain throne" in a foreign land at 6 in the morning. What's next? A 'porcelain throne', with special powers I don't dare get into? |
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Post by Cranky on Mar 27, 2017 16:16:30 GMT -5
The winner was LG G4 ... android and a lot less limited than my BlackBerry ... the only one I didn't check out beforehand was the Motorola line ... I have some friends who use them and they won't go back to anything else ... the S7 has a kick-ass camera on it and they sorted out the battery issues from what I understand ... if I had the coin and the need for one, I would have probably considered DTEK60 BlackBerry ... however, I just cant justify the forking out that kind of scratch for a cell phone ... not for what I use it for, anyway ... Cheers. The LG4 is now two generations behind BUT it's an excellent value. It has lots of real estate for a phone and fairly reliable. I looked at it but it's not much of a step up from my S4'side in terms of speed, probably the same, however the extra real estate appealed to me. Good choice. Otterbox made the Commuter and Defender case for it. Best cases and will hugely increase the chance of survival in a fall. Amazon.ca also has much cheaper cases and if you choose carefully, you will get 90% of the protection. And this.....or equivalent. www.amazon.ca/TAMO-Shatterproof-Screen-Protector-Packaging/dp/B01H7485OO/ref=sr_1_1?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1490648980&sr=8-1&keywords=lg4+glass+prime. |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Mar 27, 2017 21:41:47 GMT -5
The winner was LG G4 ... android and a lot less limited than my BlackBerry ... the only one I didn't check out beforehand was the Motorola line ... I have some friends who use them and they won't go back to anything else ... the S7 has a kick-ass camera on it and they sorted out the battery issues from what I understand ... if I had the coin and the need for one, I would have probably considered DTEK60 BlackBerry ... however, I just cant justify the forking out that kind of scratch for a cell phone ... not for what I use it for, anyway ... Cheers. The LG4 is now two generations behind BUT it's an excellent value. It has lots of real estate for a phone and fairly reliable. I looked at it but it's not much of a step up from my S4'side in terms of speed, probably the same, however the extra real estate appealed to me. Good choice. Otterbox made the Commuter and Defender case for it. Best cases and will hugely increase the chance of survival in a fall. Amazon.ca also has much cheaper cases and if you choose carefully, you will get 90% of the protection. And this.....or equivalent. www.amazon.ca/TAMO-Shatterproof-Screen-Protector-Packaging/dp/B01H7485OO/ref=sr_1_1?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1490648980&sr=8-1&keywords=lg4+glass+prime. Thanks HA ... I just might purchase that screen ... great tip for sure ... thanks again, man ... |
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Post by Cranky on Mar 28, 2017 5:44:42 GMT -5
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