Who knows about mobile phones and plans and stuff?

[HenryDorsetCase]

I am currently on 027 Telescum CDMA. They want me off it.

Fine, I want a smartphone. All my geeky mates say "Git y'all an iphone" but I dont like iTunes (and I understand it is complulsory) and apple gnerally. Plus they are expensive.

Telescum are offering a Motorola Defy for $0 upfront if I sign for two years on a $80/mth plan. Vodascum are offering a Samsung Galaxy S for (I think) $200 up front and a two year contract and $80 or so a month). 2 degrees want me to sign for 2 years too, for like #130/month and will give me some Chinese thing I aint never heard of. probably a "what" as in "DO THEY SPEAK ENGLISH IN WHAT?".

Phone is a tax deductible business expense to me, and I dont mind a contract (its not like I am NOT going to have a mobile phone, righ?t). Plus I get to keep my existing number (important because its published, on my business cards etc).

So, anyone got any advice for a simple country boy? iphone or droid? telescum or vodascum? seen any fabbo deals you want to hook me up with?

I've devoted far more time and mental energy to this than I probably should have: its the classic Larson cartoon: Fish or cut bait? fish or cut bait?

opinions callers?

[Geeen]

Andriod all the way!! There's a review of the Defy on here somewhere, I'll try and find it.

[Geeen]

Here ya go

http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php/138368-Motorola-Defy-the-ultimate-biker-s-phone?highlight=android

[Big Dave]

Get an iPhone.



Mwahahahah.

[avgas]

I would get the Defy purely cos its waterproof.

I have the Galaxy S and its a great phone also......but not waterproof.

[Winston001]

probably a "what" as in "DO THEY SPEAK ENGLISH IN WHAT?".



Nah, more like Gangbanger:

Butch (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000246/): What now?

Marsellus (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000609/): What now? Let me tell you what now. I'ma call a coupla hard, pipe-hittin' niggers, who'll go to work on the homes here with a pair of pliers and a blow torch. You hear me talkin', hillbilly boy? I ain't through with you by a damn sight. I'ma get medieval on your ass.

Butch (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000246/): I meant what now between me and you?

Marsellus (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000609/): Oh, that what now. I tell you what now between me and you. There is no me and you. Not no more.

[Winston001]

I'm in the same boat HDC except I gotta pay for the thing myself these days. :facepalm:

Dunno.

My wife has two smart phones, work and personal. Her work one looks like an iPhone (full screen no keyboard) and she says its a pain because it switches on, dials calls, rings itself, easy to hit the wrong bits on the touchscreen, and sometimes the "touch" isn't. Yes there are settings to overcome some of this but that can affect other useful functions.

The other phone has a full querty keyboard and behaves. But small keys so its fiddly.

Damned if I know. Got a rubberised Sanyo flip-phone I can throw across the street and it still works. Won't bend or break. Sadly they now don't make anything below military grade like this.

[scissorhands]

2 degrees is by far the cheapest and I like their business model the most

I have prepay on the phone and mobile broadband on mu puta

[Ronin]

I spent months researching which way to go on this. In the end, the Iphone won. Itunes involvement is minimal. 2 year contract (smart 3) gives me 3 gig data and 120 minutes a month and the phone cost $199.

It just works.

Android for me is to fragmented. Different hardware specs and implementation seem to be turning into an app compatibility nightmare.

[James Deuce]

All those plans require lube.

[Maha]

Telecom are offering me a Samsung S5510 for $0 and $40 per month.
...also...a Samsung Galaxy for $0 and $40 per month (both 24 month plan)

I have not paid for a phone in years and dont intend ever again.
Not sure I even want to upgrade?.... should I guess.

[jim.cox]

So, anyone got any advice for a simple country boy? iphone or droid? telescum or vodascum? seen any fabbo deals you want to hook me up with?

...

opinions callers?

Latest Consumer magazine has a review of smartphones - they rate a number of the HTC andoid units as good, or better, than the iphone. If you want to PM me your address I'll photocopy the article for you.

Believe it or not, Since the Chch quakes I've become a fan of Telecom. Their customer service guys have really been trying to help us here - unlike Telstra Clear and Vodafone. Plus VF have just been done, again, for deliberately misleading customers.

[JimO]

buy a cheapie of tm, you can get a new defy for around 6 hundie

[Edbear]

Everyone I know with an iPhone loves it, but the only thing to consider is that if you plan on doing any video calling, a possibility in business perhaps, they operate on a different network and you can only video call another iPhone.

The Nokia N8 does everything an iPhone does and operates on the normal network. I've got a Nokia E63 on Vodafone, got it free and it's got everything you could need in business, I prefer it to the Blackberry, which my son-in-law has.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Nah, more like Gangbanger:

Butch (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000246/): What now?

Marsellus (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000609/): What now? Let me tell you what now. I'ma call a coupla hard, pipe-hittin' niggers, who'll go to work on the homes here with a pair of pliers and a blow torch. You hear me talkin', hillbilly boy? I ain't through with you by a damn sight. I'ma get medieval on your ass.

Butch (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000246/): I meant what now between me and you?

Marsellus (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000609/): Oh, that what now. I tell you what now between me and you. There is no me and you. Not no more.

My two favourite lines in that film are just before that:

Butch: "Are you OK?"

Marcellus: "I'm pretty fuckin' far from OK"

Going to go test drive the Defy today or tomorrow: since its, er, "free" (HA HA)

as for the durability thing the wee Samsung Ive got presently (flip top) has been amazingly rugged. would buy again.

thanks for the offer re: Consumer: you've reminded me my brother in law gets the magazine, I'll touch him up for a copy of the article.

Thanks for the input people, much appreciated. :)

[Ronin]

Everyone I know with an iPhone loves it, but the only thing to consider is that if you plan on doing any video calling, a possibility in business perhaps, they operate on a different network and you can only video call another iPhone.
.

Ahhh nope. Facetime (the app) is iphone to idevice only. I have skype on mine and it works fine. In fact, I don't even have cell coverage at home and I do everything through wireless. Also setup an Ipad 2 for a client with a telecom microsim. Worked fine to mine on voda.

[Edbear]

Ahhh nope. Facetime (the app) is iphone to idevice only. I have skype on mine and it works fine. In fact, I don't even have cell coverage at home and I do everything through wireless. Also setup an Ipad 2 for a client with a telecom microsim. Worked fine to mine on voda.

Cool, thanks for the info!

[Ronin]

Cool, thanks for the info!

More info:

Fring. Great app. Voice calls (at good rates), including video calling, MSN, google talk etc for when your not at your computer.

2talk: We are on voip at home so I can use the cell as a wireless phone.

Skype: Works fine.

[shrub]

and i wouldn't own anything else. I am bloody hard on my phones and have killed a few thanks to drowning them riding, dropping them and generally being nasty. The Defy is waterproof and one of my favourite party tricks is dropping it in a pint of beer and pulling it out, wiping it and using it. I have thrown it as hard as I could at my wooden fence from 2 metres and it's undamaged and I have stomped on it. All of these simulating the life it WILL experience.

And it's not an iPhone, one of it's biggest features in my book. I hate Apple because they have become the Evil Empire they used to pretend to contest against and are even colluding with Microsoft to purchase patents to try and block Android developers (Android is open source).

[Scuba_Steve]

I would say iPhone is a good choice if you can be "gentle" with it, bloody awesome device works well does what it says pretty much, but I'd prefer not to be on vodascum.
Defy would be my next choice because it takes a fucking thrashing (from what I've seen/heard) & still comes back for more, plus IMO I'd rather deal with Telescum than Vodascum.
Galaxy is good but again need to be "gentle" and it's not gonna be as "satisfying" as the iPhone, but 2degrees is probably a better company to deal with than vodascum

at the end of the day unfortunately it does come down to your preference try the iPhone, Defy, Galaxy, see which you like to use best don't listen to the moron pushing the product they probably don't understand, go with what you like. None of them are "bad" models. You'll prob find the Galaxy & Defy very similar so it'll more come down to do you like the abuse ability of the Defy? would you prefer 1 mobile company over the other? and of course between iPhone & Defy/Galaxy do you like 1 OS better than the other? do you like the feel/function of 1 over the other etc? But try them all.

Oh FYI the iPhone also can pretty much work as an independent device nowadays almost no computer interaction is needed

[Ronin]

Not as fragile as you would think...

http://www.geek.com/articles/mobile/skydivers-iphone-4-survives-13500-foot-drop-20110718/