Its time for me to find a new phone. Ive gone through three first gen MotoQ over the last few years and this last one is finally starting to fall apart which is quite amazing since it was announced five years ago (if it isnt broke dont fix it, and if it breaks fix it!). I've been a MetroPCS customer going on six years now and have no intention of switching providers
Help me find a phone with the following requirements -
Android OR Windows Mobile 6+
Able to be modified for MetroPCS
A full keyboard (can be a slider, flip or front facing keyboard like the MotoQ)
Price under 200$ new or used
Some nice features to have but not required would be -
Charges through standard mini usb
Extended life batteries (or brand new original batteries) available
Some type of tethering solution (currently i do this through USB)
I don't mind if the phone is old, even a model from four years ago if it works well
I am in the San Francisco bay area (LTE is available)
I often use my MotoQ to send MMS and the Google Maps application even though the speed is very slow (perhaps because of my device?).
Three times I have paid someone to add the "foreign" ESN of my phones into the MetroPCS database so it would be a definite plus (not a requirement) if the phone had the ability to directly take over for my current MotoQ without the extra fees (electronic serial number change).
You dont have to give me all the details on how to hack the phone onto metro, if you give me a model number I will do my own homework.
My girlfriend insists on getting me a phone for my birthday. I think she is tired of seeing me carry around this ratty old phone that no one still uses.
Thanks for your suggestions
Based on all your needs, the best fit would be a Sprint HTC Touch Pro 2 (Rhodium). It also runs Android now, as well as WM 6.1/6.5.
I have little experience with CDMA, but from what I understand most devices whether they have a good or a bad ESN can be flashed for any carrier other than the original. I haven't seen any CDMA Rhodiums for sale here on the forums, but you could always try eBay. They're pretty cheap these days too
Good Luck!
Thanks for the quick reply. I will have to look into that model more but so far it does seem to do what I wanted!
I was starting to lean towards the Moto Droid 2. Apparently it is not too difficult to get it functioning properly on MetroPCS and it has decent specs. The price for used models isnt bad and its running 2.2 android stock, with a 2.3.3 hack available
braschlosan said:
Thanks for the quick reply. I will have to look into that model more but so far it does seem to do what I wanted!
I was starting to lean towards the Moto Droid 2. Apparently it is not too difficult to get it functioning properly on MetroPCS and it has decent specs. The price for used models isnt bad and its running 2.2 android stock, with a 2.3.3 hack available
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Also true, with the added benefit that if you ever move away from CDMA, you'll have a GSM radio in there too. I can only speak for the original Milestone, but it was a capable little phone at the time. They reworked the keyboard on the second one, so it seems to be much more user-friendly. I'm not sure how much luck they had with the bootloader on it though, so would pay to do some research there before you buy
Hey everyone! I'm new to XDA and android and could use some help. Been looking for my first android phone and am currently living in the dominican republic. My carrier operates on the 850 band for their 3g network. I need to be able to purchase an unlocked phone or a phone off contract that i can unlock without complications. Some phones i have looked into are Nexus S, Desire HD, Atrix, G2x and a few others. Nexus S doesnt work with my carrier for their 3g and the desire hd lacks a front facing camera.
I could really use some help or guidance in finding the right phone... All your help is greatly appreciated. Have posted in a few other forums, but to not much avail. Thanks again everyone!
The Galaxy 4g phone has 850 band and FFC and is a decent choice. I do not know how good the Coverage of 4g is in Dominican so even though it is a great phone you may only have 3g reception. You could get a Galaxy S phone and install a FFC in it(or buy it that way) would save some money but it is older tech .... .........BUT there is a ALOT of support here in XDA for the Galaxy S. And there is multi language already installed in it.Or you could wait until the New S2 makes it here in June sometime.
If you went with a Galaxy S (Vibrant,Captivate, etc) here in the states you can get for about 175-250.00 right now vs 450-550.00 for a new phone.
So, there are some options. I would stay away from the Atrix, Motorola is not hacker friendly and there are some other quality issues about them I am not convinced it is worth the money.
BTW, Welcome to the forum. This is the best place to be to learn about Android phones. Look at the specific phone forums and read up. This will assist in understanding the phone and help you make a more informed decision.
Good Luck in your quest....... Cheers
Thanks for the helpful info. I have been reading up on the forums and have also heard about the Atrix issues.
As for the Galaxy S, I do like that phone, but as you mentioned, it does have some older tech especially compared to what is being released this month and next. I don't mind paying a little more having a more up to date phone. Hence my hesitation with something like the Desire HD or Inspire and it's lack of a FFC.
As for the network here, no 4g yet. One of the carriers "Orange" is looking into it, but wouldnt be for a while. Also, I'm quite exactly how much longer I'll be here.
Desperate to get a phone and was hoping to do it this week while my friend in back in the US and could pick it up for me so that I dont have to pay the rediculous taxes at customs when ordering electronics.
The G2X is looking like an option, but i dont know about unlocked nor exactly how much at this point. This is proving to be more difficult that i imagined, been at it for a few months now. Who would think that with so many choices there would actually be so few choices!
Any continued help is still greatly appreciated! thanks again!
I need a Phablet or Tablet or Phone that is at least 8" running the most up to date Android possible.
I have made a couple of expensive mistakes in purchasing 4G/LTE tablets that I thought could be used as a phone also.
The latest being the Nvidia Shield. Got one for sale. never used!
I know I can run VOIP on LTE tablets but that isn't what I'm looking for.
I live in Canada and I travel to the USA almost daily. I drive a transport truck and I NEED up to date traffic info so I don't get stuck in 4 hour traffic jams BUT I also need to text and phone back to Canada. Currently I am using the new PadFone S. Great idea but it doesn't receive on the ONE frequency I need to be able to get a continent wide carrier plan that won't put me in the poor house. I currently have Bell Mobility and a T-Mobile sim I have to change every time I cross the border.
Wind Mobile has an unlimited Talk Text Data plan for Canada/USA that is $60 a month. That hits my sweet spot. Currently the other 2 plans are costing me $115. Wind in Canada needs to run on the 1700 band for now. It may change in the future but I can't wait.
My searching is getting me a lot of results but a lot of time I see the tablets do not allow the phone function or are dated 2 years ago.
Maybe I'm spoilt but my TF101 is running Lollipop and I love it.
Soooo I'm turning to learned friends. I Like to play around with anything I own be it cars or electronics but I don`t have the time at a desk to research this more.
Any ideas?
Hi,
Here is a thread for such questions,
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1620179
Good luck!
Darth said:
Hi,
Here is a thread for such questions,
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1620179
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you.
I have seen that thread and went through it but none of the answers actual fit my needs. Lots of different phones but no specifics and I`d have to research each one again.
I`m hoping someone who reads my OP will go " I know exactly what he needs" There can`t be too many of them.
As an aside, Why are all the LTE tablets Data only? Is there a big difference in the hardware required to offer Voice too? Or is it just the Firmware?
You can ask in the thread. That's what it's for.
This isn't the place for such discussion. ?
So I posted in the Sprint Galaxy S4 section. The reason for this was I am familiar with the S4 on Verizon and thought maybe I would got to Swappa.com
and get a Sprint S4 if Sprint looked like it might work. I would however like to ask people in general about Sprint with any phone that they have.
I basically want to know the same questions about any phone possibility with Sprint.
So I will in quotes show you what I posted in the S4 area of Sprint on XDA. Any help would be MOST appreciated.
("Hello to all in this Forum.
I am starting here because I have a Galaxy S4 with Verizon and it has served me well for years and does everything I need.... so why look elsewhere.
It also seems that there is still alot of good development for the S4 here with yall on Sprint.
The reason for leaving Verizon is that to keep my Unlimited Data for two phones my bill is close to $270.00 dollars a month.
We just cant keep doing that any more.
SOOO What I am trying to find out is with Sprint is:
*Is the service good number one?
*Can you easily get TWRP on any phone ( which is best) is the S4 a good contender?
*Can you get a WiFi hotspot easily?
*If you can get a WiFi hotspot how many GigaBytes before they Throttle, how bad is the Throttling?
I use well over 100 Gb of data a month per line with Verizon..... Will Sprint poo poo a brick and shut me down if I do that with them?
We live in the country and the Verizon phone is our only source of Internet. We broadcast our Hotspot and do Netflix, and Amazon Prime as this is our only source of TV.
I looked on a map recently, It shows in my area the best coverage for 4G LTE. The LTE plus is not bad either.... although I dont know what phone uses LTE plus.
Any help or thoughts on this would be SOOOO much appreciated. This would be a huge and scary jump for us because once you lose Unlimited with Verizon... you'll never get it back, and right now they work and do everything very well...... We just pay through the Nose for it.
Thank you!!")
swc2001 said:
So I posted in the Sprint Galaxy S4 section. The reason for this was I am familiar with the S4 on Verizon and thought maybe I would got to Swappa.com
and get a Sprint S4 if Sprint looked like it might work. I would however like to ask people in general about Sprint with any phone that they have.
I basically want to know the same questions about any phone possibility with Sprint.
So I will in quotes show you what I posted in the S4 area of Sprint on XDA. Any help would be MOST appreciated.
("Hello to all in this Forum.
I am starting here because I have a Galaxy S4 with Verizon and it has served me well for years and does everything I need.... so why look elsewhere.
It also seems that there is still alot of good development for the S4 here with yall on Sprint.
The reason for leaving Verizon is that to keep my Unlimited Data for two phones my bill is close to $270.00 dollars a month.
We just cant keep doing that any more.
SOOO What I am trying to find out is with Sprint is:
*Is the service good number one?
*Can you easily get TWRP on any phone ( which is best) is the S4 a good contender?
*Can you get a WiFi hotspot easily?
*If you can get a WiFi hotspot how many GigaBytes before they Throttle, how bad is the Throttling?
I use well over 100 Gb of data a month per line with Verizon..... Will Sprint poo poo a brick and shut me down if I do that with them?
We live in the country and the Verizon phone is our only source of Internet. We broadcast our Hotspot and do Netflix, and Amazon Prime as this is our only source of TV.
I looked on a map recently, It shows in my area the best coverage for 4G LTE. The LTE plus is not bad either.... although I dont know what phone uses LTE plus.
Any help or thoughts on this would be SOOOO much appreciated. This would be a huge and scary jump for us because once you lose Unlimited with Verizon... you'll never get it back, and right now they work and do everything very well...... We just pay through the Nose for it.
Thank you!!")
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Greetings, unfortunately this is not what assist is for, it is for guiding new members to the correct forum to ask their question. You are a senior member and have asked your question in the correct forum already, hopefully the experts there can give you some advice
Good Luck
Sawdoctor
So it's now official, after five phone calls and finally speaking with third tier T-Mobile tech support, I was told that my area was recently refarmed and I can no longer get 3G service with the 1900 band effectively making my X2 a brick capable of nothing more than Edge. Furthermore, he indicated to me that this is the way things will go into the future and eventually, T-Mobile will support nothing but 4G LTE service (bring your own device.... But not really.)
So where to go from here? I had heard on another forum that AT&T is still supporting 3G over band 1900; but I don't know if they allow you to bring your own phone to the party and I also don't know how long it will be until they themselves eliminate 3G service. Apart from that, I guess my quest is to still find the largest phone I can that will support 4G LTE data in the United States while continuing to hope and pray that Huawei gives us the present of a 7 inch premium phablet with US bands.
As always, I remain open to any other solutions anyone might have or any information that I'm unaware of. Today is a truly sad day for a guy who truly loved his mediapad X2 : (
steveyal said:
So it's now official, after five phone calls and finally speaking with third tier T-Mobile tech support, I was told that my area was recently refarmed and I can no longer get 3G service with the 1900 band effectively making my X2 a brick capable of nothing more than Edge. Furthermore, he indicated to me that this is the way things will go into the future and eventually, T-Mobile will support nothing but 4G LTE service (bring your own device.... But not really.)
So where to go from here? I had heard on another forum that AT&T is still supporting 3G over band 1900; but I don't know if they allow you to bring your own phone to the party and I also don't know how long it will be until they themselves eliminate 3G service. Apart from that, I guess my quest is to still find the largest phone I can that will support 4G LTE data in the United States while continuing to hope and pray that Huawei gives us the present of a 7 inch premium phablet with US bands.
As always, I remain open to any other solutions anyone might have or any information that I'm unaware of. Today is a truly sad day for a guy who truly loved his mediapad X2 : (
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry to hear that about TMO. I have been pushing to move away from ATT because the prices don't compare. We moved to the "new" ATT unlimited plan and 5 phones run us $330/mo vs the previous $410/mo on their "discount" family plan. I too am sold on the X2 and I can't let it go. I don't see anything else like it out there. I considered Huawei's new 8-inch tablet but without a handset it would be tough to use on a daily basis. ATT still supports the 3G speeds, at least in the Kansas City area, but who knows if that will change. Several times they have changed something on their network and I have had to search and find new APN settings. There are a few alternatives that I've seen but none that can compete with the X2. If you see anything else, let me know.
Thanks!
Jim
Yep, they did the same in my area about 4 months ago.
The whole thing is terribly frustrating. Clearly there is a market (albeit small) for a seven inch phone, so why are we ignored? Blu made one with US 4G LTE bands but i hear it sucks and only has 1 gig of ram causing it to freeze every time you open an app. Posh made a nice 6.4 that I had for a while; but it was a refurb and call quality was terrible. Plus, they are very hard to find. Checked out the Lenovo Phab 2 line (6.4"), but I'm not impressed at all and the new Samsung Note looks like a dildo.
I just ordered an old (new stock) Galaxy Mega which I owned a few years ago and loved. ...but compared to the X2, it's a dwarf (guess I've been spoiled.) So at this point, I really have no other option but to try ATT (who I detest) for a month pre-paid to see if i can go back to getting consistent HSPA on my beloved X2.
I sure hope someone at some point wakes up and gives us what we need...but I ain't holding my breath.
I'm eagerly anticipating the Huawei Honor Note 9 because I feel it's the only device that will be comparable to our beloved X2. I check for new info everyday but so far nothing but some uncertain leaks from Chinese websites. Does anyone have any *new* info? Better yet a way for us loyalists to get much deserved discount would be nice.
Please use the QUOTE feature when replying to me to get my attention. Thanks!
E--Man said:
I'm eagerly anticipating the Huawei Honor Note 9 because I feel it's the only device that will be comparable to our beloved X2. I check for new info everyday but so far nothing but some uncertain leaks from Chinese websites. Does anyone have any *new* info? Better yet a way for us loyalists to get much deserved discount would be nice.
Please use the QUOTE feature when replying to me to get my attention. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like the same deal as the X2 unless they release a US version:
https://www.gsmarena.com/huawei_honor_note_9-8799.php
According to this page (careful !!):
https://www.gsmarc.com/huawei/honor-note-9/
the LTE bands are LTE 2100, LTE 800, LTE 1800, LTE 2600, LTE 900, LTE 2300, LTE 2500, (VoLTE)
not so bad (for my country, only 700Mhz is missed)
But I'm a bit worried about the price of the phone
Just ordered this through Amazon. Looks promising and US bands too!!!!!
https://www.amazon.com/iRULU-Smartp...desktop?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&ref_=ya_aw_od_pi
steveyal said:
Just ordered this through Amazon. Looks promising and US bands too!!!!!
https://www.amazon.com/iRULU-Smartp...desktop?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&ref_=ya_aw_od_pi
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me know how you like it. It doesn't have band 12 on T-Mobile which sucks. I may have picked one of those up if it did. If you buy it directly through iRulu and use coupon code G3DEAL50 you'll get it for $149.99.
Steamer2499 said:
Not a bad phone... The Bad: But No led notification, GPS seems to jump around, No compass built in ... The Good: Fingerprint works great!, It has ATT 4G in the USA support, Battery life is good, ... If you get it rooted, please let me know how you did it....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It could be my next toy to play around with as well. I loved the Mi Max. (which looks identical to the iRulu) I would give KingRoot a try to see if you can root it.
steveyal said:
Just ordered this through Amazon. Looks promising and US bands too!!!!!
https://www.amazon.com/iRULU-Smartp...desktop?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&ref_=ya_aw_od_pi
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not a bad phone... The Bad: But No led notification, GPS seems to jump around, No compass built in, inserting sim card/sdcard takes patience ... The Good: Nougat 7.0, Fingerprint scanner works great!, It has ATT 4G in the USA support, Battery life is good, Push notification works great ... If you get it rooted, please let me know how you did it....
---------- Post added at 10:35 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:08 PM ----------
ajsmsg78 said:
Let me know how you like it. It doesn't have band 12 on T-Mobile which sucks. I may have picked one of those up if it did. If you buy it directly through iRulu and use coupon code G3DEAL50 you'll get it for $149.99.
It could be my next toy to play around with as well. I loved the Mi Max. (which looks identical to the iRulu) I would give KingRoot a try to see if you can root it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried KingRoot, Kingoroot, One Click Root and others. Nothing has worked so far. I saw that 149.99 deal but like the fact I got it in 2 days with free shipping and no tax from Amazon Prime and can return it for a full refund with free shipping back to them no question asked...
Steamer2499 said:
Not a bad phone... The Bad: But No led notification, GPS seems to jump around, No compass built in, inserting sim card/sdcard takes patience ... The Good: Nougat 7.0, Fingerprint scanner works great!, It has ATT 4G in the USA support, Battery life is good, Push notification works great ... If you get it rooted, please let me know how you did it....
---------- Post added at 10:35 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:08 PM ----------
I tried KingRoot, Kingoroot, One Click Root and others. Nothing has worked so far. I saw that 149.99 deal but like the fact I got it in 2 days with free shipping and no tax from Amazon Prime and can return it for a full refund with free shipping back to them no question asked...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If those root options don't work then the phone most likely will never be rooted. I bought a ZTE Zmax Pro about 8 months back to use as a spare phone and that was never rooted so i'm sure the iRulu probably won't be.
steveyal said:
Just ordered this through Amazon. Looks promising and US bands too!!!!!
https://www.amazon.com/iRULU-Smartp...desktop?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&ref_=ya_aw_od_pi
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ajsmsg78 said:
Let me know how you like it. It doesn't have band 12 on T-Mobile which sucks. I may have picked one of those up if it did. If you buy it directly through iRulu and use coupon code G3DEAL50 you'll get it for $149.99.
It could be my next toy to play around with as well. I loved the Mi Max. (which looks identical to the iRulu) I would give KingRoot a try to see if you can root it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for posting this! It actually looks really good especially for the price, except for the fact that the battery is 4300mAh and I suspect Li-on not Li-Po. The price point is 10/10 and is simply amazing.
I wonder if a discount will be available on the upcoming Huawei Honor Note 9 as well... It is supposed to be released Dec 6 or 20
Please use the QUOTE feature when replying to me to get my attention. Thanks!
E--Man said:
Thanks for posting this! It actually looks really good especially for the price, except for the fact that the battery is 4300mAh and I suspect Li-on not Li-Po. The price point is 10/10 and is simply amazing.
I wonder if a discount will be available on the upcoming Huawei Honor Note 9 as well... It is supposed to be released Dec 6 or 20
Please use the QUOTE feature when replying to me to get my attention. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Huawei Honor Note 9 looks like the phone for me. Hope it's priced a lot lower than the Samsungs and Apple phones...
Steamer2499 said:
The Huawei Honor Note 9 looks like the phone for me. Hope it's priced a lot lower than the Samsungs and Apple phones...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like a great phone...but I simply can't soak that kinda money into a phone that can't do LTE.
Steamer2499 said:
Not a bad phone... The Bad: But No led notification, GPS seems to jump around, No compass built in, inserting sim card/sdcard takes patience ... The Good: Nougat 7.0, Fingerprint scanner works great!, It has ATT 4G in the USA support, Battery life is good, Push notification works great ... If you get it rooted, please let me know how you did it....
---------- Post added at 10:35 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:08 PM ----------
I tried KingRoot, Kingoroot, One Click Root and others. Nothing has worked so far. I saw that 149.99 deal but like the fact I got it in 2 days with free shipping and no tax from Amazon Prime and can return it for a full refund with free shipping back to them no question asked...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Never rooted a phone before...and not really sure why you would want to (probably best I don't know : )
The comment about the GPS scares me...and could potentially be deal breaker for me. But the rest of it seems livable. Not sure what led notification is either, but I figure if I don't know what it is, it probably won't matter to me that I don't have it. Otherwise, I went with Amazon because of their no hassle return. For me, that's worth every bit of 50 bucks on something I'm unsure of.
So after one day with the iRulu, my impressions are thus,
For me, this is in no way a replacement for my Media Pad X2. The build quality is just not there.
First, the good: this is the largest screen phone that I could find with the bands to receive 4G LTE in the United States. There are other larger ones such as the Posh L 700 and the 7 inch model made by Blu, but I don't think either of these phones can be taken seriously with their pitiful 1 GB of RAM.
Second, the phone works reasonably well. I was able to watch YouTube videos without difficulty and surf the web just fine. It was easy to load on applications and most things work as they should. Bluetooth was fine, easily connecting with both my car stereo and my laptop computer. In short, this is a decent low to middle tier phone; but it is NOT a Huawei.
The bad: As I was loading on applications, the phone did randomly restart; but this was only on one occasion, so I don't really consider it to be a big deal at this point.
Second: The GPS is as horrible as reported. I put it on for goofs navigating to work; and several times while driving down 95, the GPS had me somewhere in the middle of the woods. I don't think it would have caused me to miss turns; especially if I was using Google maps audio turn by turn directions; but generally speaking, it does not work as it is supposed to.
Third: at least for me, the phone seemed small. That half an inch screen size between this and the media pad really made a large difference to me. I guess I'm just used to my Huawei, and I like what I like. I also didn't find the phone aesthetically pleasing, which is not really a big deal to me; but it lacks the perfection in design of the MPX2.
Fourth and the biggie: is that I purchased this phone because it had 4G LTE bands in the United States. I used the thing all day long driving around the state of New Jersey; and not once did the phone indicate that I was receiving 4G LTE signal. As a matter of fact, I believe that I get a better signal on the AT&T network with the HSPA bands in the Huawei.
Unfortunately, for me, it's a bust. I will be returning this on Amazon and continue my quest for a mega screen phone that has LTE bands in the United States. One might ask why I am so hung up about LTE bands if I seem to be getting good Signal with the Huawei. It is because I have been told by people at AT&T that my days of enjoying my media pad are numbered; because they will soon be moving to a system similar to T-Mobile that will render the media pad useless. This so-called 5G technology will essentially render most manufacturer unlocked phones useless for some time until the technology catches up. Hopefully, it will take longer to accomplish this so-called feat of progress than it will take for some manufacturer to realize that there is a market for a high-end super screen phone in the United States.
Oh well.....
> I don't know if they allow you to bring your own phone
Yes, I use AT&T prepaid and brought my own phone. Also I'm paying $55/month with 10GB data. The service is of course throttled to what I believe is 15MBPs or something, but it's better service from the other resellers like Straight Talk that use the same towers.
The resellers appear to get low-tier service (I used to be on ST and have tried some others, with some terrible issues).