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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
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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
I'm on T-mobile, and desperately wanting to switch to Verizon. There are some awesome android phones on Verizon, but i really want to stay with Windows Phone. The Htc Trophy sucks. Plus, i really want a second generation windows phone with some quality specs. Is it just Verizon not wanting more windows phones? Or is it partially because of the OEMs as well?
Having switched from Verizon to TMO, I'm not sure why anybody'd want to go back... but as to your actual question, I suspect the problem is that, between their "DROID" trademark licensing and getting the iPhone (though Sprint now has too), they feel they've invested enough effort into the other platforms and don't need to really bother with WP7.
Of course, that doesn't really explain why Sprint is in a similar position, but at least the Arrive (7 Pro) has something to distinguish it. The Trophy really just seems like an undersized HD7 without the kickstand.
This is pure speculation on my part, but Verizon may be waiting on an LTE Windows Phone.
I don't have my Motorola Atrix 4G anymore, so I'm looking for a good, cheap, no contract smartphone with a physical QWERTY keyboard to buy myself. Right now I'm borrowing a friend's Pantech Link until I get a new phone. I don't want to spend more than around $100, though I'm willing to go a little higher if it's worth it. I mostly use my phone for texting, calling, browsing, Facebook, email, looking up directions/movies/restaurants, and playing Pokemon with an emulator so nothing too intensive, I really didn't need such a high-end smartphone like I used to have.
I'm on AT&T so I need an AT&T phone smartphone or unlocked GSM smartphone that'll work with AT&T. I plan to use the phone for about a year and a half until my contract ends though I might buy another phone before then.
I've been looking at the Motorola Charm that Newegg has on sale for $100. It's unlocked and will work on AT&T, and looks pretty good other than it's 3 MP fixed focus screen and QVGA screen though for $100 it's much better than most of the dumbphones I'll find for under $100.
What do you guys think about this phone and do you know of any other good phones for under $100? Thanks!
Bump.
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The LG quantum generally runs ~$100 used on online classifieds. Its a att phone with a slider keyboard, running windows phone 7. WP7 is very different compared to android, but its elegant looking, smooth, and super stable. The Facebook app, angrybirds, email are all really good. I doubt there are any free emulators for it, but there are a lot of good quality apps if you don't mind paying a few bucks.
Other than that on att with a keyboard you may be looking at older Windows Mobile phones, like the Tilt 2, or Fuze. They are great phones, with nice keyboards, but very low screen resulotion, and there are no apps in the way they exist on Android or WP7. You can install programs, but there is no store, and will all be old.
You also have the palm offering that might be cheap now. The veer and pre plus have sliders, and wesOS has an app store, even if it is dwindling. I do love my TouchPad, but didn't like a pre plus.
The next option is ... wait for it ... blackberry. I won't get into that, as that is the only platform I never tried.
I don't know about the TMo offerings, but any TMo phone unlocked will work, but you will only get edge, not 3G. The G1 would probably run in your price range.
If you can convince att to give you an early upgrade you could try for the Captivate Slide. Its almost the best android phone on att, and it has a keyboard. But, off contract will be way above your price range.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
quarlow said:
The LG quantum generally runs ~$100 used on online classifieds. Its a att phone with a slider keyboard, running windows phone 7. WP7 is very different compared to android, but its elegant looking, smooth, and super stable. The Facebook app, angrybirds, email are all really good. I doubt there are any free emulators for it, but there are a lot of good quality apps if you don't mind paying a few bucks.
Other than that on att with a keyboard you may be looking at older Windows Mobile phones, like the Tilt 2, or Fuze. They are great phones, with nice keyboards, but very low screen resulotion, and there are no apps in the way they exist on Android or WP7. You can install programs, but there is no store, and will all be old.
You also have the palm offering that might be cheap now. The veer and pre plus have sliders, and wesOS has an app store, even if it is dwindling. I do love my TouchPad, but didn't like a pre plus.
The next option is ... wait for it ... blackberry. I won't get into that, as that is the only platform I never tried.
I don't know about the TMo offerings, but any TMo phone unlocked will work, but you will only get edge, not 3G. The G1 would probably run in your price range.
If you can convince att to give you an early upgrade you could try for the Captivate Slide. Its almost the best android phone on att, and it has a keyboard. But, off contract will be way above your price range.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
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Thanks for the advice!
The LG Quantum looks nice, and I've heard a lot of good things about the WP7 OS. I prefer Samsung phones over LG phones so I'll start looking at WP7 phones. I don't want anything outdated though so I'm going to stay away from phones like the HTC Tilt2 and HTC Fuze even though the Tilt 2 looks pretty nice.
I'm not a fan of Blackberries so I'm going to stay away from them.
Also, why would I only get Edge and not 3G if I used an unlocked T-Mobile phone? The Motorola Charm for example supports 850/900/1800/1900 MHz GSM bands; AT&T uses 850/1900 MHz and T-Mobile uses 900/1800 MHz so I'm not sure why I'd only get Edge.
Thanks again!
That charm might work on att 3G. The TMo branded devices generally lack at least one if not several of the att bands (TMo also uses 1700 and 2100). The vibrant is the only one I have heard of working on att, and it didn't support all the bands (I want to say it included 850, but not 1900), so it only worked in some regions.
I like Samsung over LG too, but the quantum is the only QWERTY WP7 device branded for att. The Samsung devices don't have keyboards. WP7 doesn't have the fragmentation that Android does. Microsoft put stricter hardware requirements on the OEMs, so I am fairly certain all of the devices are upgradeable to Mango. I know the original Focus (Samsung not Ford) was upgraded, and ran Mango perfectly. I had a Focus for a month, and was impressed with it, but ultimately went with SGS II, as I am an Android power user.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
quarlow said:
That charm might work on att 3G. The TMo branded devices generally lack at least one if not several of the att bands (TMo also uses 1700 and 2100). The vibrant is the only one I have heard of working on att, and it didn't support all the bands (I want to say it included 850, but not 1900), so it only worked in some regions.
I like Samsung over LG too, but the quantum is the only QWERTY WP7 device branded for att. The Samsung devices don't have keyboards. WP7 doesn't have the fragmentation that Android does. Microsoft put stricter hardware requirements on the OEMs, so I am fairly certain all of the devices are upgradeable to Mango. I know the original Focus (Samsung not Ford) was upgraded, and ran Mango perfectly. I had a Focus for a month, and was impressed with it, but ultimately went with SGS II, as I am an Android power user.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
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I defiantly want either an Android 2.1/2.2/2.3 or a WP7/WP7.5 phone with a physical QWERTY keyboard that's cheap so there's not a lot to choose from. I looked online and the Motorola Charm doesn't support 3G on AT&T so that phone's off my list now. :/
I've been reading reviews on the LG Quantum and it looks like a really nice phone. Two main problems though. For one it doesn't have some of the Applications that I rely on that Android has. Notably, a SMS/MMS Backup Application. Second it's too much for my budget, it's about $160 new at the cheapest, plus CA sales tax. I'm kind of iffy about buying a phone used, do you know if it's cheaper anywhere else?
Thanks again for all your help!
I thought of a few more QWERTY att phones. The Dell Venue pro is a portrait slider running WP7. The Motorola Backflip (att's first android phone that everyone forgets about) has an interesting keyboard, it folds out, so when closed the keys face out, instead of sliding. But, I think its stuck on android 1.6. Motorola also released the flipside and flipout on att, both on 2.1. The flipout is smaller, and the keyboard rotates on a pivot, sliding out at 90 degrees. The flipside is more like a normal slider.
The SMS backup was a problem for me on the Focus too. Albeit not a huge problem, but one I never found a solution to. As far as apps, I found it annoying that some apps weren't there, and didn't want to stick it out until they were.
For QWERTY android phones its going to be tricky. HTC made great QWERTY WinMo phones, but no android ones for att (several for TMo). Samsung made the sprint version of the galaxy s QWERTY, but that won't work on att. The G2 on TMo is QWERTY, but won't get 3G data. The Motorola QWERTY android att phones are odd form factors (backflip and flipout), and weren't popular.
The flipside may be your best bet, and on eBay they are close to your range. I believe they run motoblur, which is known to cause poor performance, and generally one of the worst android skins. (What was on the Atrix is not the same, scaled back compared to those earlier versions from what I understand)
As far as used phones, I have never had issues buying used phones. Check the water indicators, and place a test call if buying local. If buying online many eBay sellers offer 30 day warranties.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
i there
i had gifted him android phone few months back but he dint liked it
he told its complicated for my age
now i want to buy a simple and fluid webos phone for my old father
can u suggest which model should i go for
phone should b fast and fluid
i need a gsm unlocked phone
i need your suggestion
Pre 2 or Pre 3 if u ask me...Pre 3 might work out better because of its larger (and higher res) screen and keyboard. They should both be fluid enough for all tasks.
The Veer is also a good choice; the build quality is excellent, and is still speedy. 4g is also nice. And you can get one for $50 without looking hard. Small screen? Yes. Charger is odd too. But for a basic phone, it works well, and on a Straight Talk bring your own GSM phone, economical.
SIROSISOFLIVER said:
...on a Straight Talk bring your own GSM phone, economical.
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LOLz - I don't think they have Straight Talk in Bahrain where the OP is from.
Important for you is getting a European model - NOT North American - so that your comm board is compatible with the carriers in Bahrain.
Veer or Pre 3 might be a good choice to get 4G data speeds - but for ease of use with any GSM carrier and a more proven model go with the Factory Unlocked GSM Pre 2... Just my humble opinion.
Hello everyone, I am from China, my English is very bad, please forgive me. I am a fan of htc, but my htc u11 has been stolen. At present, htc's mobile phone can't be bought in China. I can buy htc u12+ through German Amazon. However, since I use China Telecom, it uses the cdma network. The European version is definitely not supported. Therefore, I would like to ask you if you can brush up the Chinese version or other ways to support China Telecom's cdma. Thank you
You can't. HTC did not build the u12+ with CDMA support.
In the United States Verizon uses CDMA and LTE. The u12 only works on LTE for that network but it has issues.
Tachi91 said:
You can't. HTC did not build the u12+ with CDMA support.
In the United States Verizon uses CDMA and LTE. The u12 only works on LTE for that network but it has issues.
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Thank you for the reply. In China, htc u12+ has been completely removed and cannot be purchased. The Chinese version supports cdma network, but unfortunately it can't be bought now.
While I am an HTC fan, such as yourself, I would recommend getting a different device than the U12+. I have the U12+, live in the US and I am on Verizon's network. I cannot dial emergency numbers (911), the phone has proven to be super fragile (I've broken both the back and the digitizer since purchase, both very expensive to replace), HTC customer support has all but dried up, at least for this device, the U12+ is slated to get Android Pie while other older models have gotten it already, even the lower end U12 Life model all before this Flagship phone. Worse is we're hearing there's are no guarantees that it will ever get the update. I've been reading articles that predict 5G will all but kill HTC, at least in the US market, there seems to be no good news out there for this company. If I had my $1000 (USD) to spend all over again knowing what I know now I would have found a different device.
VidJunky said:
While I am an HTC fan, such as yourself, I would recommend getting a different device than the U12+. I have the U12+, live in the US and I am on Verizon's network. I cannot dial emergency numbers (911), the phone has proven to be super fragile (I've broken both the back and the digitizer since purchase, both very expensive to replace), HTC customer support has all but dried up, at least for this device, the U12+ is slated to get Android Pie while other older models have gotten it already, even the lower end U12 Life model all before this Flagship phone. Worse is we're hearing there's are no guarantees that it will ever get the update. I've been reading articles that predict 5G will all but kill HTC, at least in the US market, there seems to be no good news out there for this company. If I had my $1000 (USD) to spend all over again knowing what I know now I would have found a different device.
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Yes, I agree with you. Htc has no innovation, and the update speed has slowed down noticeably. Not only the United States, but China is also the same. But apart from htc, I really can't find a good phone. My request is to be able to use the cdma network, and to use the excellent lcd screen, and the native system that is close to Google.
zzw19921212 said:
...apart from htc, I really can't find a good phone... and the native system that is close to Google.
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The UI was probably 35% of my decision to get this device. I was familiar with Sense and liked it. The specs were probably 40% of my decision. They aren't the absolute best but they are up there. The style/look, my feelings about other HTC devices I've owned and everything else make up the last 25%.
I can't really help you with your CDMA question other than to say that I've had issues on Verizon that I didn't really give much consideration to until this post. If it is true that the device only operates on the LTE portion of the network then that's probably why I had to go to Verizon and have them fix texting for me and probably why I can't dial emergency numbers. There may be other things I'm missing because they aren't as obvious. My entire experience on this device hasn't felt as rich or full as when I was using the HTC M10. I've never experienced that before moving from device to device. I've got probably another 7 to 10 months before I'm aching for a new device and truthfully I don't know what I'm going to do when that time comes.
VidJunky said:
The UI was probably 35% of my decision to get this device. I was familiar with Sense and liked it. The specs were probably 40% of my decision. They aren't the absolute best but they are up there. The style/look, my feelings about other HTC devices I've owned and everything else make up the last 25%.
I can't really help you with your CDMA question other than to say that I've had issues on Verizon that I didn't really give much consideration to until this post. If it is true that the device only operates on the LTE portion of the network then that's probably why I had to go to Verizon and have them fix texting for me and probably why I can't dial emergency numbers. There may be other things I'm missing because they aren't as obvious. My entire experience on this device hasn't felt as rich or full as when I was using the HTC M10. I've never experienced that before moving from device to device. I've got probably another 7 to 10 months before I'm aching for a new device and truthfully I don't know what I'm going to do when that time comes.
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okļ¼thanks.I have not used htc 10, I have used htc g11, htc butterfly, htc one m7 m8 and u11. I hope this year htc can get 5g new mobile phone. Since my u11 was stolen, I am using Meizu who my mother has eliminated.