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[Q] New and could use some help

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!

[Q] Buying new droid (AT&T), can you beat a Galaxy S II LTE?

I currently have an HTC hero I used on AT&T (I think it was a Rogers phone from canada, its the Hero with the funny kink at the bottom).
I've been very happy with it for a few years now, but my folks just got new iphone 4's and I cant stand the "if this "android" thing is so great why is your phone so much slower than mine?" remarks from my father anymore (guess I did a little to good of a job turning him into a techy ) so its time to upgrade
I had not looked at new phones since my Hero was very near top of the line. Base on my extensive reading over the last 2 weeks it looks like the Samsung Galaxy S II LTE (aka Skyrocket) is probably a great choice, particularly since I will be moving to the Baltimore / D.C. area soon and it looks like they have LTE service!
1st Question) Can I still simply take the sim card from my Hero and pop it into the Skyrocket and be up and running? I assume the new phones still use the same old sim cards but all the reviews / videos / pictures I've seen didn't mention it specifically and I wanted to be sure, for all I know they could have changed.
2nd Question) Any reason you wouldn't recommend the Skyrocket? Something better out now, or coming out very soon?
Thank you very much for the help, I always appreciate the advice and wealth of information from all the experts here!
*EDIT* FYI I did look into the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Note, but its to large for me I think

1) Yes. To my knowledge (not very much ) only iPhones and Nokia's N9 use microSIM cards. Your regular SIM from your Hero will fit fine in your new phone.
2) The Skyrocket is a lovely phone, if you need LTE. There are two similar, somewhat cheaper alternatives available if you're not in an LTE area (i777, i9100). They are both compatible with AT&T 3G service.
If you wait for 'the next best thing' around the corner, you'll never buy anything Manufacturers are certainly pumping devices these days. That said, if you like big phones the Note is coming to AT&T within the next couple of weeks, also packing LTE.
I personally loved the LG Nitro HD for its stunning 720p screen and sleek build, although LGs software is definitely not as polished as Samsungs.
In the end, it all comes down to personal preference If you can, head into your local AT&T shop and get some hands-on time with both. Pick the one which feels better for you. You can make a more informed choice that way
Good luck!

[Q] Buying a used sg3 reccomendations

Hi everyone,
I'm finally giving up my droid X2 which, thanks to dragnzkilla, has been running 4.1.2 (buggy but usable considering it's a miracle it works at all)
I've seen the gs3 in my area on Craigslist and was going to meet them at the Verizon store to get it switched over to my unlimited data plan, which I have been told by csr will continue even with the addition of 4g. I am, of course, very interested in installing a custom rom, most likely CM 10.1.
In looking on line, it looks like I just need to unlock and root (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=35418324), install Goo Manager, get a build with gapps and go to town.
Am I missing anything? Is there anything about the phone (other than the obvious condition of it) that I should keep an eye out for? I'm assuming all the major apps (Netflix, pandora,evernote, etc) work fine. Also, I am traveling to the UK in May for about a week. Any tips on how to get a local pre-paid sim working while I'm there?
Thanks.

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That should be it.
As for the UK, I don't believe your phone will work there at all.
MAYBE if you can "flash" to another carrier that the UK supports then you'd be fine.
God bless the American people.

works fine in the uk
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1809314

[Completed] [Q] Need Tablet/Phone recomendations!

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. ?

[Completed] Need Help with possibly Moving to Sprint from Verizon.

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