Be Excellent To Each Other

So, it's time for a new phone, both for me and for my girlfriend. She's on Orange atm, and I am on O2, but I am pretty sure I might move to Orange too, then we can apparently do something called magic numbers, and call each other for free. Does this still exist? I think it makes sense because 90% of my minutes are used talking to her, since most of my other calls are only a few minutes.

Here are things she would like out of a new phone, in order of importance:

Decent Camera
Pretty
Some kind of internet access (she says mainly to do things like search for directions online, maybe check emails/wikipedia)

She really likes Sony Ericsson phones, her last 2 have been them, and she has liked them, but is also open minded about other manufacturers if they are really good.

She does not want a phone with a touchscreen, or a stuck joystick thing. She is not going to use it as an MP3 player/music device.



As for me:
My current phone is an N95, and I really like it. I definitely want a phone with Wifi and proper internet browsing, the browser on the n95 isn't all that good, but I get by with it.

I also have some apps for my N95 that are features I sort of need. I have one that lets me record phone calls as a wav file on the memory card. Very useful for me. I don't care about the camera that much, the one of the n95 is more than good enough, but I wouldn't be happy with one much worse.

I've heard that the N96 kind of sucks. This is a bit of a shame.

I would kind of like a pretty phone too.

I don't know much about phones on the market right now, so any suggestions are appreciated. Are the current Blackberrys worth thinking about?

No idea about Orange but most O2 tariffs have* unlimited free O2-O2 calls which don't affect your normal minutes.

No equivalent to Orange Wednesdays though.

* Had, last time I looked.

Jesusphone. Had mine for two weeks and everything else I've ever had can get to fucking fuck. It's great, bloody great.

Ornage you can select magic numbers so the calls are free

You are bloomin' stuuuudants arenatcha?

You should be on Pay As You Go.

O2 has a good one with 500 or 1000mins free mins to 10 O2 numbers and 500 free texts to anyone for topping up by £15/£10. (the numbers change every so often depending what you get). Basically if you top up £15 you get all that for the next 30 days. Your credit is still credit to spend for everything else, or when your month runs out.

It's what I use. And it's so cheap I can't justify a contract. Otherwise I can't help you.

Oh yeah, I don't want an iPhone.

And I would get a pay as you go, but my kind mother happily pays for a contract for me. (Argh not for much longer, she is only doing it because I am a student )

Hmm. Orange wednesdays is not really a big incentive to me. I know enough people on Orange that can give me codes anyway.

You N95 is the best you can do, for now. The market has not really moved on from it at all, unless you want a 3G iphone and you don't.

I went onto a really cheap contract wiht O2 and will look at things again in a few months once the N97 and competitors are out.

Wy wife has just upgraded to a sony ericsson slider phone, with an 8MP camera, wifi, GPS and gubbins. I can't tell you the model number off the top of my head though. C880 or something?

Once she has it (should be here tomorrow) I'll let you know what she thinks of it.

I have an iPhone and like it a lot.

Yeah you do.

You really do. Really, really.

There are plenty of contracts that are effectively free for 12 months (redemption offers but as long as you can remember to send off the right bills you do get the money). Ok so you don't get your dream handset but fuck that I'd sooner have the £360 over the year. Try this place (they aren't as sketchy as they may look, they are part of Phones 4 U):

http://www.mobiles2yourdoor.co.uk/

For handsets, I cannot say beyond "get an iPhone". They really are that good. No matter how much you think you don't want one, you should take a long play with a demo one somewhere.

For tariffs, the new O2 ones are awesome value.

Payg, orange, magic numbers and orange Wednesday. On iPhone. Is what you want.


Posted from my iPhone.

Did we mention the iPhone yet?

I'll consider an iPhone when they start making ones that can double up as a decent iPod.

I've pretty much consigned my iPod Nano to a drawer since I've had the iPhone. What's wrong with it?

It has significantly less capacity than the 4G iPod I got about five years ago and I could do with a lot more than that. Having to trim down my music collection would seem like a backwards step really. Same with the iPod Touch.

I suppose, but the way I see it I either want to carry my whole music collection with me (over 200GB, not including unripped CDs), or I just carry a small selection and rotate round. Whether it's 8GB or 50GB, it doesn't really matter as I won't listen to everything I carry and will rotate it often enough so that I've always got something fresh on there.

Neither did I. And do you know what, actually I did and it's aces. Forget the hype, forget the cunts walking around London, forget everything. It's just a great tool. I use it for so much more than just a phone.

Can't you stream from iTunes on your home-based computer yet? If not, I'd expect that soon, and on a £35+ tariff it'd be no-cost.

There are apps in the app store that let you do this, including using the cell network -- for example Simplify is £3. A colleague of mine drove Bristol->Cardiff the other day streaming a podcast all the way without any pauses or interruptions.

Google phone with Spotify client FTW. Someone must be making one.

Spotify is a pretty high quality stream, you'd struggle to cram it down a vanilla 3G network connection. Simplify and most apps like it (for example, the PSP's ability to stream from the PS3) downsample on the fly to make the bitrates smaller.

Oh, if it was all official though then presumably Spotify could set up a lower quality stream somehow?

If Spotify takes off then something like that must be coming soon.

Can I put an iphone on in the car and it will charge up using the cigarette lighter?

No, you'd just burn it.

Yes. Make sure you get a decent holder for the phone though. I got a cheap one and binned it after a few days because it was crap. Yes a similar one was fine for my old phone.

Not an iPhone.


An iPhone.

It's a C905 and was shipped with the awful, awful orange software and firmware. Once I'd debranded and reflashed the thing it became quite a bit better.

So far: it's just like previous SE phones, familiar menus. Nice screen, but it seems to delay a bit between pressing the key and something happening, also pop up menus open rather jerkily which isn't too pretty.

When slid open there is a fair bit of play in the menchanism, shame as it spoils the 'premium' feel they were going for. GPS just will not work. Buttons feel a bit odd as they aren't separate buttons - more bumps on a single pressure pad sort of thing.

It's on OK phone but without meaning to sound like a cock, it's rubbish compared to the iphone. Camera is ace though.

730 bananas.

It is a shame the Iphone is only available on O2. Not a fan of them at all..

Getting the message now, thx.


And you can put it on any network you are a fan of, anyway.

I forget I keep saying that..

How can you put it on any network?

Unlock it and put the SIM in.

So i can't do it offically?

Ask an official.

I will do it officially for £100.

so If I want an Iphone on Orange, I have to buy an iphone, get it unlocked.. then works!!

Or just change to O2, get an overpriced plan but a free Iphone?

Oh yeah, because he's the repetitive one in this thread. If you lot suck Steve Jobs' dick any harder you'll all get mouth cancer.

Get an iphone.

Got one. It sits in a drawer. It is the Rise Of The Robots of the phone world.

Don't be silly, Steve Jobs's spunk cures cancer.

Although it is broken, of course.

Ah no! As with a lot of electronic items, the passage of time mended it.

It has powers of self-healing?! Is any further proof of the iPhone's divine origins necessary?

Guys, who is Steve Job?

They meant Steve Jobses's

So most of you guys don't think there is an alternative to the Iphone?
What are the alternatives?

Cock.

This guy.



Steve with the CPC 464 new Macbook Air, yesterday.

It's not a person, it's an action. Buying an iPhone is a self-satisfying onanistic act known affectionately as a Steve Job.

What Grim.. fails to mention is that he spent 5 years working for Amiga Action so therefore rates it at 92%.

Personally I award the Iphone 899 bananas.