Alternatives to iPhone?

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: Dumac

Originally posted by: NFS4

Still going for $440+ for unlocked 8GB iPhones

Nice link.

eBay won't let you search completed items without logging in.

 

[Mermaidman]

Originally posted by: NightDarker
Sprint is a joke as far as service goes. <snip>

That's like saying Hyundai makes crappy cars. Sure, Sprint used to have bad service, but they're bending over backwards to overcome the history. I'm not saying they're the best now, but they no longer deserve the bad reputation. IMO, this is a good time to take advantage of Sprint because it is desperate for your business.

 

[Saint Nick]

Originally posted by: Mermaidman

Originally posted by: NightDarker
APPARENTLY Sprint is a joke as far as service goes. <snip>

That's like saying Hyundai makes crappy cars. Sure, Sprint used to have bad service, but they're bending over backwards to overcome the history. I'm not saying they're the best now, but they no longer deserve the bad reputation. IMO, this is a good time to take advantage of Sprint because it is desperate for your business.

Thats why I put apparently. I put apparently, because, it seems a lot of people have come to the conclusion that Sprint has bad service, both customer service and phone service in general.

 

[ElFenix]

sprint's network has been fine for me (better than t-mobile's by far, and maybe at&t has caught up by cingular was not as good), and in 8 years i've had basically no customer service issues. and they'll give me free months just for calling up and asking.

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: BurnItDwn
I don't know why some people don't consider the Voyager to be a "smart phone" or what really constitutes a "smart phone" but from what I can tell, it can do pretty much the same amount of things the iphone can do, it has a full keyboard, touchscreen, etc.

That said, I don't understand the fascination with having a "high end" phone in the first place. Who the wants to surf the net or play a game or send an email on a 3 inch screen?

There is no real definition for a smartphone, but for me, if the phone runs one of those clunky default-provider interfaces, then I don't consider it a smartphone. It has to run something like Windows Mobile, PalmOS, etc.

Also, surfing the net can be quite nice on the phones. Normal webpages are not good on them, I'll agree there. Although depending, you can usually still read what you need even if the webpage is not tailored for mobile browsing. Also, some sites have mobile webpages. You can order stuff from Amazon.com via mobile site and it's actually quite clean. I've never tried to order something, but I have went and searched things. I did this when I was in EB Games and they had some sales and I wanted to see if the sales prices were cheaper than Amazon (they weren't ).

I can also use a GPS on my phone, I can load up Google maps wherever I want. I can run Live Search any time. It's quite handy... although I need to tinker with it to find out why the bluetooth sucks so much with my car. Whenever someone calls and the car picks up, it sounds garbled and I can barely hear them and they can barely hear me. It's the only negative aspect for me as I kinda need my hands-free setup in NY .

 

[aphex]

Just for shits and giggles, here is a good article over at Giz showing how much an iPhone costs compared to some others (not taking Sprint SERO into account)

http://gizmodo.com/5015540/iph...gs-true-price-compared

Interesting to say the least. Although they use the cheapest plans, the same would hold mostly true for the more expensive ones as well across the board.

 

[Saint Nick]

I might still end up getting one. I used one a few weeks ago at the AT&T store and was floored with how cool it was. I have a lot of decisions to make.

 

[Reckoner]

Originally posted by: ric1287

Originally posted by: KeypoX

Originally posted by: ric1287
at this point you could probably buy a gen 1 iPhone for <$100 and mess around with it to see if you like it.

Thats what I'll be doing if Apple/Att turn buying a gen 2 into a cluster-fuck as it seems like they are.

lol show me where to get that and i will buy 100 shit 1000

they still sell on ebay for 500+

wait a week or 2 and the prices will fall on ebay. Or go to craigslist. Gen 1's will not be selling for $400+ for much longer.

Thank god i sold mine for $400 before wwdc

tmobile users will still pay heavily for the gen 1 phone, since they won't be able to use 3g anyways.

 

[Mide]

Is ATT going to allow people to buy this phone with a new voice plan but NOT getting the unlimited data plan? I'd use the Wifi more than anything and would rather not pay for the data 3G rate.

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: Specop 007

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Specop 007

Originally posted by: NFS4
LOL, I didn't realize that the Instinct was an actual phone. I thought you guys were just being silly

Haha, no its a real phone

Looks like a cheap iPhone knock-off -- plus it's on Sprint. Double suck.

Cheap iPhone knockoff? I'm not seein it. Elaborate.

Samsung's Instinct Doesn't Ring True As an iPhone Clone

 

[Jawo]

Originally posted by: Specop 007

Originally posted by: NFS4
The actual hardware of the iPhone is really nothing all that impressive IMHO. The thing that makes the iPhone superior to just about every other phone on the market (if you want to do more than just talk) is the OS/interface. No other phone even comes close IMHO.

Again.

Instinct.

Ok ok, so technically no other phone does come close. But one will. Very soon.

Actually the Instinct will be out two weeks sooner on 6/20!

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: Mide
Is ATT going to allow people to buy this phone with a new voice plan but NOT getting the unlimited data plan? I'd use the Wifi more than anything and would rather not pay for the data 3G rate.

You can just get a normal plan, buy the phone separately and switch the SIM cards. Although with how some Apple devices are locked up, I'm not sure if you can change the SIM... someone with more knowledge would have to chime in on that. When I switched to my Tilt, I just swapped SIM cards, but I did still put the Data Plan on my account anyway . I use that thing so much, I'd be paying $100 phone bills without it .

 

[onlyCOpunk]

You will have to get the data as well. But I'm sure after a certain amount of time you are allowed to cancel the data aspect, if not right away.

 

[Naeeldar]

Originally posted by: NightDarker
I'm up in the air here. Apparently Sprint is a joke as far as service goes. AT&T is expensive. I haven't heard much about Verizon. A lot of my friends are on it. Our company also gets a discount on that carrier, too.

Originally posted by: Specop 007

Originally posted by: BurnItDwn
I don't know why some people don't consider the Voyager to be a "smart phone" or what really constitutes a "smart phone" but from what I can tell, it can do pretty much the same amount of things the iphone can do, it has a full keyboard, touchscreen, etc.

That said, I don't understand the fascination with having a "high end" phone in the first place. Who the wants to surf the net or play a game or send an email on a 3 inch screen?

Agreed.

I need 0-9, Talk and End. Thats it. Thats all I want. I dont care about crappy MP3's, the shitty camera, watching movies I can hardly see or any of the other weird things people do.

I just want ring ring ring hello good bye.

But to each their own.

I like the idea of GPS. I travel a lot, or at least try to, and it'd be nice to have

I've had Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon over the years. The service has been comparable on all 3 with Verizon only slightly better but you pay hugely for it.

Honestly I've been with Sprint now for last 2 years and just renewed for 2 more years because the service has been very good (customer service wasb ad in beginning but I get through quickly and they are so proactive right now it's not even funny) and the plans are cheaper then I could get anywhere else.

At this point I believe Sprint's only issue is the bad press from before and they seem to be imrpoving upon it.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Nokia N95, N82. Come on guys... learn your phones! =P

Symbian S60 rules the world, and while these phones aren't at the top in the US, they are the top in the world. They make your stupid LG Voyagers and Envies or whatever look like kids phones.

 

[Calculator83]

Just buy the Iphone,, and download the unlocker. OMG.. 3 buttons 15mins later, u can use any provider.

 

[Phynaz]

Originally posted by: Calculator83
Just buy the Iphone,, and download the unlocker. OMG.. 3 buttons 15mins later, u can use any provider.

Oh Rly?

Please show me this unloacker that enables an iPhone to run on a cdma network.

 

[Cdubneeddeal]

Originally posted by: NightDarker

Originally posted by: Mermaidman

Originally posted by: NightDarker
APPARENTLY Sprint is a joke as far as service goes. <snip>

That's like saying Hyundai makes crappy cars. Sure, Sprint used to have bad service, but they're bending over backwards to overcome the history. I'm not saying they're the best now, but they no longer deserve the bad reputation. IMO, this is a good time to take advantage of Sprint because it is desperate for your business.

Thats why I put apparently. I put apparently, because, it seems a lot of people have come to the conclusion that Sprint has bad service, both customer service and phone service in general.

Though, customer service was lacking some time ago, Sprint has made a complete turn around in that department. When I bought my Curve, I paid, and walked out the door. The next day I get a call from one of their departments giving me a $50 credit for being a loyal sprint customer. On top of that, they give me a monthly discount for being with them for so long. Every CSR that I've ever had to contact at Sprint has been nothing short of helpful as of late. I think a new survey is in order.

 

[Naeeldar]

Originally posted by: Cdubneeddeal

Originally posted by: NightDarker

Originally posted by: Mermaidman

Originally posted by: NightDarker
APPARENTLY Sprint is a joke as far as service goes. <snip>

That's like saying Hyundai makes crappy cars. Sure, Sprint used to have bad service, but they're bending over backwards to overcome the history. I'm not saying they're the best now, but they no longer deserve the bad reputation. IMO, this is a good time to take advantage of Sprint because it is desperate for your business.

Thats why I put apparently. I put apparently, because, it seems a lot of people have come to the conclusion that Sprint has bad service, both customer service and phone service in general.

Though, customer service was lacking some time ago, Sprint has made a complete turn around in that department. When I bought my Curve, I paid, and walked out the door. The next day I get a call from one of their departments giving me a $50 credit for being a loyal sprint customer. On top of that, they give me a monthly discount for being with them for so long. Every CSR that I've ever had to contact at Sprint has been nothing short of helpful as of late. I think a new survey is in order.

Agreed my contract was up in May and I wanted to upgrade to the unlimited everything plan. At same time they were running a program for loyal customers 100 bucks credit if you renew your contract. Well aparently it wouldn't work with the 99 everything plan I had just upgraded too so the customer service rep without me even asking told me she would just put the 100 bucks credit on.

The service has always been amazing phone wise. Customer service seems to be turning around quite nicely and their prices are much better then the rest. They just need to continue to work on the marketing to get the word out and Sprint should be turning around nicely.

Regardless I'm picking up the instinct in 7 days... while it doesn't have all features that the iphone does it does have some that the iphone dosen't.

 

[Calculator83]

Originally posted by: Phynaz

Originally posted by: Calculator83
Just buy the Iphone,, and download the unlocker. OMG.. 3 buttons 15mins later, u can use any provider.

Oh Rly?

Please show me this unloacker that enables an iPhone to run on a cdma network.

CDMA is dieing, whats wrong with you.

 

[Muadib]

Originally posted by: Cdubneeddeal

Originally posted by: NightDarker

Originally posted by: Mermaidman

Originally posted by: NightDarker
APPARENTLY Sprint is a joke as far as service goes. <snip>

That's like saying Hyundai makes crappy cars. Sure, Sprint used to have bad service, but they're bending over backwards to overcome the history. I'm not saying they're the best now, but they no longer deserve the bad reputation. IMO, this is a good time to take advantage of Sprint because it is desperate for your business.

Thats why I put apparently. I put apparently, because, it seems a lot of people have come to the conclusion that Sprint has bad service, both customer service and phone service in general.

Though, customer service was lacking some time ago, Sprint has made a complete turn around in that department. When I bought my Curve, I paid, and walked out the door. The next day I get a call from one of their departments giving me a $50 credit for being a loyal sprint customer. On top of that, they give me a monthly discount for being with them for so long. Every CSR that I've ever had to contact at Sprint has been nothing short of helpful as of late. I think a new survey is in order.

Since Sprint lost over 1 million customers just in the last quarter, I'd say the old survey still fits.

 

[sxr7171]

Originally posted by: KeypoX
i had an iphone and for me its not that good. As i use skype in conjunction and iphone can only run one app at a time making it useless to me. but it does have a large community with alot of 3rd party programs. Nokia n95 is spec better, way better but less of a community

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_N95

iPhone is better for one reason marketing...

everything apple makes is 2nd rate but they know how to market... but right now iPhone is the best for a cell phone i think i havent had a regular cell phone in about a year, but mad expensive.

Way less of a community? Try howardforums or ipmart-forum. They sold 10 million of them worldwide. Nokia owns 53% of the world smart phone market: http://www.canalys.com/pr/2008/r2008021.htm

 

[sxr7171]

Originally posted by: Dumac
*NSFW* Obligatory *NSFW*

Thank you for linking to that gem.

 

[sxr7171]

Originally posted by: DLeRium
Nokia N95, N82. Come on guys... learn your phones! =P

Symbian S60 rules the world, and while these phones aren't at the top in the US, they are the top in the world. They make your stupid LG Voyagers and Envies or whatever look like kids phones.

Finally someone who knows what they're talking about. I came upon this thread to see if anyone had a clue here on Anandtech and it was surprising to see this situation. One would expect a group of tech savvy people to know what's up in the world. Get an N95 hack it and understand what a smartphone really is. Not that crippled crap that you all are hung up on. The number of applications available for these phone is unbelievable. Most of you would have a field day just testing apps and messing with these phones. Despite all that, Nokias are always solid phones that get the job done with excellent voice quality, signal etc. No compromises here.

 

[citan x]

The problem with the N95 is that it is very expensive, even more than the iphone. Also, the biggest reason I am tempted with the iphone is its bigger screen. I am mostly interested in browsing and the GPS and I want a bigger screen. Currently I have the HTC Kaiser and the 2.8" screens HTC is so fond of truly suck. I don't think any current device has reached the holy grail of having it all done well.:frown: