Mobile Moans

[moonjiver]

This is going into areas where I am no kind of expert, hopefully others can give a more informed answer ..

However, so far as I know, most Android and Windows phones and of course the I-phones should perform at a similar level i.e. be capable of use as a business phone. I imagine a company would prefer to issue a similar model to all employees because of probably getting a deal on a batch of phones! Also of course the likelihood of fewer glitches if data is being sent to phones all using the same o/s.

I think any mobile user can erase data on the phone remotely - just needs the settings to be tweaked, (or does it require downloading a special application first?). I don't think it has to be done centrally by the company, but uploading data to cloud storage and subsequent file-sharing, presumably that would be managed centrally.

[moonjiver]

If a mobile phone was required for business use, I imagine many people would prefer an I-phone or one of the Androids - much greater range of downloadable applications. And probably Samsung or HTC? - the new Motorolas seem to me a bit untried and untested.

But I have been watching the situation with this Android Kitkat 4.4.2 o/s. Apparently Motorola have acknowledged the signal problems etc. arising after existing phones have been upgraded to Kitkat (also some problems on the newer 4G version of the Moto G). The official response is that most of the issues have now been reported by users as being resolved (if you believe that!). Atleast that means that the 4G version might still be worth trying, it's a terrific price for what's offered. If any signal problems did still arise, one would now have a very strong case for demanding a repair/replacement, in the light of knowledge of a pre-existing issue.

[Richard]

Android Kitkat 4.4.2 o/s is now updated to version 4.4.4
not sure if it addresses all issues, WiFi signal loss, battery drain, etcetera.

Moto G 4G (the only one that allows 32GB cards) has some reported class of SD card conflict issues - but presumably, like Moto 3G, can access Google Drive's 50 GB 'cloud' storage anyway.

I may choose a basic 'Moto' or 'Samsung', depends on price I guess I don't need all the latest 'connectivity'.

[moonjiver]

Yes, i forgot that the Kitkat o/s has now been upgraded with a newer version. Not sure whether signal problems etc. are still prevalent, without checking the latest gossip on the internet.

The Moto G on 4G is the only model I think which has an SD card slot, the phone memory itself is only 8GB. In Phones4U, the display cards on the wall say that one of the earlier Motos has an SD slot, whereas the 4G version doesn't - totally wrong, as I checked out whilst passing the shop this afternoon!

From any Android phone or an I-phone, you can access Google Drive and get an allowance of free cloud storage, but on some models including the 4G Moto G 50GB is offered as a sweetener, part of the package.

I wouldn't like to recommend a particular phone to someone because it's quite a personal choice, you might even find you are not totally comfortable with the first one you get and want to try a different Android phone later. But I myself like the HTC phones very much, much cheaper than the Samsungs and the cheapest currently is around £180, just £20 more than the 4G Moto G. I use my HTC Desire S constantly, very easy to use.

[Richard]

After initially making good inroads into the Indian market place 'Motorola' (Moto G/3G) has been facing tough competition from two new entrants :

Chinese Xiaomi Mi 3 (3G only) the Xiaomi phone offers much better hardware than Moto G at the same price as its 16GB unit.
Taiwanese Asus ZenFone 5 (3G only) offers similar hardware, but has a higher resolution camera, sports a bigger screen and allows storage expansion via micro-SD cards.

I may well just go for plain vanilla 'Moto' despite it not receiving a 'hit' on Geoff's 'Poll'.
I don't need the latest.

[moonjiver]

One could get sidetracked by quite a number of cheaper competitors to the top Android phones but a lot of these are somewhat cutdown versions with inevitable compromises made. The Xiaomi Mi 3 is not designed for Western markets, with a very customised interface and all the Google applications replaced by Chinese ones. It's reported as difficult to use for English language and some severe weaknesses on specification.

The Asus ZenFone 5 only became available in the USA in early 2014, probably not in the UK yet. It came in for some criticism of screen resolution, "mediocre display", only adequate performance, inaudible ringtones in a crowded room!

My thinking works in a different way. Once I have decided what features or level of performance I really must have, I go for the best phones available which offer those - and then work downwards to the models I can actually afford! Sometimes I stretch slightly and buy a better phone than I really need, the advance of technology means that the up-to-date specification soon becomes obsolete!

[Richard]

Surely it also depends on your data consumption (i.e. video viewing, via media-streaming apps) and how much your 'provider' lets you handle?
I suspect that 4G is prone to making the consumption more intensive and that (WiFi ?) downloading itself may or not be an issue, as the file size is stated, whereas streaming may be more data-consumption-intensive than you can easily reckon.

Can you easily work out your likely data consumption per month?

....rants and ramblings of a mobile virgin !!

[Geoff]

Can you easily work out your likely data consumption per month?

On an android device go to settings > data usage to see how much data you have used. Probably similar on windows and ios.

[moonjiver]

I wasn't clear about the point you were making, but that largely reflects my ignorance of the complexities of downloading. As I understand it, using Wi-Fi doesn't eat into your data allowance but it is signicantly more risky unless you take proper precautions, passwords etc.

At present, the only signicant streaming I do is sometimes YouTube, quite often a BBC programme or a film. The latter often doesn't burn up even 300 MB a piece and I only spend a bit over £10 in a whole month to run the touchscreen phone on PAYG. If I got a swankier phone and started downloading much more stuff, then it would be economic to buy some sort of package.

I have a feeling that 4G does use up data allowance more quickly, not sure about that.

[Richard]

If 4G is faster then it allows data to be streamed more quickly (Video and Music) therefore you run the risk on consuming more in a given time period.
Like a faster car burns up more petrol, I guess !!


http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/4G-com ... b/4G-myths