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Old 20th May 2012, 09:53   #9181
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Samsung has started pre-booking on Samsung Galaxy S III at their estore for Rs.2000/-
Just booked mine. People who have done pre-booking will be getting Rs.2000/- off.
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Old 20th May 2012, 10:40   #9182
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Model: Sony Xperia Sola (MT27i Pepper.)

Price: Rs 18.7k

Some important specs:

Display: 480 x 854 pixels, 3.7 inches (~265 ppi pixel density) with Scratch-resistant glass
Processor: Dual-core 1 GHz with NovaThor U8500 chipset.
Ram: 512 MB
Internal memory: 8 GB (About 5 GB available to user – Memory is expandable)
Camera: 5 Megapixels
OS: Android 2.3.7 (upgradable to ICS)
Battery: Li-Ion 1320 mAh – not removable.

My Review:

1. Sony phones have always been good looking. Their new phones of the Xperia NXT series are not different. The NXT series comprises of 4 models – Xperia P, U, S and Sola. All models are available here except the Xperia P. P, U, and S share the same looks whereas Sola is the only model to have different looks. I do not think anyone can hate Sola’s looks. Thee design is quite unique and pleasing to the eyes. Build quality is also very good – materials look and feel sturdy and I did not find any part to be loose or creaky.

2. The Dual core processor does its job fairly well. The touch is quite responsive, opening apps is a quick, scrolling is also quite fluid and the touch buttons at the bottom also work effectively. Their so called “floating display touch” works only on the home screen and the stock browser. I have not yet tried playing any kind of games on it but I think basic games should run without any hassle but doing that will drain out the battery pretty fast.

3. Battery is pretty average. Unfortunately this is one area where Sony has gone horribly wrong. Why couldn’t they just provide a 1500 mAh battery? The phone lasts a day on minimal to moderate usage. One of the major battery consumer is Android OS services – I think this is happening because of the bloat ware already installed. God knows how many times you will have to charge it if you play a game or watch a movie on it. For ex: today the phone went to 13% in 24 hours on just some voice calls and nothing else. This was after disabling background data, disabling data connection/auto sync, turning off Bravia engine and setting the screen brightness at 40%.

4. I do not know what the WOW! thing is about Bravia engine. Those who think that it is a great technology just look at an AMOLED screen at 50% brightness and let me know what difference there is. In fact I find AMOLED to be better than BRAVIA powered screen. Those who still think Bravia screen is good – try running your phone with it and let me know what battery performance you get. A good screen nonetheless at the price being asked.

5. There is no front facing camera. Those looking for Video calls – this is not the phone for you.

6. The UI is pretty neat – almost all the basic things are done quickly. However I did not find a task manager. Samsung has an inherent task manager and I think Sony should also have included a task manager of their own.

7. Music quality/loudness is average – nothing great but not bad too.

8. Camera quality is good for occasional pictures (meant to be put up on Facebook etc).

9. This phone will be getting ICS.

10. There is a notification light which blinks when there is a missed call or an unread message. A feature which many phones do not have – Even my SGS2 does not have this. I know this is not a WOW feature but it is quite useful.

In short this phone is for first time Android users or those people who want a stylish phone with moderate to low usage. Those looking to do a lot of gaming or using tons of apps on this – kindly look at some other models.

I have bought plenty of phones previously and after buying all of them I always had a feeling that I had got the right product. But sadly this time it has not happened – The only issue that is bugging me seriously is the battery life. I do not care about Bravia screens or NFC if I have to sacrifice my battery life in order to use them. I know all smart phones these days suffer from insufficient battery life on heavy usage but at least they give decent battery life on moderate/low usage. Xperia Sola fails to do even that – this shortcoming just eclipses all its positives. Sorry if I am too harsh on this phone but I just wrote what I am feeling. This phone would have been perfect at this price if only a better battery was provided – probably a 1500 mAh one.

I feel Sony has gone wrong with their product strategy this year. I do not see people buying Xperia U, S or Sola in huge numbers for one reason – phones have got the basics wrong. All of them have some issue with them. I even went to xda forum in the Xperia S section to see what kind of battery life people were getting. My fears were proved correct when many people were not happy with the battery life. Although a firmware update from Sony might increase the battery life, what remains to be seen is when will that happen for Sola. The Xperia P is supposed to be launched in some time which IMO will suffer from similar issues. Plus it will face intense competition from the Galaxy Advance which is slated to be launched in the next week. I think in the Android space, Samsung is the king and will remain so this year too. They will be in the forefront with S3, Ace 2 and S Advance.
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Old 20th May 2012, 11:55   #9183
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Guys I need urgent help. I wanna use Skype on the defy. Versions 2.8 & 2.1 didn't work. Neither can I see the other party’a video nor can they see mine. Audio is working perfectly. Help please.
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Old 20th May 2012, 12:55   #9184
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Quote:
Originally Posted by esteemer View Post
Guys I need urgent help. I wanna use Skype on the defy. Versions 2.8 & 2.1 didn't work. Neither can I see the other party’a video nor can they see mine. Audio is working perfectly. Help please.
[APP] Skype videocalling for DEFY now working! - xda-developers may help.

or try tango if it works
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Old 20th May 2012, 12:58   #9185
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

looking for a dell venue pro in mumbai
can anyone confirm availability
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Old 20th May 2012, 14:18   #9186
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Quote:
Originally Posted by F150 View Post
I got a quote of 21.5k. Checked the phone, didn't like the display.
Purchase has been deferred again.
Got a new battery for my i9003 at 600 bucks.
Looks like common sense prevailed at the end of the day. :-)
That is definitely a good decision! I decided on Atrix2 because of the value and the price intersection for 22-23K.
Even now there is not dual core GHz phone with a GB of RAM with a 4.3 in display.

I was OK with the display. I cannot comment on how good or bad it is, with respect to others. Because I actually
did not compare ! Whichever I tried to compare, did not have the same H/W spec. Most phones in this price point
only had 512MB RAM. That aspect was more important for me.

Now I have also heard about the dual core aspect; that the actual performance of the dual core is not exploited
by any phone today. So from that point of view, it may have be unfair. But I do hope the ICS aspect makes it better.
Based on official update its due Q3 2012.
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Old 20th May 2012, 16:06   #9187
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Samsung Galaxy S2 now shipping with ICS Onboard in India

Samsung Galaxy S2 now shipping with ICS Onboard in India
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Old 20th May 2012, 19:14   #9188
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Sorry for going OT.
Is there any app or something which locks the SD card to a single phone only? I mean, one should not be able to use the SD card of stolen phone. Not unless without formatting it.
Nowadays as we use hdsc cards with so much capacity, I wonder how to protect my SD card content from missuse.
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Old 20th May 2012, 19:28   #9189
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Quote:
Originally Posted by offroad_maniac View Post
Sorry for going OT.
Is there any app or something which locks the SD card to a single phone only? I mean, one should not be able to use the SD card of stolen phone. Not unless without formatting it.
Nowadays as we use hdsc cards with so much capacity, I wonder how to protect my SD card content from missuse.
It's difficult... You can store all sensitive files in one particular folder, and lock the folder using File Locker kind of app.
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Old 20th May 2012, 21:07   #9190
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Quote:
Originally Posted by offroad_maniac View Post
Sorry for going OT.
Is there any app or something which locks the SD card to a single phone only? I mean, one should not be able to use the SD card of stolen phone. Not unless without formatting it.
Nowadays as we use hdsc cards with so much capacity, I wonder how to protect my SD card content from missuse.
Nothing. Get over it.

SO MUCH of your personal identity/data resides in the cloud.

If sony's networks can get compromised multiple times, god only knows what can happen in the future.

Stop worrying and move on
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Old 20th May 2012, 23:02   #9191
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

The phone probably gets stolen with the card!

Security step one is ...physical access.

I do wonder, and sometimes worry, about the whole thing, though. If someone stole my old Nokia, they got access to the phone and my contacts, and that would have been about it. With an android phone, if one uses the facilities, they have a way into one's life.

Perhaps attaching the phone to a high-tensile steel loop around the neck is the answer
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Old 21st May 2012, 00:09   #9192
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Guys got the HTC explorer. Its a nice phone. Only that after using the Nokia 5230 I am finding the touch screen a little difficult. Need to get used to it.

Exchanged my 5230 with the phone. I am so relieved to get rid of the 5230. It was giving me so many problems. The phone had clocked 1420 hours in 2 years and had speaker problems. The battery lasted less than a day. I got a good deal though(read Rs. 3000). As for the HTC I am still trying to get the hang of it. THis is my first android.

Last edited by Pancham : 21st May 2012 at 00:10.
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Old 21st May 2012, 07:37   #9193
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pancham
Guys got the HTC explorer. Its a nice phone. Only that after using the Nokia 5230 I am finding the touch screen a little difficult. Need to get used to it.

Exchanged my 5230 with the phone. I am so relieved to get rid of the 5230. It was giving me so many problems. The phone had clocked 1420 hours in 2 years and had speaker problems. The battery lasted less than a day. I got a good deal though(read Rs. 3000). As for the HTC I am still trying to get the hang of it. THis is my first android.
Congrats for getting into android. Explorer is a good phone. You will love it.

Reg SD card: As you nentioned, it looks like we have to keep imp files in a separate folder & lock it. Now need to search for a good app that will keep the folder inaccessible in any of the mobile/ PC OS.
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Old 21st May 2012, 09:15   #9194
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

@Pancham; Welcomt to the world of sense. I will suggest you root the phone for which most probably you will have to first unlock the bootloader (htcdev.com) since afaik permanent S-off is not available (check on rovolutionary.io). I will also suggest you join xda-developers.com the best known site for information and guidance on android phones. It will guide you through the rooting process.

I also went from the 5230 to Android (Samsung I5510) and after I managed to damage it to htc Wildfire S. Now both my phones are htc (Incredible 2 CDMA is the other) and rooted.
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Old 21st May 2012, 09:29   #9195
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Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods

Hi all,
My new android is now complete, up and running in android market.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...al.speedometer
this is a digital dash which works with GPS.
has some features like
• Current vehicle speed.
• Maximum alarming speed.
• Fuel usage.
• GPS based ODO meter and Trip meter.
• Proposed speed for reaching some destination.
• Longitute, Latitute, altitute information.
• Maximum speed reached in complete journey.

Let me know if you need something more or something can be done to improvise the application.
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