[bhp_maniac]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

Did you get a factory sealed box? Any idea where it has been imported from? Any issues with the WiFi sensitivity... like do you loose signals in adjoining rooms? Considering buying something with dealer warranty but don't know safe such a purchase is going to be...


Can anybody comment on the camera of the Neo V and Ray? Which one is better? Not concerned about the Pixels (in which case Ray wins with its 8 MP)... more concerned about picture quality. Also does the Exmor sensor in Ray really make a difference?

I am using a Neo for the past 6 months (bought at 16.7 from eBay with dealer warranty). I have seen lot of complaints regarding WiFi, but I didn't face any issue. Being said that, I use a WiFi-N network both at work and home, if that makes any difference.

Regarding camera, you can't expect great results from these phones other than the low light performance. I have used both Ray and Neo. Ray felt taking inferior shots than Neo even if they use the same camera module. I think they have done some changes in the camera driver/software. Details are terribly lost in some moments due to the over compression of camera driver and coupled with that the noise reduction algorithm used. Also, the driver seem to use 2X2 chroma sub sampling which seems to be the culprit. Camera was a big let down for me. I am not saying its bad, yes its much better than Galaxies and Motorola's but definitely not up to the standards of Sony. I find it not taking better clicks than my previous N79.

Lot of members on XDA are trying to crack the driver and do something regarding this, but not anything till now. I pray SE to get us an update to get the fullest of this 8MP EXMOR sensor rather giving us an ICS

[arsudarsan]

Originally Posted by thoma

If you don't want to throw away the Walkman phone, I guess the keys have stopped working because the flex cable inside the slider has got cut. I had replaced it for 750/- from the authorized service center for my W705.

Thanks bhp_manic and thoma. We have been having a lot of issues with this phone recently. The ear peice stopped working, got it fixed and the same issue popped up again in a couple of weeks. Now the keys have stopped working as well. So I think it is the right time to replace this phone.

Any news about ICS upgrade unlocking video calling on Xperia range?

[bhp_maniac]

Originally Posted by KRN

2. Email App - This is the most used app on my phone and Sony has disappointed me big time with this. Lack of ability to move mails to folders, no conversation view, lack of out of office settings are a few key missing features. Sony's ICS update is expected to beef up the email client. If not, I am planning to buy an email app from the Android market. My low end HTC had all these features

Yes, I second that. The E-Mail app s****. I am using Enhanced Email from market for Exchange Sync. Its a great stock replacement app. Give it a try

[clevermax]

Originally Posted by KRN

2. Email App - This is the most used app on my phone and Sony has disappointed me big time with this. Lack of ability to move mails to folders, no conversation view, lack of out of office settings are a few key missing features. Sony's ICS update is expected to beef up the email client. If not, I am planning to buy an email app from the Android market. My low end HTC had all these features

Try K9. Have been using that for months, it is fast and it does the job pretty well. I stopped using the stock Android e-mail app because it didn't have the option to 'Bcc' myself in all the e-mails I sent from official id. If I bcc all the mails, I can automatically get them in my sent items folder in my Outlook as well. It is an easy way to keep all your sent mail in one place.

[selfdrive]

I am looking to buy a basic Android phone. My requirements are:
- good battery life
- should be able to use whatsapp
- good voice quality
- no separate keypad as far as possible

One of my friends recommended the HTC explorer. I would like to know your recommendations in this price range. TIA

[sgiitk]

Explorer is good but I still prefer the older and a bit costlier Wildfire S primarily for the Gorilla glass.

[bhp_maniac]

Originally Posted by arsudarsan

Any news about ICS upgrade unlocking video calling on Xperia range?

I don't think this is going to happen Luckily though all of my video calling peers have switched to androids so, I use skype now

Originally Posted by clevermax

Try K9. Have been using that for months, it is fast and it does the job pretty well. I stopped using the stock Android e-mail app because it didn't have the option to 'Bcc' myself in all the e-mails I sent from official id. If I bcc all the mails, I can automatically get them in my sent items folder in my Outlook as well. It is an easy way to keep all your sent mail in one place.

Does K9 allow to bypass the PIN check of exchange server? Actually I am using Enhanced Email only for this one feature. My exchange server is set up to allow access to those devices which doesn't support PIN check and Enhanced Email works like one when PIN check is disabled in set up.

Dear Moderators, please merge these two posts as I actually forgot to multi-quote. My bad

[S_U_N]

Originally Posted by selfdrive

I am looking to buy a basic Android phone. My requirements are:
- good battery life
- should be able to use whatsapp
- good voice quality
- no separate keypad as far as possible

One of my friends recommended the HTC explorer. I would like to know your recommendations in this price range. TIA

Hey Bala,

For around Rs. 9000 (that is the price of HTC explorer on LetsBuy), here are other options:
Samsung Galaxy Y
Micromax A70
LG Optimus NET P690

If you can stretch you budget by a few thousand more there are more choices available like Xperia Mini ST15i, LG Optimus Hub E510 and Samsung Galaxy Ace.

But good battery life on Android is not so easy due to various reasons. Generally two days/ 48 hours is the maximum you should expect.

[Raccoon]

Originally Posted by bhp_maniac

I am using a Neo for the past 6 months (bought at 16.7 from eBay with dealer warranty). I have seen lot of complaints regarding WiFi, but I didn't face any issue. Being said that, I use a WiFi-N network both at work and home, if that makes any difference.

Regarding camera, you can't expect great results from these phones other than the low light performance. I have used both Ray and Neo. Ray felt taking inferior shots than Neo even if they use the same camera module. I think they have done some changes in the camera driver/software. Details are terribly lost in some moments due to the over compression of camera driver and coupled with that the noise reduction algorithm used. Also, the driver seem to use 2X2 chroma sub sampling which seems to be the culprit. Camera was a big let down for me. I am not saying its bad, yes its much better than Galaxies and Motorola's but definitely not up to the standards of Sony. I find it not taking better clicks than my previous N79.

Lot of members on XDA are trying to crack the driver and do something regarding this, but not anything till now. I pray SE to get us an update to get the fullest of this 8MP EXMOR sensor rather giving us an ICS

Since you too bought it with dealer warranty too, did you face any issues? Ws the box sealed?

Dude, Neo V (or are you talking about the Neo?)and Ray do not use the same camera module? The Ray is 8 MP with Exmor R and Neo is 5 MP and no Exmor R. Are you sure the Ray cam module is still inferior to the Neo V?

Originally Posted by KRN

Honestly, I don't remember whether the box was sealed, but when I spoke to the ebay seller before purchase he mentioned that they unlock the phones (and so have to open the box). However, I do remember that the content of the box looked factory packed (i.e. no sign of anyone having opened any of the items earlier). There are no indications of where the phone is imported from either.

I was ready to go with dealer warranty because in the case of the Neo V there was a huge difference between prices (13.9k ebay versus 17.5k retail).

I feel its very important to check if the box is sealed. What if its a refurbished piece?


So overall dealer warranty seems to be a risk worth taking. But still confused between Ray and Neo V. Which one has the better cam overall (including low light performance)? Thats the most imp. consideration.

Besides that, is the Ray a viable option for typing a lot of messages/emails and browsing given its narrow screen? What about Swype performance?

Would buy the Moto Defy right away, but its cam immediately eliminates it from consideration. And there don't seem to be any other competitors in this price range. :(

[xotiq]

Originally Posted by clevermax

Try K9. Have been using that for months, it is fast and it does the job pretty well. I stopped using the stock Android e-mail app because it didn't have the option to 'Bcc' myself in all the e-mails I sent from official id. If I bcc all the mails, I can automatically get them in my sent items folder in my Outlook as well. It is an easy way to keep all your sent mail in one place.

Have you tried touchdown for android? Pretty impressive compared to stock droid email app.

[bhp_maniac]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

Since you too bought it with dealer warranty too, did you face any issues? Ws the box sealed?

Dude, Neo V (or are you talking about the Neo?)and Ray do not use the same camera module? The Ray is 8 MP with Exmor R and Neo is 5 MP and no Exmor R. Are you sure the Ray cam module is still inferior to the Neo V?

Besides that, is the Ray a viable option for typing a lot of messages/emails and browsing given its narrow screen? What about Swype performance?

Would buy the Moto Defy right away, but its cam immediately eliminates it from consideration. And there don't seem to be any other competitors in this price range. :(

As I mentioned, I am using a Neo and not Neo V dude I have clearly mentioned it in the post.

Yes, my piece was box packed with SE seal. I can PM you the eBay seller if you want. He sells Ray too, my friend picked one from him.
Being said that, breaking seal for unlocking seems to be fishy as I believe these models are not locked to any network (at least what they are selling in India). If its locked to a network, it will probably have a logo of the network on the box.

What I am saying is Ray cam is inferior to Neo cam and not Neo V.
I know both Ray and Neo use same 8MP EXMOR R sensor, but the software they ported are different I guess. I tried a comparison between my Neo and a friend's Ray and Neo took better pictures overall, especially in low light. IMHO it may be due to the ISO adjustments and SW tweak differences.

Comparing to Neo, Ray felt to be having a clearer display due to smaller size and same resolution (3.3" for Ray and 3.7" for Neo).
Being said that, 3.3" seems to be lower on screen size for texting a lot, especially if you have fat fingers
Also it lacks an HDMI port on Ray

Defy cam is a joke comparing to Neo/Ray.

[Raccoon]

^^^Thanks a heap for the inputs. I guess you were referring to the Neo V as the Neo has not been released in India. Have not even seen it on eBay. Wonder why its not available now!?

Please do PM me the sellers id if hes reliable and you have had a good experience.

Is the texting part a deal breaker on the Neo? Any idea about Swype performance? If texting (and browsing) is a significant disadvantage, I'd have to forgo the Exmor R and go for the Neo V. :(

Do you have any idea if SE ASC will undertake paid repairs for a phone with no warranty?

[bhp_maniac]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

^^^Thanks a heap for the inputs. I guess you were referring to the Neo V as the Neo has not been released in India. Have not even seen it on eBay. Wonder why its not available now!?

Please do PM me the sellers id if hes reliable and you have had a good experience.

Is the texting part a deal breaker on the Neo? Any idea about Swype performance? If texting (and browsing) is a significant disadvantage, I'd have to forgo the Exmor R and go for the Neo V. :(

Do you have any idea if SE ASC will undertake paid repairs for a phone with no warranty?

Xperia Neo is still available through eBay. There are lot of listings around 16.5K. If you got the recent 10% coupon codes, go for it I am using touchpal, for some reason I felt it easier than Swype. If you text/email a lot on phone, yes I find it as a deal breaker. I have to email a lot on phone and can't think of a smaller screen than Neo's 3.7". So it all depends on your usage pattern.

I have PM'ed you some listings and also the dealer from which I bought it.

Regarding repairs, I believe they'll take as the SE India support page has Neo in it

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Explorer is good but I still prefer the older and a bit costlier Wildfire S primarily for the Gorilla glass.

Thanks sgiitk; will check this one out too.
The story is that I have an iphone which has been in teh service centre more than I would have liked. And as I bought it outside of India, the replacement warranty is not effective here. Hence moving to an android. Also I am a bit wary of spending too much on a phone that I wont use for more than a year anyway.

Originally Posted by S_U_N

For around Rs. 9000 (that is the price of HTC explorer on LetsBuy), here are other options:
Samsung Galaxy Y
Micromax A70
LG Optimus NET P690

But good battery life on Android is not so easy due to various reasons. Generally two days/ 48 hours is the maximum you should expect.

Thanks Sunil, I will check the Samsung options. Micromax and LG are out for me.
As fro battery life, 2 days should be good enough!

[anilkalvani]

For folks considering the SG Note, currently there is an offer on it. Here are the details:

Galaxy Note Offer



Lot of my friends who have the Nexus/One X have ICS freezing issues as well as banding as mentioned here in this thread. Have never waited this long before buying a phone, taking my time still before taking the plunge. Hope i decide soon.