Phone upgrade time

KryptoNeo

KryptoNeo

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My contract is up for renewal today and I am going to the shops in a bit to pick up a new phone.

I'm currently using an iPhone 4S and I am looking at getting either an iPhone 5 or a Samsung Galaxy S4.

I've read that the iPhone 5 is not much of an upgrade from the 4S and that the Samsung Galaxy S4 has a better spec, but after watching comparison videos on YouTube there is not a big difference performance wise between the 2.

I like the size of the Samsung screen but I like the build of the iPhone and being a previous iPhone user I am used to the interface.

Can anyone convince me why I should get one over the other.
 
Screen on the S4 is just brilliant.
Some neat features on the S4, others a little gimmicky.
Sound quality through headphones is excellent on the S4, best I've heard on a phone. Now I can retire my ageing MP3 player (previous S2 didn't have good enough sound quality for me, although tests showed it to be better than the iPhone and iPods still). Speaker is pretty decent for a phone, but you wouldn't want it to be replacing your HiFi :LOL:
Battery life is actually pretty decent on the S4, and is removable, which is a massive bonus for me. Also having the MicroSD card slot is another massive bonus (and a must) for me.
iPhone does the occasional thing faster and has a more solid feel to it, although is not in the slightest bit more durable. Interface change will take a bit of getting used to, probably, but I personally prefer android. Android is a lot more customizable as well.
 
Also, if you've got a 4S, there is probably not much point in upgrading to the 5. You aren't going to see much benefit. You might as well wait for whatever they release next if you want to go for another iPhone.
 
joesmith said:
Screen on the S4 is just brilliant.
Some neat features on the S4, others a little gimmicky.
Sound quality through headphones is excellent on the S4, best I've heard on a phone. Now I can retire my ageing MP3 player (previous S2 didn't have good enough sound quality for me, although tests showed it to be better than the iPhone and iPods still). Speaker is pretty decent for a phone, but you wouldn't want it to be replacing your HiFi :LOL:
Battery life is actually pretty decent on the S4, and is removable, which is a massive bonus for me. Also having the MicroSD card slot is another massive bonus (and a must) for me.
iPhone does the occasional thing faster and has a more solid feel to it, although is not in the slightest bit more durable. Interface change will take a bit of getting used to, probably, but I personally prefer android. Android is a lot more customizable as well.
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Eh? Quality through headphones is purely down to the headphones in most cases!
 
I used to have an iPhone and I switched to the galaxy s2, and I've recently changed to an HTC one which has the build quality of an iPhone (I'd even dare to say better!) Have a play with android, it's fantastic if you get along with it. I couldn't go back to ios now.
 
Just got back from the phone shop. Had a little play around with the S4. The screen clarity is amazing and it's a very nice looking device. But the thing is huge. I've got quite large hands and it still felt too big. So I just picked the iPhone 5.
 
KryptoNeo said:
Just got back from the phone shop. Had a little play around with the S4. The screen clarity is amazing and it's a very nice looking device. But the thing is huge. I've got quite large hands and it still felt too big. So I just picked the iPhone 5.
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You will be surprised how quickly you get used to a larger phone, had a blackberry before my s2 and am going to go for the note 2 at upgrade time.
 
I went for the S4 this time (had HTC before so was already using Android) and I love it. I thought it might be too big but it still fits in my pocket and because it's so light I forget it is there anyway.
 
joesmith said:
:bonk::bonk::bonk:

Yes, of course it is :thinking:
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Can you explain why some phones sound better through the same headphones than others?
 
odd jim said:
Can you explain why some phones sound better through the same headphones than others?
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Different phones have different audio chips, which give out a different sound. In order to output a digital file through an analogue source, you need a digital to analogue converter (DAC), which does what the name suggests - converts the digital source into an analogue source so that you can play the sound through your headphones or speakers. These work in varying degrees of accuracy. Some are able to produce a much better signal to noise ratio (SNR), that means there is a greater signal compared to noise. All DACs have some noise, but the greater the SNR the less noise there will be and so you will get a cleaner sound. Then there is the frequency response, this measures how consistent the device is able to output different frequencies. A good frequency response will output the low frequencies, mid frequencies and high frequencies all at a relatively consistent rate, such that you aren't getting a tinny mess etc.

That's just a few examples of how they vary, you have also got things like interference, jitter etc. which all vary depending on the quality of the device.
 
joesmith said:
Different phones have different audio chips, which give out a different sound. In order to output a digital file through an analogue source, you need a digital to analogue converter (DAC), which does what the name suggests - converts the digital source into an analogue source so that you can play the sound through your headphones or speakers. These work in varying degrees of accuracy. Some are able to produce a much better signal to noise ratio (SNR), that means there is a greater signal compared to noise. All DACs have some noise, but the greater the SNR the less noise there will be and so you will get a cleaner sound. Then there is the frequency response, this measures how consistent the device is able to output different frequencies. A good frequency response will output the low frequencies, mid frequencies and high frequencies all at a relatively consistent rate, such that you aren't getting a tinny mess etc.

That's just a few examples of how they vary, you have also got things like interference, jitter etc. which all vary depending on the quality of the device.
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Ah I see.
 
Have you looked at the new Nokia Lumia phones (820, 920, etc)? I upgraded to a Lumia 820 from an iPhone 4 in November and haven't looked back. I was initially worried as I'd had iPhones since their release and also how moving away from apple would impact synching with my iMac, iPad and apple accessories. It integrates flawlessly and is a refreshing change from the boring apple interface. Spec is the same as iPhones, galaxy phones and the 920 has the best camera out of them all. Plenty apps although not as many as apple but all the big names are there. Check them out
 
Quick question guys. Do I have a time limit to cancel my upgrade?
Whilst I am happy with the phone I have just realised that my data plan has been reduced and the monthly fee has increased. I was previously on an unlimited data plan and now I been reduced to 3gb per month. Which might be a lot to some but I watch a lot of netflix on my phone whilst its quiet in work.
 
KryptoNeo said:
Quick question guys. Do I have a time limit to cancel my upgrade?
Whilst I am happy with the phone I have just realised that my data plan has been reduced and the monthly fee has increased. I was previously on an unlimited data plan and now I been reduced to 3gb per month. Which might be a lot to some but I watch a lot of netflix on my phone whilst its quiet in work.
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Legally, if you bought it from a high street store, you don't have any rights to return it.
If you bought it online, and if you have not started the plan, then you can request a return within 7 days of receiving it.
If you have already started the contract, then you have no rights to cancel.
 
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joesmith said:
Legally, if you bought it from a high street store, you don't have any rights to return it.
If you bought it online, then if you have not started the plan, then you can request a return within 7 days of receiving it.
If you have already started the contract, then you have no rights to return it.
Click to expand...

I did get it from a high street.
The part about the plan starting, my previous contract is not up until July but I was eligible for upgrade from 21st May. So would that mean my plan has not started yet? By the way I'm with Orange/EE if that helps.
 
KryptoNeo said:
I did get it from a high street.
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In that case you don't have any legal right to return it unfortunately.

KryptoNeo said:
The part about the plan starting, my previous contract is not up until July but I was eligible for upgrade from 21st May. So would that mean my plan has not started yet? By the way I'm with Orange/EE if that helps.
Click to expand...

Check what your current allowances are. It most likely has started, mine started immediately when I upgraded slightly early.

Best thing to do would be to go back to the store and see what they say, if they are nice they might be able to change your plan, but they have no legal obligation to do so. They might be able to offer you an upgraded tariff with more data, but that will obviously cost more.
 
The thing is, unless its an unlimited data plan which orange no longer offer then its no use to me really.
When I went to get the phone I never really took into consideration how much I use netflix and YouTube on my phone. It was only after looking at my phone usage this morning and seeing that in the 2 days I've had it I've used 1.6gb cellular data that it dawned on me that 3gb is nothing. I'm already on a £42 per month contract. I'm not paying more to get more data. Especially when the 3 network offer all you can eat data at a cheaper rate than I'm paying now.
 
Ouch. Lesson learned there then, check how much data you need before signing!
Nothing you can really do then, just try to use Wi-Fi as much as you can.
You can get mobile broadband packages using a 3G wifi adapter, but that's gonna cost you a bomb.

That's a lot of money to be paying for a phone contract though, did you not shop around? :bonk:
 
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