Geekzone: technology news, blogs, forums
Guest
Welcome Guest.
You haven't logged in yet. If you don't have an account you can register now.


bender84

78 posts

Master Geek


#95066 26-Dec-2011 11:22
Send private message

Hope everyone had a happy Christmas :)

I'm Looking for a new Phone to replace my aging Nokia 5130 Xpressmusic phone which seems to be inexplicably crashing, even after a reset and firmware update. Preferably under $500 and am not necessarily looking for a "bees knees" smart phone as such.

Requirements (Must have):
- Decent Music Playing phone with good sound quality and doesn't mind being connected to AUX input of stereos. -- The Nokia express I currently have has to be turned up to max volume to get anything decent out of the stereos and it distorts enough to be frustrating at that level.
- Standard 3.5mm RCA jack so I can plug in a standard set of earphones to listen to Music/podcasts. (Definitely do not want anything proprietary)
- Non intrusive periodic Unread SMS reminder (subtle audio beep or vibration), -- I don't receive many texts and the ones I do receive are usually important. The Nokia 5130 lacked such a feature and annoyed the heck out of me as I often would forget to check my phone for long periods.
- Expandable SD memory (at least upto 32GB)]
- Free of hideously annoying usability limitations. (e.g restrictive file name length limit, etc) -- An old Samsung (I forget the model) I used to have had this limitation. Often I would throw on some podcasts I've just download from the net and rush out to catch the bus, only to find that the podcasts have a file name too long and the Samsung would refuse to play them. (Insert Mega rage face from rage comics here)
- Basic, but reliable Organizer / Calendar -- Most phones I've used seem okay in this department
- Reliable Wake up alarm -- Most phones I've used seem okay in this department
- Good battery life. Can be left on standby for a few days. -- Unfortunately, this might exclude many smart phones as they tend to only last a day on a full charge.
- And of course must be able to reliably make and receive phone calls and text messages. -- Old Samsung would inexplicably lose service. Nokia 5130 did not suffer from this problem.

Nice to have (but not mandatory):
- WiFi access.
- Good quality 5MP camera
- Basic Text editor.

Thanks for any suggestions :)

Create new topic
Wade
2225 posts

Uber Geek


  #561552 26-Dec-2011 15:43
Send private message

Samsung Galaxy S was recognised as a good music device, covers off most of your requirements i would say



uglyb0b
335 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #561559 26-Dec-2011 16:14
Send private message

Agreed, the Galaxy S is great, especially in terms of music. Good frequency response and native FLAC support are a few features it's music player has over it's competitors.

bender84

78 posts

Master Geek


  #562302 28-Dec-2011 22:51
Send private message

Thanks Wade and uglybob,
Looks like the Samsung Galaxy S is the one.



CdTDroiD
869 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

  #563009 30-Dec-2011 20:50
Send private message

You can get the Google Nexus S for $499 brand new and it has Ice Cream Sandwich now with google music, great way to go ;)

Huge battery life, AMOLED display, 4Inch screen...




Follow me on Twitter ! 
Get help with Android from a XDA Recognized Developer - Google+

sbiddle
30853 posts

Uber Geek

Retired Mod
Trusted
Biddle Corp
Lifetime subscriber

  #563013 30-Dec-2011 21:01
Send private message

You've essentially limited yourself to an Andoid or a Symbian phone with that pricepoint - and in reality these days with only a handful of OS options it's not so much a case of whether a particular phone has a feature you like, but what OS suits you best.


CdTDroiD
869 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

  #563016 30-Dec-2011 21:04
Send private message

sbiddle: You've essentially limited yourself to an Andoid or a Symbian phone with that pricepoint - and in reality these days with only a handful of OS options it's not so much a case of whether a particular phone has a feature you like, but what OS suits you best.



You can get a 3GS for that but lets be honest their pretty disappointing  




Follow me on Twitter ! 
Get help with Android from a XDA Recognized Developer - Google+

tigercorp
668 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #563019 30-Dec-2011 21:14
Send private message

Another vote for the Samsung Galaxy S (not the S II) flashed with a kernel and rom that makes full use of the Wolfson DAQ.

 
 
 

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.
langers1972
1039 posts

Uber Geek


  #563031 30-Dec-2011 21:44
Send private message

CdTDroiD: You can get the Google Nexus S for $499 brand new and it has Ice Cream Sandwich now with google music, great way to go ;)

Huge battery life, AMOLED display, 4Inch screen...


I could be wrong but the Nexus S you'll get here is the i9023 which has the SLCD screen not AMOLED, having said that I've got one and they're great and the added bonus is ICS out of the box.

CdTDroiD
869 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

  #563036 30-Dec-2011 21:48
Send private message

Theres a couple in NZ, i think your right about the i9023 but i got one today which is a i9020A (For all NZ networks) and its sick so cheap and with the ROM i just made (ICS) its running almost as fast as my Galaxy Nexus lol, just without the 8mp camera haha




Follow me on Twitter ! 
Get help with Android from a XDA Recognized Developer - Google+

langers1972
1039 posts

Uber Geek


  #563037 30-Dec-2011 21:50
Send private message

CdTDroiD: Theres a couple in NZ, i think your right about the i9023 but i got one today which is a i9020A (For all NZ networks) and its sick so cheap and with the ROM i just made (ICS) its running almost as fast as my Galaxy Nexus lol, just without the 8mp camera haha


From VF as I thought they only stocked the i9023?

CdTDroiD
869 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

  #563038 30-Dec-2011 21:51
Send private message

No sorry i got mine from Trademe, forgot to mention lol $450 unopened




Follow me on Twitter ! 
Get help with Android from a XDA Recognized Developer - Google+

lucky015
743 posts

Ultimate Geek

ID Verified
Trusted

  #563489 1-Jan-2012 14:40
Send private message

langers1972:
CdTDroiD: You can get the Google Nexus S for $499 brand new and it has Ice Cream Sandwich now with google music, great way to go ;)

Huge battery life, AMOLED display, 4Inch screen...


I could be wrong but the Nexus S you'll get here is the i9023 which has the SLCD screen not AMOLED, having said that I've got one and they're great and the added bonus is ICS out of the box.


Interesting, Could explain why I actually liked the screen on the Nexus S (Not a fan of AMOLED screen's personally)

Create new topic





News and reviews »

Air New Zealand Starts AI adoption with OpenAI
Posted 24-Jul-2025 16:00


eero Pro 7 Review
Posted 23-Jul-2025 12:07


BeeStation Plus Review
Posted 21-Jul-2025 14:21


eero Unveils New Wi-Fi 7 Products in New Zealand
Posted 21-Jul-2025 00:01


WiZ Introduces HDMI Sync Box and other Light Devices
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:32


RedShield Enhances DDoS and Bot Attack Protection
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:26


Seagate Ships 30TB Drives
Posted 17-Jul-2025 11:24


Oclean AirPump A10 Water Flosser Review
Posted 13-Jul-2025 11:05


Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: Raising the Bar for Smartphones
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 Brings New Edge-To-Edge FlexWindow
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Epson Launches New AM-C550Z WorkForce Enterprise printer
Posted 9-Jul-2025 18:22


Samsung Releases Smart Monitor M9
Posted 9-Jul-2025 17:46


Nearly Half of Older Kiwis Still Write their Passwords on Paper
Posted 9-Jul-2025 08:42


D-Link 4G+ Cat6 Wi-Fi 6 DWR-933M Mobile Hotspot Review
Posted 1-Jul-2025 11:34


Oppo A5 Series Launches With New Levels of Durability
Posted 30-Jun-2025 10:15









Geekzone Live »

Try automatic live updates from Geekzone directly in your browser, without refreshing the page, with Geekzone Live now.



Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.