Vodafone 858 - Any reason why I shouldn't get one?

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#515028 1-Sep-2011 13:07

Main issues ive heard and tested are the touch screens on both the 845 (
And i dont think its the size of the screen thats the problem, like my sensation is 4.3inch but i can easily type on a wildfire because the screen is alot more responsive and accurate, it just makes it harder when the screen is small and not working properly.

$50 more and you'd get yourself a HTC Wildfire second hand, something like that... to be honest those Vodafone sets are just rubbish, people say good value $150... i think its a waste of money (I have tried them both) they ALL have issues after a short while and they are all just cheap and unresponsive devices. youd be better off getting a Nokia or something with your $150 IMO.

Im all for a cheap little Android phone but like i said if its going to be touch screen at least get one thats easy to use.

Heres one :D

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Mobile-phones/Vodafone/HTC/auction-403466878.htm

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Linuxluver

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#515035 1-Sep-2011 13:13

Jaxson: Been looking at the Vodafone 858 for a while now. It seems to be the replacement of the older 845, and the 858 now has a capacitive screen.

At this price, and including a car charger and a sim connection that I can resell on trademe, it seems a no brainer. Anyone have one/can comment?

www.noelleeming.co.nz deal

Hoping to put that swipe text thing on, where you drag your finger across a proper qwerty keyboard to enter the words.

Thoughts appreciated.

It looks like a great buy to me.

I use SlideIt and the capacitive screen definitely makes a big difference.

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kiwijunglist

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#515046 1-Sep-2011 13:30

the vodafone 845 is definitely rubbish, it was rubbish when it came out, i tried one and was barely useable way too slow, and the screen was hard to use. The u8150/u8160/vodafone 858 are ok phones for the price. I would avoid the huawei x3 as it's the same resolution as the cheaper phones, so I would opt for a cheaper phone. Otherwise Huawei X5 is good / Samsung Galaxy S 8GB.

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richms

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#515051 1-Sep-2011 13:36

At least with a small resistve screen you can use a stick on it. Capacitive and small are frustrating.

Tried the Vodafone one a friend had and it was slow as. Not recommended.

Richard rich.ms

nzkc

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#515067 1-Sep-2011 13:46

If your budget can stretch, go for an Ideos X5 from Warehouse Stationary - $399.

http://www.warehousestationery.co.nz/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/WFS/WSL-B2C-Site/en_NZ/-/NZD/ViewOfferDetail-Product?ProductRef=212350@WSL-B2C

Bought one for my wife its a terrific phone for under $400. I have a HTC Desire and in some ways its better. The screen colours aren't quite as good as my Desire but otherwise this phone is superb. Comes with Swype too. Can support custom ROMs too :-)

uglyb0b

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#515102 1-Sep-2011 14:54

kiwijunglist: the vodafone 845 is definitely rubbish, it was rubbish when it came out, i tried one and was barely useable way too slow, and the screen was hard to use.

I flashed one with pro celestial and it made it significantly better. More responsive, faster etc. It's still average at best though. You get what you pay for with this model really.

nitrotech

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#515126 1-Sep-2011 15:24

kiwijunglist: the vodafone 845 is definitely rubbish, it was rubbish when it came out, i tried one and was barely useable way too slow, and the screen was hard to use. The u8150/u8160/vodafone 858 are ok phones for the price. I would avoid the huawei x3 as it's the same resolution as the cheaper phones, so I would opt for a cheaper phone. Otherwise Huawei X5 is good / Samsung Galaxy S 8GB.

The Huawei X3 has a 320 X 480 screen resolution Vs the Vodafone 858 240 X 320

The OP asked is the 858 with sim card and car charger for $150 was a good deal - i'd say yep it's a good price - sure there are many better options but as he stated you could list it on trade me in a few months and still not lose a lot.

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Jaxson

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#515514 2-Sep-2011 09:29

Thanks for all the comments.

Seems to come down to having a small amount of screen real estate and also that being a low display resolution too (no iphone retina type display here!). I actually got to try one recently and the low res display was the first thing I picked up on. It is true that the keyboard gets quite tiny on a small screen, especially in portrait orientation. In some ways a resistive screen would be better for this with a stylus? - but where's the cool in that?!

CPU wise it's not that grunty either so really it all seems to come down to knowing why it's priced like it is, and then deciding if you'd be prepared to make do with that.

Price wise it does seem like a good deal. You get wifi and 3G connectivity, GPS and a fully android market compatible phone. You also get a car charger and a sim pack that you can resell straight away to offset the cost even more. So, enough to get your feet wet in the 'smart phone' game, but not enough to polish the experience like a 'real' smart phone.

richms

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#515522 2-Sep-2011 09:47

Car charger is a nothing really, $2 will get you one that works these days, sim pack is handy to hang onto.

IMO its going to be just like the galaxy 5, too slow, screen too low res etc so that apps are not developed with it in mind and run badly or have inaccessable controls on them etc.

Richard rich.ms

Ragnor

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#515549 2-Sep-2011 10:31

My advice having a 845, U8150 and playing with higher end phones recently is go save up and go for a mid range model rather than get something in the budget range.

The phones in the 350-500 range are just so much better, you probably use your phone every day.. it's worth spending a bit more on imo.

drajk

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#516830 5-Sep-2011 13:59

richms: At least with a small resistve screen you can use a stick on it. Capacitive and small are frustrating.

Have you tried a 'capacitive stylus' - seen on common auction sites?

richms

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#516831 5-Sep-2011 14:00

drajk:
richms: At least with a small resistve screen you can use a stick on it. Capacitive and small are frustrating.

Have you tried a 'capacitive stylus' - seen on common auction sites?

Yes, they are a round ball like end made from some rubbery stuff. Not a stick like work on resistive ones.

Richard rich.ms

Linuxluver

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#516848 5-Sep-2011 14:16

Ragnor: My advice having a 845, U8150 and playing with higher end phones recently is go save up and go for a mid range model rather than get something in the budget range.

The phones in the 350-500 range are just so much better, you probably use your phone every day.. it's worth spending a bit more on imo.

The resistive screens are a pain.

We have two 845s in our house and found that switching the keyboard to "SlideIt" (a swiping keyboard) made using the resistive screen for typing MUCH easier.

The phone is almost unusable with my fat fingers on that tiny screen, but with SlideIt it actually works really well. You do have to press firmly as you swipe. Releasing pressure sees the phone think you've finished the word. Once you get the knack for that, it's actually not bad at all.

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Jaxson

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#516850 5-Sep-2011 14:17

richms: Yes, they are a round ball like end made from some rubbery stuff. Not a stick like work on resistive ones.

Yeah a band aid for the real problem of the screen being too small.

example here

stevenz

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#516862 5-Sep-2011 14:27

Jaxson:
richms: Yes, they are a round ball like end made from some rubbery stuff. Not a stick like work on resistive ones.
Yeah a band aid for the real problem of the screen being too small.

example here

Half the people here with the huge ipad's use them. I couldn't be bothered myself.

@KnightNZ

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