Android: General Chat

[Ingram85]

£600 for the base 32 gig 5" pixel

 

[limpid]

On 20/10/2016 at 17:26, Ingram85 said:

£600 for the base 32 gig 5" pixel

AA are doing the Pixel XL as this week's giveaway.

[mykeyb]

From the reviews the Pixel is a very good phone. Google has set the pricing to match the iPhone as that's where they feel are competing. However they are only promising updates for a two year period which doesn't compare with Apples support for the iPhone.

[limpid]

20 minutes ago, mykeyb said:

From the reviews the Pixel is a very good phone. Google has set the pricing to match the iPhone as that's where they feel are competing. However they are only promising updates for a two year period which doesn't compare with Apples support for the iPhone.

What do Apple promise? (Genuine question)

[mykeyb]

I am not sure, historically it's more than 2 years on their iPhone. I believe the iPhone 5 can get ios10.

 

Edited October 24, 2016 by mykeyb

[limpid]

25 minutes ago, mykeyb said:

I am not sure, historically it's more than 2 years on their iPhone. I believe the iPhone 5 can get ios10.

Historically isn't a promise though. Historically Google have done a lot longer than 2 years too.

[blandy]

6 hours ago, limpid said:

What do Apple promise? (Genuine question)

They support stuff for at least 5 years, sometimes longer. Not long ago I saw a thing saying that my 2009 apple computer is now "obsolete" (so I've stuck Linux on it, but might convert it back, but that's another story). As a 7 year old Mac it won't update to the latest version of MacOS, but it'll still run the previous version (last years) which will be supported for another 4 years (at least). The situation is similar for phones the 4S (came out 5 years ago) and older - they won't take OS10, though they'll still get security type iOS9 updates for a while longer.

[limpid]

1 hour ago, blandy said:

They support stuff for at least 5 years, sometimes longer. Not long ago I saw a thing saying that my 2009 apple computer is now "obsolete" (so I've stuck Linux on it, but might convert it back, but that's another story). As a 7 year old Mac it won't update to the latest version of MacOS, but it'll still run the previous version (last years) which will be supported for another 4 years (at least). The situation is similar for phones the 4S (came out 5 years ago) and older - they won't take OS10, though they'll still get security type iOS9 updates for a while longer.

Is there a link to this promise?

I know they didn't used to do this. They stopped providing OS updates for my Mini Mac when it was less than three years old.

[blandy]

1 hour ago, limpid said:

Is there a link to this promise?

I'd imagine so - I read it somewhere, I think it was on a rss feed, or Arstechnica or somewhere - when the new OS was brought out, it said about which models would no longer be supported, and about apple's policy. I'm sure a Yahoogle could turn up something if you're interested. [edit] Yahoogle showed this apple page as first hit

Quote

Owners of iPhone, iPad, iPod, or Mac products may obtain service and parts from Apple or Apple service providers for 5 years after the product is no longer manufactured—or longer where required by law. Apple has discontinued support for certain technologically obsolete and vintage products.

That's hardware, I know, but I guess there will be something around for software, too. Just found there's a list of all the security updates (not an article, just a list/massive table) Apple list of updates

Possibly with your mini it may have been because they went from PowerPC to intel chips, which meant that other than security updates, if the design was already a couple of years old, they might not have provided the OS updates for as long. I dunno. I had a iMac that was PPC and went they went to OSX the same issue arose - after Tiger, I think it was, it was basically obsolete and incapable of running the new OS. Now the range is consistent, it's maybe easier to support long term.

There's a lot to knock tech companies, including Apple, for, but generally apple's customer support has always been one of their better attributes. Android has more of a different set of circus, with the software and hardware being provided (mostly) by completely different companies, and then the likes of Samsung or whoever fettling or customising things (to no real benefit). Apple have more to lose and more ability to control the whole process and "user experience", I guess.

[Genie]

The back of Z3 compact now resembles a spiders web. After it got its initial crack I noticed from the net that this was a common issue. I contacted Sony and they blankly refused there were any common faults with the phone but I could return it for them to look at if I wanted. A few weeks later and its covered in cracks, never dropped or abused.

I've ordered a replacement back from eBay but I'm reluctant to change it at the moment as I assume it'll just go the same way.

[Tegis]

1 hour ago, Genie said:

The back of Z3 compact now resembles a spiders web. After it got its initial crack I noticed from the net that this was a common issue. I contacted Sony and they blankly refused there were any common faults with the phone but I could return it for them to look at if I wanted. A few weeks later and its covered in cracks, never dropped or abused.

I've ordered a replacement back from eBay but I'm reluctant to change it at the moment as I assume it'll just go the same way.

I've changed the back on my sons Z3 6 times. Good thing they can be had for a quid each from China including shipping. **** knows how they make a profit on that

 

[Tegis]

Oh, and my workplace will provide me with an iphone 7. No other choices. Wonder how long it will take for me to embrace/discard it. Never owned one myself.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek

[The_Rev]

iPhones are decent phones, in fact I'd go as far as to say they are excellent despite the utterly miserable homescreen experience.  You can't tinker with one as much as you can with an Android handset but there's the whole world of jailbreaking to explore if you get bored with vanilla iOS. 

[limpid]

I'm not sure you should be suggesting he jailbreaks a phone which doesn't belong to him.

[Tegis]

6 minutes ago, The_Rev said:

iPhones are decent phones, in fact I'd go as far as to say they are excellent despite the utterly miserable homescreen experience.  You can't tinker with one as much as you can with an Android handset but there's the whole world of jailbreaking to explore if you get bored with vanilla iOS. 

I think the major hump will be to stop trying to treat it like an Android phone and instead use it like Apple intended. We'll see. My daughter has already put the serous puppy eyes on me in case I don't like it.

1 minute ago, limpid said:

I'm not sure you should be suggesting he jailbreaks a phone which doesn't belong to him.

That train sailed when I got my first work Desire Z.

[BOF]

Xiaomi announces Mi MIX with borderless display

Quote

Alongside the Mi Note 2, Xiaomi also unveiled the Mi MIX, a so-called concept phone with a borderless display that will actually be on sale.

The Mi MIX has a custom-made 6.4-inch, 2040x1080 pixel, 17:9 aspect ratio display that takes up 91.3% of the front. The display has really thin bezels on the top and sides, making it look nearly borderless. There is only one significant bezel, and that is at the bottom, where you will also find the front speaker and camera. The Mi MIX does not have physical buttons at the bottom and is the first Xiaomi phone with on-screen controls. The 17:9 aspect ratio means even with the on-screen buttons you still get full 16:9 area for your content.

The earpiece and proximity sensor are completely hidden and had to be reimagined. The Mi MIX uses a piezoelectric ceramic driver for the earpiece and an ultrasonic proximity sensor, which works through the display.

The body of the Mi MIX is made entirely out of ceramic, with ceramic back, ceramic frame, and ceramic buttons. The design uses a mortise and tenon joint for attaching the display to the body, instead of glue or other adhesives. The industrial design has been done by designer Philippe Starck.

Inside, the Mi MIX runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821. The 128GB model gets 4GB of RAM while the 256GB model gets 6GB of RAM. The 256GB model also gets gold trim, with 18K gold accents on the camera lens and fingerprint sensor on the back. The back camera has 16 megapixel resolution with PDAF and 4K video, and the front camera is 5 megapixels. The phone also has dual SIM connectivity. The whole thing is powered by a 4,400mAh battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging.

The Mi MIX is priced at RMB 3,499 ($515) for the 4GB/128GB model and RMB 3,999 ($590) for the 6GB/256GB model. Both variants come with a leather case.

 

[Davkaus]

It's very pretty, but it seems like it might be a bit of a pain if you want to hold the bloody thing.

[BOF]

Just now, Davkaus said:

It's very pretty, but it seems like it might be a bit of a pain if you want to hold the bloody thing.

Yeah I'm having that discussion with a mate at the moment.  Front display ratio is currently a selling point but I think if you go too high; as you say; it becomes difficult to handle without touching an active part of the screen.  I already tippy-toe (tippy-finger?) around my S6.  My mate's S7 Edge+ for me is extremely finicky, but he loves it.  It's him that sent me on that Xiaomi link.

But if Samsung can't nip their explodey problem in the bud (and properly compensate those whose houses they've burned down in the process), then I will be switching brands and the likes of OnePlus & Xiaomi are top of the heap.

[zak]

12 minutes ago, BOF said:

Yeah I'm having that discussion with a mate at the moment.  Front display ratio is currently a selling point but I think if you go too high; as you say; it becomes difficult to handle without touching an active part of the screen.  I already tippy-toe (tippy-finger?) around my S6.  My mate's S7 Edge+ for me is extremely finicky, but he loves it.  It's him that sent me on that Xiaomi link.

But if Samsung can't nip their explodey problem in the bud (and properly compensate those whose houses they've burned down in the process), then I will be switching brands and the likes of OnePlus & Xiaomi are top of the heap.

& ZTE? The Axon 7 is meant to be the phone to have

[BOF]

2 minutes ago, zak said:

& ZTE? The Axon 7 is meant to be the phone to have

I'll have a look.  I know nothing about it and I don't plan on moving from my S6 for a long time yet though.  I only have it a few months, so my eventual shopping list will probably look a lot different than it would today.