SWMBO cant seem to find the right phone, and every one has 'issues'

She wants android, something fast, with enough memory and ideally mem card slot.

Her path to date has been Wildfire > Desire C > HTC One V. each one better than the last, but to her worse.

Has anyone got any recommendations of something SIM free/unlocked that wont break the bank? I'd get her a nexus, but no mem card slot and the glass back wont last 5 minutes with the kids.

Galaxy S3 is probably the best bet, but if you want bug free I still say you can't get smoother than iOS

If she's happy with Android, I wouldn't get her an iPhone. Some illogical design decisions drive Android users mad with iOS.

As for the Android phone, I fear that if you want to get something better than the One V, you'll need something with 5" screen, like the SIII or HTC One, which, at least in my book, breaks the bank. Not To mention it's ridiculously huge.

My choice would be a dual core, 4" machine with ~1 GB RAM, at least 4 GB internal memory and the mem slot. That narrows it down to Galaxy SIII Mini or Desire X or something similar. Price of both is comfortably in the sub-£300 range and they should be up to some harsh treatment.

I have an s3 for personal phone and s2 for work. Both are excellent

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

S3 is about £300 sim free if you shop around not much more than the Nexus 4. Had my S3 since it was first available and very pleased with it. Don't know if it's going to get much cheaper now the S4 has been launched.

My mum has the Nexus 4, it's pretty sturdy plus does anyone really need more than 16gb of storage on their phone?

I have just gone from an HTC Desire S to an iPhone 5 (I know Android is the choice above) I am very happy with the iPhone, it is easy to use, it doesn't turn itself off like the HTC used to, my only gripe is why are phone going so damn big again?

In the 80's phones were big then they got tiny through the 90's and now they are turning into tea trays and too big for any pocket.

I'm looking for a new handset at the moment as I'm a bit disillusioned with my HTC Sensation.

The HTC One looks great but is brand new, very expensive and very big. I'm also of the opinion that newer Android handsets are too big - the ideal size for me would be the I-Phone but I'm not keen on the iOS so it's out of the running.

I've come to the conclusion that if I want a decent handset then I am going to have to put up with a larger screen/phone. I was initially looking at the Nexus 4 as its a great price - the back can be protected with a cover (I have the silicon covers on all of mine and they have saved them numerous times as they allow them to "bounce" when accidentally dropped), however I'm not keen on the latest trend of having built in batteries. It also has no expandable memory and its connectivity is limited to other devices (I'm thinking more HDMI ports for TV).

I'm not a fan of Samsung products after having issues in the past (crud Jet phone, DVD player dying etc) however they really do seem to be doing well on the Android handset front these days. I've just been reading reviews (techradar) on the S3 and I have to say that I am quite tempted.

I'm looking at getting my next handset SIM free so initial purchase price is quite important but it reduces the monthly line rental dramatically. The Nexus 4 (from Google Play Store) is a bit of a bargain, however shopping around is showing the LTE equipped S3 at just over £300 delivered.

Thanks everyone.

Something 4" would be ideal as the S3 I have for by her own words is too big.

I'm looking for a new handset at the moment as I'm a bit disillusioned with my HTC Sensation.

The HTC One looks great but is brand new, very expensive and very big. I'm also of the opinion that newer Android handsets are too big - the ideal size for me would be the I-Phone but I'm not keen on the iOS so it's out of the running.

I've come to the conclusion that if I want a decent handset then I am going to have to put up with a larger screen/phone. I was initially looking at the Nexus 4 as its a great price - the back can be protected with a cover (I have the silicon covers on all of mine and they have saved them numerous times as they allow them to "bounce" when accidentally dropped), however I'm not keen on the latest trend of having built in batteries. It also has no expandable memory and its connectivity is limited to other devices (I'm thinking more HDMI ports for TV).

I'm not a fan of Samsung products after having issues in the past (crud Jet phone, DVD player dying etc) however they really do seem to be doing well on the Android handset front these days. I've just been reading reviews (techradar) on the S3 and I have to say that I am quite tempted.

I'm looking at getting my next handset SIM free so initial purchase price is quite important but it reduces the monthly line rental dramatically. The Nexus 4 (from Google Play Store) is a bit of a bargain, however shopping around is showing the LTE equipped S3 at just over £300 delivered.

I'm looking to change my Sensation XE too. I'd also like a htc one, but not paying that much for sim free.

If they release a nexus or Motorola X in the next month I may go for that.

I have an HTC One-X, unlocked and with the latast Cynogen ROM installed. It is quite superb.

I've just ordered the s4 on o2 after terminating my 4 month old s3 contract on the appalling tmobile network after being with them for 13years. They've gone awful since going to ee and launching 4g. So much so they've agreed to me terminating my 4month old contact at no cost.

Don't get a galaxy ace. Mine's slow and I can't wait to get rid of it!

I have a galaxy ace and its fine but has no phone memory and this is a big problem as alot of apps are phone only.

Ive routed mine so i can move apps but it makes it slow and abit hit and miss at times.

Im not a big phone freak and not a heavy user and i wouldnt have paid anymore than the 120quid i paid for ace, ill keep it until it dies then altho its lasting longer than i thought it would and still on its original screen.

Ace is a budget phone. ok as long as you know what you'regetting SWMBO has one and loves it but you wouldnt call her a power user. Best value I'veheard of for now is the Nexus 4 if you can get one from the play store. Do the maths otherwise to check ur not getting ripped off.

Any Sony, Motorola or lg contenders?

Any Sony, Motorola or lg contenders?

Nope. There are no Android phones that have < 4" screen and some decent specs (dual core, 1 GB RAM, mem card), apart from Galaxy SIII Mini (and the ageing SII), HTC One SV and a couple of chinese models (Huawei Ascend P1, which is pretty well reviewed, and ZTE Grand X IN). Either she drops the screen size requirement, or she doesn't go with top notch.

Edited 5 May, 201313 yr by sheldon_cz

My wife has a Motorola Razer i running 4.1.

With the edge to edge screen it fits her small feminine hands better without it appearing too small.

Is pretty well screwed together . She has a girly case on it, but it is quite industrial with a carbon look back and exposed screws.

Runs everything with ease, although she is a "light" user. Battery life better than my , although 2 year old , Galaxy S2.

Has a card slot. She got it on release for £15 a month, so it is firmy at the budget / mid end. Around £300 sim free i believe..

A little left field with its Intel processor.

Edited 5 May, 201313 yr by biomulv

Looks like an s3 mini might be the best choice.

If she says that's crap, it's going where the sun doesn't shine

The Razr i was another handset that was in the running. I know the looks are a bit marmite but I quite like it - it's just that for the same sort of cash SIM free I can get the (larger) Nexus 4.

Current SIM free prices from research are:

Nexus 4 16 GB (Google Play Store) = £279

Samsung Galaxy S3 (Asda Direct) = £319

Motorola Razr i (Tesco Direct (not currently in stock)) = £270

I have to admit that I'm struggling to decide between the Nexus 4 and the SGS3 - both have pro's & cons and I can be indecisive about these things at the best of times!

Looks like an s3 mini might be the best choice.

If she says that's crap, it's going where the sun doesn't shine

my wife found a bargain on that phone SIM free this week. Asda direct online. Can't remember which one was cheaper, but if you look for an S3 mini and an SIII mini one of them was £50 cheaper .

despite the "shipping" date moving later and later on her order, the aforementioned S3 mini arrived the other day.

It's not very mini - height and width are the same as my S2, it's just curvier on the corners.

Now I have to teach her Android, after 2 years with a windows phone which she found much more intuitive and didn't need so much "personalisation"

Android is losing it's shine for me. Far too consumerist.

I like to run my devices how I want not how Google or Facebook want me to.

When my Nexus is out of warranty it'll be getting rooted it.

+2 for the motorola razr i.

I got one for my son when his HTC Desire (brown ) went out of contract. the intel cpu is really quite fast and he plays lots of games and emulators.

Biggest thing about the razr i is the battery life blows the rest out of the water. So much so that I got one for myself as I found iPhone4/GS2/GS3 etc struggle to do a full days work away from a cable

only thing is some apps dont like the intel chip so buyer beware.

I've just ordered the s4 on o2 after terminating my 4 month old s3 contract on the appalling tmobile network after being with them for 13years. They've gone awful since going to ee and launching 4g. So much so they've agreed to me terminating my 4month old contact at no cost.

I have also ordered the S4 because even though I live in Manchester, Orange and T Mobile have taken my 3G mast away!!!! They said it was to improve the coverage and spread it out. "I live 'IN' Manchester I said and have zero coverage, how is that better?" They have agreed to give me a 4G S4, unlimited calls and texts, 16gb of data, 50MMS and the full clone /insurance thingy for £52. I suspect they are desperately trying to hang on to customer at the moment. Wonder why :think:

I have also ordered the S4 because even though I live in Manchester, Orange and T Mobile have taken my 3G mast away!!!! They said it was to improve the coverage and spread it out. "I live 'IN' Manchester I said and have zero coverage, how is that better?" They have agreed to give me a 4G S4, unlimited calls and texts, 16gb of data, 50MMS and the full clone /insurance thingy for £52. I suspect they are desperately trying to hang on to customer at the moment. Wonder why :think:

http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2013/05/rootmetrics-name-ee-fastest-for-mobile-broadband-in-manchester-uk.html

A new study from RootMetrics has named EE as the fastest mobile broadband operator in Manchester (England) after it blitzed past rivals, including distant runner-up Three UK, to record an average download speed of 15.2Mbps (Megabits per second) and uploads of 9.4Mbps.

The study conducted 31,000 mobile performance tests and also looked at other areas of mobile connectivity, including reliability and the performance of voice calls and TXT messages. Both 3G and 4G services were tested, although nobody will be surprised to find EE at the top because they’re currently the only national 4G operator (excluding some smaller fixed wireless providers).

Lies, damned lies and statistics

Edited 20 May, 201313 yr by 'daiking'

Today my GPRS started to play up. Bloody Orange keep fiddling with stuff.......grrrrrrrrrr I fail to understand how living in Stretford, which is a built up area and also being in the second biggest city in Britain, I can't get 3G. I also can't get the S4 from EE, even though they said it was in stock. Might see if they have an HTC One (I've had several HTC phones and love them). The deal they are offering is really strong though, so I need a bit more patience :(