ZTE Blade / Orange San Francisco

t0mm13b

BTW this might be a helpful linky on this unlocking and debranding the SF

Fnz

Had a speaker connected to the 3.5mm headphone jack while watching youtube. I'd sometimes have to leave it on pause for longer than expected whilst doing something else in the house. The screen would turn off (and phone lock - as it should) due to inactivity, but then there would begin a 'blipping' sound that would repeat every second or so.

This is annoying as I enjoy listening to my music as I'm going to sleep. Having this blipping 'blipping' (;)) occur for the remainder of the night would not only be annoying, if it disturbs my sleep, but would also drain the battery in, both, phone and speaker.

Baza210 wrote: »

Play don't ship electronics to Ireland, I thought?

... and, since Jersey is outside the EU, you're liable to be charged VAT and post office clearance fee.

Fnz

sombaht wrote: »

Anyone having any trouble with an unresponsive screen? I've managed to unlock the phone and it recognises my Irish sim, but I cant slide to unlock the phone anymore. It boots fine, displays Android logo, orange logo then just remains at the unlock screen with the volume and lock buttons displayed. Very annoying as it worked fine first day.
No hope of returning it to the shop either as it was picked up in Birmingham!

My screen seems perfectly responsive most of the time. A little slow down here and there but nothing drastic. Also, if it's a hardware issue, can't you return your phone to any Orange store, once you have a receipt? Phone the store in Newry or wherever's closest to you.

t0mm13b

Fnz wrote: »

... and, since Jersey is outside the EU, you're liable to be charged VAT and post office clearance fee.

Read my previous thread on the previous page - play.com does not ship electronic goods outside of the UK....

Fnz

t0mm13b wrote: »

Read my previous thread on the previous page - play.com does not ship electronic goods outside of the UK....

I'm aware of that, but when shadowninty said:

shadowninty wrote: »

But they ship digital media

I figured it could imply that the item was categorised incorrectly, thus allowing the order to go through. Just wanted to make sure (s)he knew VAT could be an issue.

I once ordered hardware from Play.com, as it was listed under the 'games' category.

shadowninty

Fnz wrote: »

I figured it could imply that the item was categorised incorrectly, thus allowing the order to go through. Just wanted to make sure (s)he knew VAT could be an issue.

I once ordered hardware from Play.com, as it was listed under the 'games' category.

Yeah I know VAT can be an issue, but hell the phone is cheap

As for digital media I was reffering to CDs, DVDs etc
I seen in another thread that they wont deliver due to WEEE :rolleyes:
However somewhere else I saw that if you put "IE" as your postcode they will deliver (late)

I will check it out later anyway

harry21

Can't believe this tread is dying out. Best phone ever for the price in my opinion. Thought I'd give it a bump.

There is another thread on here for O2 APN settings if anyoone is interested.

slowlydownwards

Two little points on why isn't there much fanfare about blade:

a. When (nearly) everything works as it should on your device, there is no need to posting profusely about it. Plus, there is already a plethora of fairly stable builds, both in 2.1 and 2.2 flavours for it - thanks modaco!

b. I don't think I am wrong in assuming that a lot of people who have shed 3-4 times more for devices of similar capabilities are feeling a bit soar. Denial, denial...

t0mm13b

harry21 wrote: »

Can't believe this tread is dying out. Best phone ever for the price in my opinion. Thought I'd give it a bump.

There is another thread on here for O2 APN settings if anyoone is interested.

Not too worry - I for one, intend to go up north before christmas (hopefully, if the weather eases..) and grab one... and then we can all indulge in the SF thread here....

Fnz

t0mm13b wrote: »

Not too worry - I for one, intend to go up north before christmas (hopefully, if the weather eases..) and grab one... and then we can all indulge in the SF thread here....

There will be mirth; with blackjack, and hookers.

t0mm13b

Fnz wrote: »

There will be mirth; with blackjack, and hookers.

Really :eek: ahhh shure that's great aint it.... will have to plan this one out... not for blackjack nor hookers that is

ronano

I got to admit probably is few replies due to it being a great lil phone,i got it,stripped it of orange branded and am very happy with it. It's stupid but a part of me misses the htc g1,it was a good lil phone that served me well

Khannie

t0mm13b wrote: »

Not too worry - I for one, intend to go up north before christmas (hopefully, if the weather eases..) and grab one... and then we can all indulge in the SF thread here....

Very seriously considering this myself. Could anyone who has one tell me: What's the performance / responsiveness of it like compared to, for example, an iphone 3g?

t0mm13b

Khannie wrote: »

Very seriously considering this myself. Could anyone who has one tell me: What's the performance / responsiveness of it like compared to, for example, an iphone 3g?

@Khannie: check this modaco.com site. There is very extensive and active forum there...there was a thread or two about overclocking the chipset (and using USB OTG).... I watch that site to see what's happening there - worth registering your email address....:D

harry21

Yes... the thread is alive again, if only to let more people know how great the phone is.

@Khannie: t0mm13b is spot on, the modaco.com site is probably the best out there for info on the phone. From my point of view im running the modaco r4 rom on it and in 3 wekks it has been fabulous. Never one crashed. The responce is not the same as the iphone, but the diffeerence is very small.

The processesor runs extremley well, even if you don't remove the orange stuff, rooting and roming do help.

By all accounts the new froyo rom running android 2.2 work very well and improve responce further, but there are still some stability issues far as I know, I have not tried it.

cauliflower69

Best thing I've bought in a while. Great phone. I just upgraded my vm heap to 32 and has helped alot with angry birds smoothness.

Debranded, rooted and a1.

Cons - Camera is very poor in my opinion. But I dont use it for that so no biggy.


Apps I use:

3G Watchdog,
AdFree,
Adobe Reader,
Advance Task Killer - A MUST
AndFTP - FTP into any server with your phone
Antivirus - Obvious Reasons
Awesome Drop - A great little app that allows you to place stuff on your phone via the web
Barnacle Wifi Tether
CoPilot Live when I have no 3G.
Dishpointer Pro - So handy
Ebay official App
Enigmanoid - Great for Enigma based sat boxes
ES File Explorer - Allows you to view Lan Shares etc
FTp Server - Allows you to FTP into phone
IM+
NZBMobile
Shazam
Tapatalk - Great Forum App
TodayFm


Games

Angry Birds
Angry Birds (Seasons)
Blow Up
Bubble Blast 2
City Jump
Gameboid
Minesweeper

Khannie

harry21 wrote: »

The responce is not the same as the iphone, but the diffeerence is very small.

When you say it's not as responsive as an iphone....do you mean a 3gs? Or an iphone 4? If it's close to my 3gs I'd be happy.

seanin4711

Sucks on HTC desire after latest update

emo72

seanin4711 wrote: »

Sucks on HTC desire after latest update

wha?
are you in the wrong thread?:D

t0mm13b

seanin4711 wrote: »

Sucks on HTC desire after latest update

/facepalm :cool:

Fnz

seanin4711 wrote: »

whats the battery like

Sucks on HTC desire after latest update

Widely varying reports on battery life on the modaco forums.

See here for example: http://android.modaco.com/content/zte-blade-blade-modaco-com/325280/very-interesting-battery-life-observations/

I've only had to charge mine twice so far. I got 2 days out of it with, what I'd consider, a moderate amount of use.

Khannie

Are these freely available up north by the way? I mean I'd phone in advance of course, just wondering if there are any supply issues.

Also, I read somewhere that all the newer handsets are LCD. Is that true?

MC_G

Khannie wrote: »

Are these freely available up north by the way? I mean I'd phone in advance of course, just wondering if there are any supply issues.

Also, I read somewhere that all the newer handsets are LCD. Is that true?

I've gotten 4 OSFs at the Orange store in the Buttercrane in Newry at different times. They have always had them when I've went, the last two being bought on 5/12. It would be prudent to phone ahead though to be certain.

As far as I know, all white versions are tft/lcd and newer stocks of the grey/black model are also lcd/tft. However, the last two I bought were 100% OLED.

A possible way to tell is through the build number if you can't tell visually. It's been reported on MoDaCo that in settings > about phone > build number that if it shows (OUK_P729BV.1.0.0B05) it will be OLED with build 0B08 being added recently to support tft screens.

0B05 = 100% OLED
0B08 + white phone = TFT/LCD
0B08 + grey = possibly OLED but more likely TFT/LCD

It is a great phone regardless of the screen type and people with LCDs are just as happy with the quality and crispness, although viewing angle is reduced and blacks are backlit.

I couldn't be happier and the dev community is outstanding with people already being able to boot with a raw alpha 2.3 gingerbread!

Fnz

Khannie wrote: »

Are these freely available up north by the way? I mean I'd phone in advance of course, just wondering if there are any supply issues.

Also, I read somewhere that all the newer handsets are LCD. Is that true?

Dunno about supply constraints but what you'll receive seems to be a gamble alright: http://android.modaco.com/content/zte-blade-blade-modaco-com/324426/no-more-oled/

LCD screens have their advantages too, going by the thread.

Khannie

I'm 99% sold. I have an iPhone 3gs. On the verge of putting it up on adverts.....

MC_G

Khannie wrote: »

I'm 99% sold. I have an iPhone 3gs. On the verge of putting it up on adverts.....

I'd make the change while the 3gs still has some resale value.

The only situation where the iPhone 3gs will outperform the Blade is in the "drop test." (It's not badly built, just not as solid as the most well built phones)

Once unlocked, rooted, and removed of the Orange bloatware with a 2.1 custom ROM you will be amazed daily that you only paid 99 stg for the phone.

Custom 2.2 ROMs are on the cusp of being stable enough that I'm seriously considering putting it on the gift phones I picked up and wrapping them now!(only real issue is FM Radio at this point)

This is a cracking phone for pence and I'm thrilled with that, but also being my first Android phone I'm really enjoying the developer community and have even jumped in and written a "hello android" in the sdk as well as boot animations, frameworks and themes etc.

My new found fanboyism/hobbyist aside, even if the only thing I did was unlocked this it would be a great phone for the price.

Khannie

48 hour extravaganza.....15% off PAYG phones on the orange web site (not in stores). That makes the SF only £95 including top up and delivery. You'll need to know someone in the UK. Fortunately for me my sister lives in Manchester. Game on.

witnessmenow

Khanine,

Its not a better phone than the 3gs, but there is not much in it either.

I would find the touch screen on the Iphone slightly better, although since i started running Froyo its really close! (I also use a cheapie screen protector so that could have an effect too)

Battery, not much in it i'd say

Web browsing, slightly bettter on iphone

Camera, better on iphone

Basically it comes down to this:

If you sell your 3gs now you will get around €300, if you are going to uk you can buy a san fran for around €150 and unlock it for free. You are now up €150 and have a only slightly less of a phone.

If you find yourself looking to get into android this is a great starting platform due to the low price.

A friend of mine who is constantly going through phones got the san fran as a tester of a fully touch screen Android and loved it. Loved it so much he sold it :pac: (he bought a n1 so he could get all the updates)

The great thing about them is they hold their value over here. you get one try it out for a couple of weeks, dont like it, sell it on adverts for what you paid for it! not many phones you can do that with!

okee

I'm getting a friend of mine to bring me home 2 of these before christmas.
While i was researching this phone i came across a link for http://www.e2save.com/ where they were selling them (Grey model, pay to go) for £79.99 including £10 top up

I had 2 of them in the cart for £160 and saved the link to send to him.
I went back to the cart link a few times just to make sure and they were there at that price.

But by the time he got to it they were gone, he rang e2save and they said they'd sold out and that they did deliver to Ireland you just have to ring them.
They seem to be a division of carphone warehouse.

It's worth keeping an eye on the site if you're looking for one of these phones, currently they retail for £100 but seemingly now you need to purchase £20 top up with it (was £10) but that may vary between shops.

From reading this thread i can't wait to get my hands on one.
Thanks for all the info

okee

pelemcg

This phone is 15% off at the moment on the orange website only (spotted by witnessmenow here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056114593)