Chinese Android Phones

nkay1985

zerks wrote: »

This: http://www.pandawill.com/jiayu-s1-smartphone-snapdragon-600-quad-core-17ghz-2gb-32gb-50-inch-sharp-fhd-screen-nfc-otg-wireless-charging-p82382.html

Thanks for the reply. Do you have this? Just a small bit of googling seems to say that the Mi3 is a better option. Any reason to recommend the Jiayu ahead of it?

RossieMan

No, The Mi3 is definitely better.

If you don't mind spending 3-400 i'd wait for the Mi4, it'll probably be for sale for around that.

RossieMan

No, The Mi3 is definitely better.

If you don't mind spending 3-400 i'd wait for the Mi4, it'll probably be for sale for around that.

Red rice is on sale again. Back for $133 + delivery.

nkay1985

RossieMan wrote: »

No, The Mi3 is definitely better.

If you don't mind spending 3-400 i'd wait for the Mi4, it'll probably be for sale for around that.

Red rice is on sale again. Back for $133 + delivery.

That's the Redmi, is it? It's the Mi3's predecessor?

3-400 is a bit out of the price range but I'm wondering will the Mi3 drop at al once the Mi4's launched.

RossieMan

I can't see the Mi3 drop a whole pile. Have a look at the Mi2, its still lurking around $40 dollars cheaper than the Mi3.

The Redmi is a different version altogether. Still very good value for the amount of phone you get.

If the person you're buying for is a heavy user, i'd still suggest to look at getting 2gb of RAM. really does make a massive difference.

Iseedeadpixels

jgbyr wrote: »

What would you recommend?

Wait for it....wait for it.....Moto G :P

nkay1985

RossieMan wrote: »

I can't see the Mi3 drop a whole pile. Have a look at the Mi2, its still lurking around $40 dollars cheaper than the Mi3.

The Redmi is a different version altogether. Still very good value for the amount of phone you get.

If the person you're buying for is a heavy user, i'd still suggest to look at getting 2gb of RAM. really does make a massive difference.

Yeah she does use her phone a lot. It wouldn't be incredibly processor-intensive use but still, I agree with you about the 2GB RAM. Really looks like the Mi3 or maybe the Mi2.

So, differences from Mi2 to Mi3 seem to be OS based on newer android version, 2.3GHz processor instead of 1.7GHz, 5" screen as opposed to 4.3", higher resolution screen, rear camera 13MP instead of 8MP and bigger battery.

For $30 difference on Mixeshop, it would be crazy to go for the Mi2, unless I'm missing something, right?

You said earlier said buy from Mixeshop and choose euexp to avoid customs. What do you mean but choose euexp? Is it a delivery option or something? I went through the motions of a purchase and didn't come upon it.

Thanks for all the help so far.

brimal

nkay1985 wrote: »

Yeah she does use her phone a lot. It wouldn't be incredibly processor-intensive use but still, I agree with you about the 2GB RAM. Really looks like the Mi3 or maybe the Mi2.

So, differences from Mi2 to Mi3 seem to be OS based on newer android version, 2.3GHz processor instead of 1.7GHz, 5" screen as opposed to 4.3", higher resolution screen, rear camera 13MP instead of 8MP and bigger battery.

For $30 difference on Mixeshop, it would be crazy to go for the Mi2, unless I'm missing something, right?

You said earlier said buy from Mixeshop and choose euexp to avoid customs. What do you mean but choose euexp? Is it a delivery option or something? I went through the motions of a purchase and didn't come upon it.

Thanks for all the help so far.

The Mi3 can be bought from Mixeshop for just over €200. It's an excellent phone even by today's standards.

I would wait until the 22nd and see what price the Mi4 will be. Xiaomi were the company who started the price wars between flagship Chinese phones and I have a feeling they will want to blow their competition out of the water again.

EUEXP shipping means the phone gets delivered via Belgium, meaning you are guaranteed no customs duty when your phone arrives.

brimal

Yikes, just checked Mixeshop and it appears EUEXP shipping is not available anymore. Perhaps it has something to do with those new anti-terror laws that just came in regarding uncharged phones on flights?

I'll contact them and see what's going on and update this post.

eamonnq

brimal wrote: »

Yikes, just checked Mixeshop and it appears EUEXP shipping is not available anymore. Perhaps it has something to do with those new anti-terror laws that just came in regarding uncharged phones on flights?

I'll contact them and see what's going on and update this post.

Not available any more was what I was told, but I think it comes and goes. It is to do with the battery situation, as a lot of carriers won't accept lithium batteries in consignments any more (especially by air).

Am waiting on a T200 from mixeshop which (they said) they sent EUEXP but they have not provided me with a tracking number yet so can't confirm that.

jgbyr

I checked with Pandawill as my phone was supposed to be rooted.
The reply: "Sorry our company does not provide root the phone" .

Thargor

People are really over-thinking the rooting of Android devices and flashing of new ROMs, its really not that difficult.

jgbyr

Thargor wrote: »

People are really over-thinking the rooting of Android devices and flashing of new ROMs, its really not that difficult.

Can you give me a guide so to rooting a star s4. I can't find one having tried various methods to root it so far. I have rooted different phones previously.

BlackWizard

Thargor wrote: »

People are really over-thinking the rooting of Android devices and flashing of new ROMs, its really not that difficult.

It's a bit of a minefield when you start to look into it. So much technical jargon and files to run.

For the normal person rooting a phone is a big deal. I'm a software developer and I find it takes up a huge amount of research effort and even then I'm not sure what I'm doing.

Sam Mac

jgbyr wrote: »

I checked with Pandawill as my phone was supposed to be rooted.
The reply: "Sorry our company does not provide root the phone" .

They told me when I bought the same phone as you in live chat that they can root it? Strange company, with a bad returns policy, won't be buying from them again.

jgbyr

Sam Mac wrote: »

They told me when I bought the same phone as you in live chat that they can root it? Strange company, with a bad returns policy, won't be buying from them again.

Yea that's why I went with it, I read the comment here that they would root if required. I'll just put it down to experience.

Thargor

jgbyr wrote: »

Can you give me a guide so to rooting a star s4. I can't find one having tried various methods to root it so far. I have rooted different phones previously.

Its an MTK6589 phone so should be a piece of p1ss, what have you tried so far and what was the error? You're probably making a simple mistake like not having the drivers installed properly, not rebooting after installing drivers, not running the rooting software in admin and/or compatibility mode. Have you made a thread on XDA-Developers and asked them for help?

eamonnq

Do you NEED it rooted ?

Iseedeadpixels

Google it, theres plenty of pc software that will root phones, google your android version with the word root and you should find it.

jgbyr

Have googled it but nothing. It's Star S4 MSM8225Q.

loyatemu

jgbyr wrote: »

Have googled it but nothing. It's Star S4 MSM8225Q.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2247537

nkay1985

brimal wrote: »

The Mi3 can be bought from Mixeshop for just over €200. It's an excellent phone even by today's standards.

I would wait until the 22nd and see what price the Mi4 will be. Xiaomi were the company who started the price wars between flagship Chinese phones and I have a feeling they will want to blow their competition out of the water again.

EUEXP shipping means the phone gets delivered via Belgium, meaning you are guaranteed no customs duty when your phone arrives.

Yeah no harm in waiting the week and seeing what level the Mi4 is priced at, I guess. It might be affordable. I wonder how big an improvement on the Mi3 it will be.

It's a pity that EUEXP option isn't available. Hopefully it comes back before I want to buy.

eamonnq

jgbyr wrote: »

Have googled it but nothing. It's Star S4 MSM8225Q.

Is it definitely MSM8225Q ? The address in the Pandawill URL mentions MTK6589, so was wondering what was going to show up!!

http://www.pandawill.com/star-s4-smartphone-mtk6589-android-41-1gb-4gb-50-inch-hd-screen-3g-gps-p65753.html

jgbyr

loyatemu wrote: »

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2247537

That says n9500. Are they the same phone so? Will give that tool a go tonight..

emg74

Hi, my JIAJU G4S arrived from mixeshop earlier, nice looking phone but it is full of chinese apps and all the messages regarding apps that are running etc are in chinese. I asked them to set it up for use in Ireland but didn't expect to be getting loads of chinese messages / keyboards etc.

can someone help me? How do I get the language totally set to english? In settings, the language is English. Keyboard is Baidu IME but there must be another setting somewhere.

all advice greatly appreciated

Thargor

Install a Launcher like NOVA or APEX, install Swype or Swiftkey keyboard, Root the phone, go through the App list and uninstall anything that looks or sounds Chinese.

emg74

Sorry to sound dumb but where do I install from... the google play store? And how do I root the phone.. don't want to do anything that would feck it up

eamonnq

jgbyr wrote: »

That says n9500. Are they the same phone so? Will give that tool a go tonight..

No, it depends on what actual chip is in the phone, the N9500 has the MTK6589 chip, yours (should have) the MSM8225Q.

jgbyr

eamonnq wrote: »

No, it depends on what actual chip is in the phone, the N9500 has the MTK6589 chip, yours (should have) the MSM8225Q.

Ok, that's what I thought but others are giving the root guide for mtk6589.

RossieMan

A dimple google search will sort out this. Plenty of YouTube videos showing exactly how to do it.