Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with cell

Use AT&T GoPhone to replace broken on cotract phone?

slowtree — Tue, 07 May 2013 08:23:16 -0800

Can i buy a AT&T GoPhone to replace my mothers broken cell ? My mother has AT&T and recently broke her cell phone. She is off contract now and would like to get a replacement before she heads out of town Without renewing. My thought was to buy a cheap AT$T GoPhone and put her SIM card in it for her to use. Some people have said that it will work fine others say that its a no-go. Just curious if any one has done this recently and how it worked out for them.

Thanks Much!

Samsung Transfrom Ultra Battery Problems

Snyder — Wed, 01 May 2013 21:38:59 -0800

Transform Ultra with an overheating, fast-discharging, spontaneously-turning-off battery. I bought a Samsung Transform Ultra phone from Boost Mobile a little over a year ago. Phone worked great, no battery problems at all until about January this year. First noticed when I either turned the phone off or on while charging the percentage charged would jump up, sometimes 40% or more. When using the internet the battery would drain noticeably. Talking or texting wasn't as bad, but still a quick drain. It got worse and worse. By the end it killed the cells in my battery, and could not hold a charge for more than several hours of non-use, or a minute or two of use.

I bought a new battery, same model, at a Boost distributor. When I went to charge the phone while off, it displayed a nearly full charge indicator, but I let it finish charging, and it seemed all right for a day or so, but then it was back to draining really fast, as well as the aforementioned problems. I can fully charge it, and after using the internet will cause it to drain in about an hour and a half. The battery will get really hot, almost uncomfortable to touch through the case and cover. I believe it might be effecting the cells already. As mentioned, it will also sometimes turn off when still holding a moderate, say 40%, charge. When I turn it back on, it will be at about 1% and power off on it's own. (This time with the "Powering off" screen.

Android version is 2.3.6, Kernal 2.6.35.7 Build # Gingerbread.FF27, Hardware version M930.02

I have Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, background data and sync off nearly all the time. My battery use breakdown is currently:

Android System: 80%, Voice calls: 10%, Cell Standby 5%, Display 4%, Phone Idle 3%

What can I do?

Choose my phone!

elizamina — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 20:40:52 -0800

I'm tired of my cheap, app-less phone. It's time to upgrade to something nice. I'm looking at either an iPhone or a Samsung. Which should it be? And why? Sell me on the best phone!

Looking for a smart "dumb phone"

1inabillionmistake — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 12:51:40 -0800

Hello All! Can anyone advise on an AT&T phone I can use without a data plan but has the best movie/mp3 playback capabilities? Thanks!

Wi-Fi and cell service drop out intermittently at our apartment. Why?

summerteeth — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:21:55 -0800

First, let me state that I have no idea if these two things are interrelated, but it seems like they could be, so I'm going to go ahead and conjecture here: our AT&T cell phone service drops from nearly full 3G to one bar from time to time (usually during calls, of course) and our wi-fi does the same thing. I've tried timing it and I can't seem to nail it down to anything. Could these service drops be related? Some details:

Both of us are using MacBook pros and iPhone 4s. Our modem/router/wireless access point is a Motorola Surfboard that is probably about 5 years old now. We previously lived in a different apartment in Chicago and I don't think we had the same wi-fi problem there, but I suppose we could be wrong.

Any ways that I can test connectivity in some way that would be beneficial to fixing the problem? Is it possible that there's some sort of signal interference that is causing both signals to drop? I'm not sure if it happens simultaneously, but that'll be the next thing I check (waiting for the wi-fi to drop and then checking the phone connectivity meter).

The building is in Jamaica Plain, Boston, not far from a previous apartment where we had little to no problem with cell connection. The building is brick and there is a hill behind it, to the west. We are on the second floor of the building.

Not sure where to start on this one, and I'm happy to provide any more information for folks with good ideas. Thanks!

Is there a catch to MVNOs?

Aizkolari — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:08:02 -0800

Are there any drawbacks to using an MVNO/prepaid cell carrier? I'm changing jobs soon and will need to get my own phone and cell carrier. I live in Boston, MA and want to buy a Nexus 4. Looking at carrier option, it seems like someone like Straight Talk would be a good option, especially since I'd be bringing my own device.

My only concern is if the service quality of the service. With Straight Talk, for example, I'd be on AT&T's GSM network in Boston, I think. I have friends who have AT&T service and they say it's fine, but I wonder if as an MVNO customer I'd get second-tier access or service.

I'm essentially wondering if there's some kind of a catch here that pays for offering connectivity at lower pricing. I've read this previous thread and people are generally positive but I thought I'd check again specifically on service quality.

Do any mefites use these kinds of prepaid providers? If so, how good is your coverage and service access?

I want to save this moment forever

decathecting — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 06:08:50 -0800

I'm looking for phone apps that will allow me to easily and simply record sound and simultaneously back up the recording offsite (send it to email, save to a cloud server, etc.). I want to be able to hit a button on my phone that will start recording and automatically save that recording somewhere other than (or in addition to) in my phone's memory. I realize that the quality of the recording will mostly depend on the physical capabilities of the phone, but I'd like the recording to be as high-quality as possible. And I'd love to make a list of apps available for a wide variety of phones. If there is some way to do this on non-smartphones (i.e., by saving the message to voicemail or something), that would also be awesome.

I know these sorts of apps exist, because I've heard of people using them to record encounters with police, fights with significant others, etc., in which their phones ended up lost or destroyed, but the recordings were still accessible to them later. You would think I'd easily be able to find this on Google, but either it is hard to find, or I am terrible at Google. Thanks for your help!

Using Google Voice (or similar) to forward calls and texts

Swede78 — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 11:44:34 -0800

I'm considering porting my personal cell phone to Google Voice so that calls and texts can be forwarded to my newly acquired work cell phone. If you've done this, please see my specific questions/concerns. What I want to accomplish:

1) Save between $600-700/yr by cancelling my personal cell phone plan.
2) Not have to give any contacts a new phone number.
3) Not have to carry two phones.

From what I can see at Google Voice's website, I should be able to port my personal # to them for a $20 fee. After that, the service is free to use. It seems that I should not have a problem forwarding calls to my work phone. However, there are some questions/concerns I have:

A) I can't confirm whether or not text messages can be forwarded. Does anyone know if this is possible?
B) I assume that there is no way for calls from my new work phone to appear as they come from my personal #. If there is a way, please let me know.
C) If it's possible to forward text messages to my work phone and I reply, will the recipient see it come from my work #? I assume yes, but I'm asking just in case it's possible.
D) When the time comes that I want to port my personal # back to a cell phone provider, will I have any problems? Similarly, do I own my personal # or am I giving up any rights by porting it to Google?
E) Are there better alternatives to Google Voice? I don't mind paying a small monthly fee if it does everything else I mentioned.
F) Are there any issues that made you regret doing this?

Thanks for you time.

Repurpose a phone as a repeater?

mzurer — Sat, 05 Jan 2013 08:04:33 -0800

Now that we all have a handful of old hackable smartphones lying around, is there any way to build our own active repeaters or cell phone to IP gateways? Googling leads me to believe the answer is no, for a variety of legal and technical reasons, but it really seems like I should be able to hang my old Sprint Palm Pre in the window as a repeater to help with my terrible inside-the-house reception. Or as a cel phone to IP telephony gateway? Is the cell phone part of these devices too locked down?

iPhone me--which model do I need 4, 4S, or 5?

calgirl — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 20:56:35 -0800

iPhone me! --which model do I need: 4, 4S, or 5? Much to the astonishment of friends/family, I am about to jump from a dumb-but-cheap phone to an iPhone.
Using a data plan will be new to me--other high-use features will be basic voice, text, personal notes/calendar and selected apps.
The camera and video will be used sparingly--I think.
A big part of me wants to go for the iPhone 4 [it's "free"] which has 8GB capacity, but longer standby time.
I don't think I need/want SIRI, but is it foolhardy to go for "only" 8GB?
What will I miss out on by getting a 4 instead of 4S with Siri and 16GB capacity?
And is the 5 so much better that I will regret not going for that model?

Also…what is the difference between going to an AT&T store and an Apple store?
[I am near both storefronts…]
Do you recommend Apple's insurance plan over AT&T insurance?
Going rogue with no insurance?
Some non-negotiables...
*I am staying with AT&T;
*I'm pretty committed to an iPhone over Android,;
*I am just now starting to use a Macbook Air and the Apple universe, but I will probably never be a power user of iTunes, video, or photo services…
so with those snowflakes, what's your advice on iPhone models?

Plate Captian: "Here is the raprod."

laconic skeuomorph — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 17:16:49 -0800

What should I know/do before I sell a cell phone I own to a person I know? I bought a new dumbphone a few months ago as a throwaway/work phone. Didn't like it particularly but I still have it and am not using it.

It's on TracFone and I see, through the website, how to remove the phone from my account (I have other phones with them).

Is there an easy way to factory reset a Samsung s390g? Failing that, I would manually dig through menus and remove any email accounts, contacts, files, memory cards, customized settings, etc.

Is there anything else I need to know about transferring ownership of a TracFone to another party? For simplicity I would let the minutes stay on the phone, and not try to transfer them. If it matters, the would-be buyer is a real-life person I see on a daily basis, not some random internet ~~scammer~~stranger.

Reccommend me a great music dock

Aizkolari — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 12:39:13 -0800

Please recommend me a dock/speaker solution to play music from an iPhone 4s and Android devices as well. I want to get a dock and/or speaker for my girlfriend to listen to music in her kitchen. She has an iPhone 4s and I plan to get a Nexus 4 or Galaxy sometime next year. In order of decreasing importance, I'm looking for the following from this device:

- Works with iPhone 4s
- Decent sound quality
- Works with Android devices
- Attractive form factor/appearance.

It would be awesome if it had a usb port for changing phones off of as well. The source for sound here will probably be Spotify much of the time, if that matters.

I'm open to Bluetooth, Wifi, or dock solutions and my budget is $100 but I could go to $150 for something really awesome.

She does not plan to upgrade to the iPhone 5 super soon so the thunderbolt issue should not be huge. As a pony request if this thing had a USB port to charge phone off of that would be great too.

Good-bye Blackberry. Hello...what?

Dansaman — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 13:58:59 -0800

Using Exchange email on Windows Phone 8, Android, and iPhone I need to swap out my BlackBerry for a new phone and am having trouble determining which platform will best meet my needs.

My number one concern is Exchange email integration since my business runs on email. Windows Phone 8 would seem like a logical choice since it is a Microsoft operating system and has Outlook built-in, plus a lot of people have said good things about the user interface and the stability of the operating system (I'm not too concerned about the dearth of smartphone apps available).

I have determined that I would be able to limit how much existing email a brand new Windows Phone downloads when I first set it up, but I have been unable to determine whether I will be able to set up email to work in both of the following ways:

1. When deleting an email, always prompt whether to delete the email from the Exchange server too.

2. When deleting an email, never delete the email from the Exchange server.

Does anyone know what is the default setting and what other settings are available? Does it depend at all on the service provider? (I would most likely be using T-Mobile.)

For other email like Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, etc., will the same options be available?

Would I be able to easily set up Exchange email to always prompt whether to delete from the server, and/or to never delete from the server, on Android or iPhone?

Thank you.

Calling all Android fanboys: welcome me into your club, please.

matkline — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 03:46:45 -0800

I can't stand my iPhone 4S any longer, but I've still got a year and a half to wait for the contract to end (AT&T). I'd love to switch to an Android, because I'm sick of having to use iTunes just to get a few songs on to the device. I'd like to get an HTC One X, but am open to suggestions. What are my options for replacing this piece of crap? Should I just try and unlock/sell my iPhone on craigslist?

Prepaid cell phone carriers

YukoInNature — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 18:14:02 -0800

What is a good prepaid cell phone carrier in the U.S.? I'm looking for a prepaid cell phone to be used primarily for talking and texting, with limited data usage for email and web browsing. A simple design, QWERTY keyboard, and wifi would be nice. The option to either pay for a monthly plan or per minute would also be a plus. What are the best carriers and/or phones? It looks like I have good coverage for AT&T and Verizon networks in my area.

Thanks!

Is there such a thing as a "good and cheap" warranty?

apip — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 22:13:30 -0800

Thinking about buying a Nexus 4 from the Google Play Store. Are there good third-party accidental damage warranties out there that won't break the bank? I'll probably be purchasing the 16GB Nexus 4 ($350 + tax) from the Google Play Store. No contract. I'll probably sign up with T-Mobile pre-paid (don't know if that's useful info or not).

I have absolutely no experience in buying a third-party warranty (like square trade on Amazon) -- especially something that covers accidental damage. I take pretty good care of my electronics and phones, but this is the first expensive smart phone I've bought off contract.

I'm also using AmEx to buy it, so I know there's an extra year of warranty, but I'd imagine it doesn't cover accidental damage and I've also never used it.

Thanks!

Seeking your advice on donate-by-SMS services

Mo Nickels — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 07:49:43 -0800

What are your experiences with using a service to receive donations via SMS/text message at your charity? I'm looking into all the variety of services that allow a charity or 501(c)(3) to receive donations via SMS or text message. What services have you tried at your charity? What were your experiences? What were your donors' responses and experiences? Is there a service you would particularly recommend?

I'm particularly interested in services with low or non-existent monthly fees, that have a small transaction cost per donation, cause minimal hassle for the donor, and that work seamlessly with PayPal, Amazon, or Google Checkout.

We'd prefer not to use services that require the user download a special app to their mobile phone. Instead, we'd prefer that it simply be a straight text-message transaction: user sends a special code or word to a specific mobile shortcode, gets a confirmation text back, confirms the transaction, then the donation is billed to the donor by their cell phone service provider.

Verizon prepaid plans and the internet?

needlegrrl — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 11:13:15 -0800

Question about phones and plans for Verizon prepaid - do you have experience with them, and with the data plans, especially using the web on the $50/month plan? My sister has a simple flip phone with Verizon prepaid. She would like to have a phone that can access the web, preferably youtube. However, she'd like to pay under $80 for it, and stick with the $50/month plan. (for "basic devices", according to Verizon's website)

I found her an under $80 phone, but when chatting with the Verizon rep, was informed that it would not access Youtube, and in order to access full websites, you'd have to pay for the $80/month plan. (for "smartphones")

She'd also like a phone that has no buttons on the front part - as she has a young child, and doesn't want buttons pressed by mistake. We're looking at the LG Extravert™ Prepaid - but the rep says she won't be able to access youtube with it.

She's in a rural area, and we know Verizon works for her, so she doesn't want to switch carriers (also, she can talk to other Verizon family members for free.) She's already explored Straight talk, and doesn't want that.

Does anyone know if she'll be able to access youtube and facebook with this phone, on the $50 plan? Is there anything I'm missing?

Family cell phone plans

Kazimirovna — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 08:47:14 -0800

Please choose a family cell plan for us. We are four adults, we all want iPhones, we call and text a lot but not over 700 minutes a month. I get confused by all the possibilities and just want someone to choose for us. We live in MN.

Cell phone use in other countries

pakora1 — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 15:02:36 -0800

Cell phones in countries (Americas-Latin, South, Central etc.) We travel a bit to countries in the Americas and are wondering what capabilities regarding temporary cell phone usage is available. Ideally we would like to be able to make calls cell to cell (unlike skype). In some countries, we were told, they do not sell SIM cards. (I have a jail broken Iphone which can hold other SIMs) We dont want to use our service abroad as it is really expensive

The basic question is around getting access to a cell phone in other countries, we are curious how others manage when they travel. Thank you.

Need hardware widget that endows phone with loud ring/alarm

Nish ton — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 13:52:53 -0800

I need a hardware device that endows my cell phone with a loud ring/alarm. I have bought and had to return 3 phones because they just aren't loud enough to reliably hear when they ring if they are buried under clothes, are in the other room, I am standing near traffic etc. No idea how phone designs got to this stage but there it is. I'm not even the least bit hard of hearing, but I just want a phone that is as loud as a landline or thereabouts. Something I can hear reliably from the other room, while I am biking down a busy street or whatever. For some reason phones don't seem to include this anymore... And even if there were a few that did they will be hard to find etc.

I think I need essentially a speaker that plugs into the USB port and gets taped on the back of the phone. I searched high and low and can't find such a thing though. The closest thing is a speakerphone, but even the smallest ones will not fit in my pocket, taped to my phone.

It seems like this sort of thing has got to exist, but google hasn't been co-operating somehow. Anyone have one of these suckers/know what they're called?

Forwarding from SIP to landline, no monthly fee?

Philosopher Dirtbike — Sun, 26 Aug 2012 23:22:33 -0800

How can I forward a sip address to a landline, with only a fee for the call itself? I recently started using VoIP.ms for my phone needs, and I like all the features and the price. The only thing it lacks is a connection to a particular block of mobile numbers in the Netherlands. When I call the numbers usin VoIP.ms, the call is denied. Their engineers tell me that they have no plans to add a connection to this block of numbers.

Now, of course, my mobile number is in this block. I only forward my home number to my mobile briefly a few times a year, but I'd like to be able to do it. So, I figure I can get an account with a VoIP provider that DOES connect with that block of numbers, and forward from VoIP.ms to the other provider via a SIP address, which then forwards to the mobile. That way I keep my setup with VoIP.ms, which I like, while being able to forward calls to my mobile..

I tried callwithus.com, and I can do this with them, but they require setting up a pseudo-DID which costs (on top of the call) $2 setup and $0.50 a month. It's the monthly fee that gets me - that means I have to keep putting money into their account just to forward to this number a few times a year, all for what amounts to a database entry.

I don't mind paying for the call itself, but there must be a free/no-recurring-fee way to solve my problem. Any ideas are appreciated.

How to build my own artificial jellyfish?

sunnichka — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 21:38:49 -0800

I've been obsessing about the artificial jellyfish lately and I want to know how difficult it would be to make one myself. I have a background in general and organic chemistry and I'm currently working on a university certificate program to do tech work in stem cell research. I'm about to start learning a lot about cell culture in petri dishes, and the electrical current part doesn't seem too hard to deal with, but the key to the artificial jellyfish seems to be the rat heart cells grown on patterned PDMS. I don't know anything about this, except that it is a good medium for making stem cells differentiate. I also have no idea how you get a hold of rat heart cells.

So, what else am I missing? I do recognize that this would be a huge/expensive undertaking. I'm hoping I might be able to use university equipment. (City College of San Francisco) Oh, and since I'm in San Francisco, I'll probably wander down to the NoiseBridge hackerspace and see if they have any ideas.

Help me Flash Recovery and / or root my Nexus...

You Should See the Other Guy — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 09:07:34 -0800

Help rooting and/or flashing Recovery on a Galaxy Nexus (Jelly Bean) on a Mac? I'm stuck. So I followed these instructions / video and all seemed to be going well until I got to Step 7. I tried to enter Bootloader Mode and choose Recovery but then my phone just gives me a sad Android with a red triangle and a ! in the middle of it.

I emailed the person who wrote those instructions and he wrote back "If you can’t get into recovery, try re-flashing recovery then go straight into recovery. What happens is that stock Android OS has a security measure that overwrites your custom recovery upon reboot. If this happens to you, simply re-flash recoery and boot into recovery right away without reboot."

I have no idea what he's talking about. I tried to google reflash recovery and was not comfortable with the instructions I found which made even less sense than the email.

Suggestions?

Decent Android phone, no contract. Possible?

lattiboy — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 15:45:59 -0800

Looking for the best Android smartphone to buy for a pre-paid service, preferably GSM based.... So, I'm looking to dump my ridiculous and horrible Sprint service for a pre-paid service.

I've looked at a bunch and the Wal Mart one seems to be best (T-Mobile, $30 a month, 5GB data, 100 minutes).

Now, I need to find a smartphone to go with it.

I currently have the Epic 4G for Sprint, which is a steaming pile of horrible. The phone itself is fine, but the reception is terrible and the battery lasts about 8 hours if I'm super-lucky.

I'm fine with buying used, but obviously new or refurbished is better.

I'm comfortable with rooting and putting on a custom ROM if a phone out there is crap as "stock" and needs to be retooled.

Is there such an option? I'd love a Galaxy S2, but they run around $300 used. I'm looking to spend $200 or less per phone. I know I can pick up the SUPER FANCY new Galaxy phone from Google Directly for $359, but after tax it's nearly $400 which is a lot to spend up front, especially if I'm buying 2 of them.

Something dual-core with a decent screen, 4G/LTE, and good battery life. Don't care about NFC or other exotics.