Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with phone

Best UK mobile provider for my situation?

olinerd — Wed, 22 May 2013 03:57:27 -0800

I am in the UK. I live in Plymouth. My one year Vodafone contract is finally up and I hate them with a passion. I'd like to switch, but as a still relatively new ex-pat I don't know who to switch to. Can you recommend a provider to me based on my requirements inside? I have an iPhone 5. I mostly use it for data - work email, personal email, navigation, texting, reading Metafilter on the trains, personal hotspot when I need to connect my laptop while I'm on the go. I live in Plymouth and mostly travel around the southwest/south, though I occasionally go to London. I keep my UK SIM in for travel within Europe, but swap to a US SIM when I'm in that country. Work takes me to other (non-European) countries in which I usually just have them pay the international roaming for my UK SIM. I don't much care about 4G since I sincerely doubt there's even 4G in most of the places I spend my time in. 3G is usually hard enough.

Things I hate about Vodafone:
(1) I've traveled internationally on a monthly basis for the last year. For the first eight months, every single time I was out of the country, they'd cut off my data, saying I'd reached a cap. Twice they cut off my voice too (but required a phone call to re-enable it, because that makes sense?) This kept happening despite me asking every single time to remove any caps. The only reason it hasn't happened in the last few months is that I've mostly only been traveling to the US and I have a dedicated SIM there now. This is infuriating, interferes with my ability to do my job, and shows some pretty crap customer service. Not cool. Don't want this any more.

(2) No visual voice mail. Didn't realize how attached I'd grown to it until I didn't have it. I would like visual voice mail back please. I think O2 might be the only ones in the UK who do this? Is that still accurate?

(3) Unreliable delivery and notification of voice mails. There are some I never get at all.

(4) Same for text messages.

(5) I get a "robot voice" from callers occasionally where the beginning and ends of words are clipped or weirdly digitized. I haven't been able to narrow down any particular combination of providers (sometimes it happens with landlines) but it is typically always from the same people, such as my husband. It doesn't happen when I'm calling them on the same handset with the US SIM so I'm blaming it on the provider. I would like not to have robot voices, particularly when I'm being called by someone for work.

I don't really care about any particular plans or rates or contracts; I'm happy enough to talk to people in the stores about that. What I really want is a provider that doesn't suck, and I'm hoping you can point me toward the right one. Who has the reputation as the least-terrible mobile provider in the UK?

Simplest mobile phone for use in Europe, USA, and Australia?

Philosopher Dirtbike — Sat, 18 May 2013 03:53:40 -0800

I currently have a Samsung Guru E1081T. It is a very simple phone, and I can use it in Australia and Europe. However, it does not work in the USA. What is the simplest phone that uses SIM cards that I can use in all three places? No smartphones please; battery life is the paramount consideration. I don't care about features, apart from phone and texting.

Is there a less expensive way to remote-call-forward?

tangyraspberry — Fri, 17 May 2013 11:28:48 -0800

I work at home and, since I moved from NYC to the West Coast, I've simply had Verizon remote-call-forward my number to make the move as seamless as possible. The problem is the cost, around $70.00 per month. Does anyone know of a less expensive way to remote-call-forward? Thanks in advance!

if it's going to be broken, it may as well be funny.

R a c h e l — Tue, 14 May 2013 16:52:52 -0800

What creative poster/thing could I put inside the empty phone box in my elevator? Currently, the phone box in my elevator is empty except for some stange metal bits that may have at one point been attached to a phone and some stupid graffiti (not particularly inappropriate, just stupid). It opens if you pull it, but I don't think people do that very often.

I'd like to put some sort of 8.5x11 poster or funny something in it (something 3d would also fit, if it was a few inches in diameter or smaller), at nominal cost for maximum funny. Nothing that would cause permanent damage, obviously. Any thoughts?

The only thing I can think of is printing out some sort of meme and that is both not very funny and I can't even think of what I would pick. I'm basically just looking to plant some sort of easter egg to make people smile, clever would be nice.

The building is about 2/3 college students and 1/3 very elderly people, with a few conventional residents as well. Something that college students would find amusing is probably ideal, though I'd like to keep the humor pretty clean.

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!

Help, I sound like an intern.

mochapickle — Sun, 05 May 2013 10:04:07 -0800

How do I sound older (35+) on conference calls? I started a new consulting position in a new industry about seven months ago. A great deal of my work happens on the phone -- calling subject matter experts, calling executives, gathering consensus with contacts across the US. I'm well over 35, but during these calls I often get mistaken for early 20s, even during non-technical calls. Most of our other consultants are in their 40s and 50s and sound more mature.

Obviously, picking up the taxonomy/alphabet soup of a new industry takes time, so I understand that a likely contributing factor is my not having the correct lingo at 100% just yet. Also, I have been mindful of removing words like like from my standard vocabulary.

I'm very candid and approachable on my calls, I'm a good listener, and I often strike an instant rapport with my contacts, but I sometimes get thinly veiled (and thickly shrouded) questions about my experience level. Last week, a contact said he wanted to drink whatever I was drinking (I was stone sober).

I love the phone aspect of my work. I want to sound my age (35+), but keep the approachability/candor. I have a solid reputation with my ongoing contacts, but the new ones definitely get thrown for a loop at first. I feel like sounding young makes me have to take more steps in building their trust in me.

If you used to sound young on the phone, did any changes work for you? Do you know of techniques for dropping an octave? Are there words and phrases I should banish forever?

I need to buy a phone in the US for somebody else to use in Mexico.

jeoc — Wed, 01 May 2013 19:46:43 -0800

My mom moved to Mexico recently, and I have had a hard time contacting her via phone. She's staying with relatives of her boyfriend, but it seems like she's not able to use their phone to make international calls. I'd like to get her a mobile phone that she can use to call me and her other kids (or anybody else), but I'm a bit overwhelmed by what I'm finding with google - a lot of which seems targeted to making international calls from the US to other countries or just seems spammy. What is a good way to buy a phone here and send it to Mexico? I'm having a bit of a hard time contacting my mom via phone since she moved (about a month ago), and I'd like to make it easier to contact her. I rather send a phone than a phone card, because I'd like it to be her phone.

Ideally I'd like a pay-as-you-go phone that I could buy top-up cards for and keep her stocked in minutes. I'm not sure she's in a position to get a local sim card and put it in a phone, so I'd rather send something that is ready to go. I'd rather not spend a fortune, but it is important to me to get something that will work. What brands should I be looking for? Where should I buy this? I'm in the US, in North Carolina.

I'm worried she's in a bit of a bad situation. I'm in contact with her intermittently via email, and her last message was concerning. I tried calling her today, but haven't been able to reach her. I have been in email contact, but not phone contact since she moved (my fault - I didn't realize she wouldn't be able to call and I've been busy and distracted). She moved with her boyfriend, a Mexican national, to Mexico City about a month ago with the plan of moving to Merida about a month after arriving. They seemed to have a great relationship before the move. I can't tell if she's just having adjustment difficulties with the new place and the language barrier or if there is a real issue. I think it was not terribly smart of her to do this, particularly without a plan for how she would communicate with the states, but I'm trying NOT to panic here and focus on ways to figure out what is really going on and be genuinely helpful. My plan right now is to send emails and try to call every day and send her a phone.

Nokia Lumia 620, Windows' Dumb Smart Phone Question

1inabillionmistake — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 07:33:19 -0800

Hi all, anyone know if: Will the Lumia 620 work with At&t's no data plan service (we could just swap sim cards?), aaand, will the phone's wifi still work for web-browsing anywhere with a signal? Thanks Everyone! I guess a little more. I'm looking for a phone for movies/mp3 but no data plan, is this my best bet? Thanks again.

Weird Jacket that slid ur phone into your hand.

rmathew1 — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 22:57:42 -0800

I read this a LONG time ago, a jacket where you could snap ur wrist (or some other hand geuster/movement) and it cause ur phone (stored in the sleeve) to drop right into ur hand. It was awesome if slightly risky and I'd like to take a look at it again. Anyone know of it? Or something similar?

What are today's good phones? When will they be obsolete?

0x006DB0 — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 15:47:04 -0800

Need a new phone for myself and my wife, usually there's a "hot" phone (iPhone, HTC Evo 4G, Samsung Galaxy S3, etc) - whatever the top phone is. That seems to change every 6 months, and I just can't keep up. Also, I don't keep up with the release cycle - if I buy the hot phone today, is it essentially going to be obsolete in 3 months? I'm primarily looking at T-Mobile, but that might change, depending on how bad the signal is at my work. Not looking for an iPhone (plus, I know that's always an option). I don't know if Windows 8 is worth getting yet, I've always been an Android guy. Galaxy S3 is a possibility for me, but my wife's hands are too small to comfortably use it. Right now we're looking at HTC One. I'd strongly prefer something where there's an accessible battery, so I can swap it out without a problem.

For me it's somewhat critical - my phone has stopped making sound in the past few months, and the Sprint service is horrible. I can probably hold out another 3 months, but it won't be comfortable. Are we on the cusp of the next release cycle, or am I safe buying a phone now?

I'm sure that this question has been asked a million times, but I haven't seen it in about 3 months, and like I said, the answers change all the time, so it's a bit ephemeral.

Can you get a good camera with a functional phone (not vice versa)?

richb — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 04:48:02 -0800

I'd like a quality compact camera which can make calls and send and receive text messages, rather than a phone with a poor camera attached. Does anyone make that? I have done some searching, and I have found lots of people with the same question, but no good solutions.

(Perhaps I am wrong in thinking that a mid range compact camera like a CoolPix is actually better than the camera on a high end phone like an iPhone?)

T-Mobile: Stay or Go?/iPhone or No?

Xalf — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 08:33:13 -0800

I have had a reasonably happy relationship with my T-Mobile G2 (aka HTC Desire Z) these past two years, but my contract is up, and I have long coveted the iPhone, mostly based on its picture taking and video chatting capabilities. Should I just get one and take advantage of T-Mobile's new pricing? Or should I jump to a new carrier? An attempt to make this less open-ended is inside. I have been a T-Mo customer nearly as long as I've had a cell phone, and I really do like their service and pricing, especially the new scheme. I rarely make calls, but quality is normally fine. My impression is that my data service is slower than other carriers, but I don't really know how to judge what difference a new carrier and a new phone would make. I spend most of my time in Washington, DC and always have pretty good reception. So here is the main question:

How can I tell how much faster things would be if I switched to AT&T or Verizon?

Bonus overthinking about whether iPhone is right for me: I am happy with Android, but I don't consider it a member of my family. Also, I'm pissed at Google over killing Reader (which I do consider to be a family member). I mostly use the phone for web browsing, email, Facebook, NYT, and podcasts (using doggcatcher). It is rarely convenient for me to sync the phone with a desktop - would that impact my iPhone experience? I am willing to consider hot new Android phones, but I am not crazy about how enormous they are. And I like the idea of being able to use FaceTime with friends and family who also have iPhones.

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!

What are my options for replacing my broken phone?

snow_mac — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 09:58:20 -0800

I'm on Verizon, I have no warranty, started a contract in July w/ a Samsung Galaxy Nexus 4G Android Phone. I was a n00b and walked into my car really hard the other night and it was in my pocket. The screen now will barely turn on, the touch screen is cracked. The touchscreen is unusable. I cannot dial or even use the phone. A google nexus will be $299. What are my options? The phone itself, I kind of hate, the OS is nice but charging has always been an issue and it dies pretty quickly. I need ideas on either should I replace it? (With what and how much?) I don't want to renew as Verizon has had terrible quaility and I want to dump them in 18 months and go back to Virgin Mobile (I even have a phone for it). Should I foot the $350 ETF and switch back to Virgin? Cost to fix it? Other options?

Should I ask her when would be a good time to call her for a date?

Basque13 — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 22:03:56 -0800

I (30) met this woman (35) at a work-related meeting ten days ago. We were in a small group (2 men, 2 women), and chatted briefly. Among a few other things, she asked me if I was married and had children (no to both). She is divorced and told us (most of the interaction was with the group) that she was on her own, and had to work really hard to support herself and her two young children. She seems a very loving mother, in addition to an attractive and easygoing person. Before leaving she asked me (and the other guy) for our email addresses and told me she would send me a facebook friend request. This didn´t mean much in itself, as we might conceivably need to get in touch for work-related issues. Later that evening I see and accept her fb friend request, and we chatted for a few minutes. Couple of days later I iniciate fb chat, and learn a little bit more about her life, and she learns something about mine. More or less same thing today. The interaction flowed nicely, with what for me was a good combination of humor and getting-to-know-each-other. We exchanged phone numbers.
I want to call her and set up a casual meeting for coffee, the problem is, as far as I remember, our 3 online interactions finished when she said she had to either pick up her children somewhere, or leave for work (at various times of the day). I know that her working hours are very irregular (she might be finishing as late as 11 PM one day, or starting at 8 Am another), and that raising children as a single parent is demanding.I don´t want to call at a bad time, which given her circumstances, I suspect it might be anytime.
Suggesting a meeting for coffee over fb or sms would be much more convenient, as she could answer whenever she could. On the other hand, I understand that adults interested in asking someone out are generally supposed to at least phone the potential date to set up a meeting. Somehow I feel that if I call her when she´s busy or unavailable, my second attempt will have lower chances of being well-received.

So: Do you think it's ok to ask her via fb or text if,e.g., she´ll be busy tomorrow afternoon to make sure my call doesn´t arrive at a bad time? Should I tell her (via fb or sms) in advance I want to call her to invite her for a drink?.
PS: Asking her face-to-face is not an option.
We are not at all likely to be bumping into each other at work, since our workplaces are miles away from each other.
I´ll appreciate your wisdom and/or common sense on this topic.

HTC Not-so-Incredible

jiawen — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 16:03:54 -0800

Help me figure out what to do about my buggy HTC Incredible, either to fix it or to replace it. For a couple years now, I've owned an HTC Incredible. It's been a great phone overall, but it's developed the reboot glitch that
so very very many other people are having. And the problem doesn't seem to be restricted to the Incredible, either. It's not even restricted to HTC phones. And yet none of the carriers or manufacturers that I've seen have either a) offered a consistent explanation for it or b) done anything to solve the problem.

I've seen a lot of speculation as to what causes the problem, and as many ideas about how to fix it. From crafting battery hacks to putting the battery in the freezer for a while, getting rid of task killer apps to uninstalling all third-party apps and then reinstalling them one by one, clearing the cache(s) to performing a factory reset... I've tried most of these methods, and while they may work for a while, the problems always come back. And I'm hesitant to try a factory reset, because it'd be a huge pain in the butt and still might not even work. I've contacted Verizon, and their 'solution' is, after much misdirection and unhelpfulness, basically to buy a new phone.

So, what can I do? I'd ideally prefer to fix my phone, somehow. But if that won't work, I'd like to get a new phone. I'd have the following restrictions:

It should be Android. I'm not too picky about which version, though recent would be nice.

The phone shouldn't cost more than about US$100 or $150, perhaps a little more if the monthly cost is significantly lower than what I'm paying now.

The specs should be about the same or better than my Incredible: good case durability (ideally, metal case and Gorilla Glass, though I'd plan on getting a slipcover and screen protection anyway); good forward and rear cameras; no hardware keyboard (Swype all the way!); a fairly fast processor; microSD slot; 3G or 4G; long battery life. And I don't want a phone much bigger than the Incredible. I specifically don't want a larger screen or bigger phone -- my tablet meets that need.

I really, really want to avoid reboot glitches and other such problems. Reliability is a big concern.

I'd prefer HTC out of general UI preference, but if it means avoiding things like the reboot bug, anything Android is fine by me.

For the carrier, I'd prefer one that charges significantly less than Verizon does (approximately $100 per month for unlimited data and way more minutes and messages than I use). Stuff like Carrier IQ annoys me, I'd prefer to avoid multi-year contracts, and I'm pretty sick of Verizon's customer service so I think I want to get away from them entirely.

Is it possible to truly fix my phone? Or barring that, what phone and carrier would match my needs?

London Charging

PJMoore — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 09:00:14 -0800

Heading to London in the next two months, and am ignorant in the ways of electric converters and chargers, etc. Please help! Taking Verizon phone with global capabilities and Acer Laptop. What will I need in the way of converters or chargers while I'm there? I have a USB port charger for my phone. Will that work if I get some sort of converter for the laptop? Speak to me oh electric gadget minded folk!

Cell phone repair trouble

delezzo — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 22:29:41 -0800

I'm trying to fix my phone. How do I deal with a very tiny, hard to get at screw with a stripped head? I'm trying to replace the glass touch screen on an LG Shine Touch using these instructions. The heads on two of the screws - one under and one beside the battery - are stripped and I can't get a purchase on them at all. I'm using the magnetic screwdriver I got with the new screen.

I have absolutely no experience with this. I've tried small amounts of sticky tack and rubber cement, but it didn't help. Should buy a slightly larger screw driver? Resort to superglue? Let me know your tips and tricks!

Thanks!

What's the best mobile internet setup?

zephyr_words — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 09:47:45 -0800

Is there any advantage to using a Verizon (or equivalent) 4G Hotspot over tethering a mobile phone? I have a Samsung Galaxy Nexus on Verizon and tether sometimes with PDANet+.

Starting next month I'll need to tether a lot. I was planning on upgrading my data plan and just tethering with my phone but I wanted to explore other options. I'm open to alternatives to Verizon as well.

1. Is there any advantage to using a dedicated hotspot device over tethering a 4G capable device?
2. What's the best setup if I need to use a lot of data?

Just looking for some mefites recent, relevant, personal experiences!

What are the best inexpensive, unlocked Android options?

jsturgill — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:38:19 -0800

A friend would like to switch to a cheap, unlocked Android phone and a prepaid plan within the next month. Is this the best option in the $100-ish price point?

Is there something in that price point that can be set to stock Android and run the most recent ICS release, or failing that, is well supported with cyanogenmod?

If going for a used phone, how should that be approached, what is available for about $100, etc.

Hoping to get some wisdom dropped on me and specific product recommendations.

Looking for Customer Service Type Headset for iPhone.

Vaike — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:21:31 -0800

Looking for a headset to use with iPhone, but with specifics... I need a headset that meets the criteria below:

* can be used with iphone 5
* has a microphone
* over the head/headband
* over the ears
* microphone up front by the mouth
* not a zillion dollars.

I am finding plenty of these here and here, but none that can be used with an iPhone.

* a way to convert to phone use, or a single ear would be my second options, but can't even find those...

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?

Is there something like a MiFi that will accept a SIM?

aeighty — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 09:03:46 -0800

I'm looking for something like a MiFi that will accept a SIM. This would be handy when I travel, so that I can purchase a local unlimited SIM card and not rely on my mobile phone for internet access because our carriers charge an exorbitant fee for out of the country data. Any suggestions?

What should my idle phone be showing me?

mulligan — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 11:53:01 -0800

While I am working, my phone is sitting idle on my desk, but within my field of vision. What are some interesting things it could be doing or displaying?