[mdlug-discuss] Cell Handset Recommendations

[Peter Bart]

On Wed, 29 Aug 2012 16:05:58 -0400
Michael Mol <mikemol at gmail.com> wrote:

> On Wed, Aug 29, 2012 at 3:46 PM, Peter Bart <petertheplumber at att.net>
> wrote:
> > On Wed, 29 Aug 2012 13:36:35 -0400
> > Michael Mol <mikemol at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> On Wed, Aug 29, 2012 at 1:03 PM, Peter Bart
> >> <petertheplumber at att.net> wrote:
> >> > Hi All,
> >> >         It looks like I'll finally be switching from Symbian to
> >> >         Android, and I need a new handset posthaste. I have no
> >> > love for Nokia anymore and I can't wait for Jolla or the new
> >> > Geeksphone to materialize. I would very much like to get a
> >> > Motorola Droid Global for it's keyboard, but I don't see an easy
> >> > way to get it to work on AT&T's network. Barring that I'm
> >> > thinking a Motorola Atrix 4G because I can get it's extended
> >> > life battery. I can't really wait to see what Google does with
> >> > Motorola Mobility either, so I must pick from the current crop
> >> > of handsets that will work, or can be made to work on AT&T's or
> >> > T-Mobiles GSM networks. I'm not averse to Cyanogenmod firmware,
> >> > and will most likely root my handset and flash it if it's
> >> > available.
> >> >
> >> >         Anyone have any thoughts?
> >>
> >> They're not high-end, but my wife have both had a lot of success
> >> with LG-509s (also known as 'Optimus'). You can get them from eBay
> >> for ~$100. I've had my hands on four. I botched one (though that
> >> might have been a hardware failure), but the other three are in
> >> good shape. One is mine, one is my wife's, one is my
> >> father-in-law's, and we're going to get one for my mother-in-law,
> >> too.
> >
> >         Interesting, I've had no such good fortune with LG's
> > handsets. Throw in all by bad experiences with LG's other products
> > and my opinion of the company can't really get any lower.
> 
> Apparently, it's "not uncommon" for the microSD slot on the LG-509 to
> go bad. That said, we've seen that in one out of four phones. That's a
> better statistical sample than you'll get from most people. :)
> 
> It also helps that it's a cheap phone.
> 
> >>
> >> They're pretty straightforward to root. Put on Titanium Backup,
> >> yank a bunch of crufty apps from the ROM, reduce the screen
> >> brightness to about 1/3 max, and suddenly your battery life is
> >> great with a decently bright screen.
> >>
> >> I find that mine remains charged while tethering my work laptop,
> >> and I manage to get work done while on the bus.
> >>
> >> Note: I haven't dealt directly with newer phones (though I do have
> >> a Xoom running Jelly Bean). My only concern about newer phones
> >> would be whether or not the apps and services I'd want to run on
> >> them consume too much energy on them to allow me to use them while
> >> charging on USB.
> >
> >         That's why I'm looking at getting one with an available
> >         extended life battery. Cell handset batteries are still the
> >         same 1300-1500mah ones we used ten years ago. In the
> > meantime processors, screens, apps all gobble more juice. The Nokia
> > E7 I have now doesn't even last all day anymore, but then that's
> >         one of the many reasons it' going back.
> 
> FWIW, I carry a fully-charged spare battery in my wallet, in the event
> that I need it. 

	I carry an igo charger with tips for all my stuff where ever I
	go.

>Otherwise, I have the phone charging whenever I'm in
> the car or on my computer. Not because the phone strictly needs it,
> but because I see no good reason not to top off. My wife disagrees,
> but still leaves hers plugged in while at home or while we're sleeping
> (she just doesn't top off in the car).

	That's actually the recommended charging  method and I top off
	my batteries as well. I got my info from 
<http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries>
<http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/charging_lithium_ion_batteries>
I finally got my dearly beloved to unplug her notebook when it's
charged; after several batteries prematurely died and I refused to buy
more; I'll leave it at that.
> 
> And, yeah, Li-ion energy density isn't going to get much better for
> the foreseeable future. They're walking the fine line between powering
> hungry devices for a decent length of time, and having you walk around
> with a bomb in your pocket. The trick is finding a device which can
> charge (or discharge very slowly) while still doing useful things.

	True, at least Panasonic Toughbooks got it further. I get 6-8
	hours of run time off one charge in a standard battery. Then
	there's the seeming race to build the thinnest device. Me, I'd
	rather carry a brick.

> The
> 500mA limit USB places on that means that the LG-509 sits right on the
> edge there; if you turn down the screen brightness, you can get away
> with having Google Navigate running
> ((GPS+(wifi-for-location))+celldata+screen=juice) while plugged in. I
> like "Battery Monitor Widget Pro" for monitoring battery
> charge/discharge rate.
> 
	I don't actually use a battery monitor. I dim the screens like
	you do, limit open apps to what I need, turn off wifi/bluetooth
	when not being used, no screensavers, no animations, no vibrate
	alerts and so on.


-- 
Best Regards,

Peter The Plumber
<petertheplumber at att.net>