Im due an upgrade on mine & the wifes contract phones.

I dont really want to pay any more than about £25 a month each, we have just had a nipper so im the only bread winner at the mo.

Ideally I want a tariff that is unlimited so that I dont have to worry about going over at any point due to money being limited.

We have been offered an I-Phone 4 on the T-mobile tariff that gives unlimited internet, unlimited texts & 2000 minutes per month for £26 each. Sounds like a good deal to us, we wont use the 2000 minutes but it also means we will never get close to going over it so no worry with our budgetting for the next 2 years.

3 Seem to be offering similar deals too for similar cost with the Samsung galaxy S2, we have no beans about what operator to go with, I have realised now that loyalty means nothing now days !

We currently have Nokia E5 phones which is a poor mans blackberry & I have hated it since day one (24 months ago !) we get 300 mins, 250 meg internet & unlimited texts per month for about £30 each on Orange, we are with them purely because we have been with them for about 10 years making us network loyal (Until now).

We would both like phones that deal with the internet nicely & have also seen the Samsung S2 for a similar prices & deals.

One last thing, wife has family in Singapore & South Africa so Facetime/Viber/Whatsapp are all looking like good options for keeping in touch, hence the unlimited internet need.

Can anyone recommend I-Phone 4 or Samsung S2 with some constructive critisism, we cant really budge on the £25 ish per month per phone but realise that either make/model will be a major upgrade considering what we have been used to.

The Samsung seems to be a slightly better spec, the wife just wants an I-Phone, im not too bothered either way as long as it makes phone calls & does a bit of internet easier than what I have at the mo.

On a side note, I bought my Ipod 30 gig 7 years ago, it goes everywhere with me, I travel a fair bit with work, I drop it etc & it still works as it did from day one & battery life is still as good as new hence im leaning towards the I-phone.

Discuss

are you buying personally or through business?

Buying personally.

Just managed to find some previous searches & it seems to be personal preference.

Kind of like the Canon - Nikon thing, or the Ford - Vauxhall thing.

Me, im not bothered either way, just want something that will still work in 23 months time really

Do you mean Galaxy S2 or the more recently released S3?

My girlfriend has just got an S3 to replace her S1. She's really pleased with it and I'm very envious as it seems really great.

The reviews of S3 vs. Iphone that I read online and in the Sunday Times had it ahead of the IPhone.

Cheers,
James

Yep, Galaxy S2, we cant realistically stretch to the monthly cost of a couple of S3's im afraid.

Samsung....just cos it's not an iPhone.

Remember the Microsoft backlash, bout time Apple had a taste IMHO.

might not affect you just yet but bear in mind 4g is launched/launching orange only. 4g devices coming out in nnext few months.

Nick, thats kind of where im coming from but I have no evidence to back it up...

I searched hard to find a reason to not buy my ipod 7 years ago just because it was an ipod but I bit the bullet, bought it & it has given amazing service ever since.

If you like shiny and just want it to work the iphone, if you like to mess around, the android is more configurable and the software is usually cheaper.

I'm an android person

In view of the release of Iphone5, Iphone4 seems a little "old".
Usually a new Iphone comes with a new / improved operating system, which might be slow on older Iphones..

Galaxy S2 for me.

After several blackberrys in a row I chose an Iphone 4 for work but really could not get on with it.
Managed to swap it for a galaxy S2 and find it much more intuitive. I'm very happy with it.

Had both, personally prefer the s2. I now have an s3.

All down to personal preference and whether you like iTunes or not. For example To put an avi on iPhone you need to convert the file then import to iTunes, on the s2 you just drag and drop.

Have you looked at the Orange San Diego ? On contract it gives a lot of bang per buck.

Don't forget resale
iPhone holds value my old 3Gs will still make money and for that reason it's 4s for me next perhaps a 5 but probably wait for the 5s when that appears 2013/14
But then I use Mac for work so it's not a " look what I've got" much more about feeling easy with how it works.

iPhone every time for me, I was never an apple fan, always tried to stay away for the usual reasons, software locked down etc. 2.5 years ago I bit my lip and bought a 3GS, jail broke it and never ever looked back. I agree the S3 is an awesome piece of kit (even though the build quality is rubbish in my opinion). Shoot me down!


PS : it's the apple conference today, and the new iPhone will be announced. Expected in shops by the end of the month! I'll be in line to upgrade my 3GS.(I don't mean queuing up at 4am to be first in line, I'm not that sad!)

[Edited on 12/9/12 by Proby]

Iphone 5 release due to be announced today - could have an influence on prices over the next few weeks.
Go for the best spec you can afford. Colleagues of mine are reporting their 3GS iphones being quite slow after the OS upgrades but they are now 2-3 years old.
I've been dithering over an iphone or a Galaxy S3 for weeks and have come down on the side of the Samsung but I think the iphone is the obvious choice if you and your wife are used to iTunes, ipods etc, introducing another software suite is more learning.
Someone with more Android experience will put me right but the regular updates to the Android OS can leave apps lagging behind and the choice of apps on Google Play is bewildering, with huge ranges in quality.
The camera on the S2 is really laggy, which is why I want a Galaxy S3.
All IMHO, of course, I've not had either yet, just in a similar situation!

i had a jailbroken 3g previously. At the time i thought it was pretty good, i always hated itunes though... even before i bought it. it was one of the main reasons i was very hesitant to buy an iphone. Had enough of if after about 2 years so swapped for a Galaxy S2, and never looked back. Android is the future for me

I went for the S2, I was the same I couldn't stretch to the S3 (or justify it really). And I don't like what Apple do with their devices. I think it's a fantastic phone, loving every minute of it.

Criticisms for the S2? There are some. The main one is that t-mobile (my provider) have loaded it with 'their' apps, which are 100% useless and 100% not removable. Still, since all the screens are configurable, you just move them out the way. And that's not strictly the phone.

As mentioned the camera is a bit 'slow' to react, forget fast moving shots. Although the quality is really good, far better than my last phone which supposedly had a Carl Zeiss lens (whatever that means).

It's a bit big, but that's relative. The S3 is even bigger, in my opinion it's too big to be a phone but that's just me.

You will need to budget for a micro SD card, I don't think you get one by default. 32 Gb is about £15 now.

Wifi data connections only seem to be 'g' rather than 'n', it's fine for day to day but really big downloads can take quite a while.

It has crashed a couple of times, but it seems to be the apps rather than the phone. As with everything Android vs Apple, Android has more choice but less quality, Apple is the other way round.

Battery life was a bit of a shock, I'm having to leave it plugged in overnight. It'll stretch to two days if you don't use it too much. Compare that to my last phone (cheapo Nokia) that needed charging so infrequently that I'd often forget where I left the charger! Having said that, most smartphones (including Iphone) do seem to measure there standby time in hours rather than days.

Have you looked on buymobilephones.net? There might be a cheaper tariff on there. for example, the S2 on O2, with wifi access to the BT openzone network (which is huuuge), unlimited texts and a handful of minutes is 16.50 a month. Wifi access is usually better than 3G, although not quite as mobile.

I would like to think, after owning all off the phones mentioned, i can give an educated opinion on this.

If your using it for:
Wi fi access anywhere
The fastest internet collection, now!!
Talking on the phone
Little email use
Streaming media
Watching videos
Photo viewing
Kit car track day data collection

Samsung is your weapon.

If;

You already use i tunes or have an apple network at home
Want to be frustrated with dropped calls
Pick up a lacking or no data connection
Wonder why you have no back or settings button on any screen

Apple is your weapon.

This is comparing S2 and 3GS. If its S3 and I4 then S3 is better due to the above reasons but add more including larger screen.

My only major problems i have with Samsung is that i use my phones for business which i find hard compared to the apples and internet windows inside internet windows are conflicting at times. At least you can scroll and sort it in the end though where the iphone feels restrictive.

HTH. For me, go to a shot and fiddle with your friends before you buy. Weight and general feel is very different to as well as build quality. Dont rule out Tge HTC range.

Can you get the sony xperia S for £25 or so now? If so that'd be my choice, a little better than the 2 phones you mentioned too.

Forgot to mention Samsung have mega bright torches and share kindle charges plus others.

And I am not biast i have used all of these phones for at least a year each and dont actually care what OP buys!

Just giving my opinion into to the LCB world.

i have an iphone 4 for work and a htc one x for personal. the htc destroys the i phone. my vote is the s2. but............. have you looked at the htc one s? my other half has one and its brill and also has a bit more bang for your money than the now getting old s2.

I'm a HTC fan - had a Desire for 2 years and its been fantastic and still works just as good as the day I got it - and it gets used and abused, torch for heavy DIY under floors etc kicked about in the workshop/garage. So as much as the galaxy S3 appealed I had to order the HTC One X (which arrives today! :-)). I fancied the Sony just because we've got Sony TV's and laptop and thought it might be more compatible on the home network etc but from what I've read its not that great.

So for reliability and function I'd be looking at whatever HTC falls into your price bracket (although I cant comment on the others).

Unbiased opinion here
It appears the iPhone is no longer the King!

Hi. Had my S2 for 6-7 months now. No problems and does everything i want it to Using / looking at forums FB Twitter etc all works well. Mines on Vodafone personal contract £27. inc Vat PM with unlimited Txt and more minutes and Internet than i can use.

Cheers Matt

PS. The GF has a HTC Desire, with FB on it constantly has lack of storage problems.

[Edited on 12/9/12 by procomp]

Galaxy S2! Had both and the S2 and 3GS (played on the 4 enough as well), S2 wins hands down on features, ease of use and compatibility with everything else. Most of the time you can find much better contracts as well, you don't pay the Apple tax, but I have not looked at specific contracts since my last one almost a year ago.

have you thought about buying a phone (or even keep the ones you have) and getting a sim only deal? I'm with Vodafone on their monthly sim only contract (was on full contracts for the past 10 years) and currently pay £15.50 for 300mins, unlimited text, 250MB data and 500MB BT Open Connect + Blackberry service - although I've already got unlimited BT OC through my home phone.

I know you want more minutes but there are much better deals out there if you shop around - seems you're paying twice as much as me for the same benefits.

I've got the s2 and my wife has the iphone 4s. Imo mine is a far better phone and the vast majority of apps are free whereas ones for the iphone usually cost a few quid each. If possible I would steer well clear of orange I've had no end of trouble with calls being dropped all the time, friend on orange also day the same thing.

quote:

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Originally posted by Davegtst
If possible I would steer well clear of orange I've had no end of trouble with calls being dropped all the time, friend on orange also day the same thing.

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Originally posted by procomp

PS. The GF has a HTC Desire, with FB on it constantly has lack of storage problems.

[Edited on 12/9/12 by procomp]

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quote:

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Originally posted by FASTdan

quote:

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Originally posted by procomp

PS. The GF has a HTC Desire, with FB on it constantly has lack of storage problems.

[Edited on 12/9/12 by procomp]

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Yes actually thats the one nagging issue with the desire - a well known bug but not on any of the other HTC's as far as I know.

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Wife has S2 and I'm ugrading to an S2.

my daughter has an S2 and loves it.
I need to change my own phone soon and am trying to make up my mind. I like the look of the iPhone 4S and the seamless way the Apple software works but am put off by the signal strength as i don't have strong coverage where i live so am likely to end up with an S2 or S3.

Im edging towards the S2 but have not touhed one yet so will try and have a play with one before I commit to anything.

I used an Iphone 4 today for ten mins & have to say its very impressive, considering ive not used one of these types of phones before. Cant wait to try a samsung if they are as good as the replys on here suggest

As is typical with this sort of thing, after singing the praises of an S2 I've just had my first major failure. Last night the phone just went completely dead, from having about 80% left on the battery. It was really difficult to get it charged again, but it's working again now. However I don't appear to be the only person having significant battery issues. Just looking online for 'Galaxy S2 dead battery' shows that it appears to be a software issue. It seems to 'forget' the status of the battery and ends up in a loop where it can't charge.

Just thought I'd mention it...

To be honest it gets much of a much'ness.

They're all good phones, Apple are aware of this, if you go samsung/sony/htc you can't go wrong.

The fact even the new ones are about £20month cheaper is just a bonus.

quote:

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Originally posted by major
In view of the release of Iphone5, Iphone4 seems a little "old".
Usually a new Iphone comes with a new / improved operating system, which might be slow on older Iphones..

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I have a Desire HD and after 2 years its getting to the end of its life really. Works fine just the on/off and volume button needs a clean out from the inside.

As for wear and tear, I went swimming in the sea and didnt realise till I came out that my phone was in my pocket. That was over a year ago now and it still works

http://i.imgur.com/39VZc.jpg

remember you need an iphone 5 to use 4G!

It'll be nice when everywhere has 3g coverage.

I have a HTC Desire HD and have loved it for the past 18 months, although I'm currently considering buying an iPhone. The camera on the iPhone blinds the HTC and the operating system is just so much more user friendly. I like the build quality of the iPhones and I also like using iTunes. The Android market does have more apps available but the quality of them varies greatly.

One of the main reasons I chose the HTC originally, is because of the specification and screen size. Now that the iPhone has a larger screen and better specs, it's a serious contender as my next phone.

Phil

ive just changed to a Galaxy s3. great phone, but really slippery, lasted 3 days before i dropped it and screen shattered. 200 quid repair...

wifes iphone 4 gets 7 shades of shi... dirt knocked out of it and works fine.
if you buy an S3 buy a gel case so they bounce. better battery life than the iphone
lighter than iphone and bigger screen area

imho, nowt to choose between they in reality, pros and cons with both