Do you want to stay with T-Mobile?
I battle evil. But I don't really win. The bad keeps coming back and getting stronger. Like that kid in the story, the boy that stuck his finger in the duck.
Buffy ,'Showtime'
Buffistechnology 3: "Press Some Buttons, See What Happens."
Got a question about technology? Ask it here. Discussion of hardware, software, TiVos, multi-region DVDs, Windows, Macs, LINUX, hand-helds, iPods, anything tech related. Better than any helpdesk!
Rob - Dec 11, 2012 6:48:08 am PST #21646 of 25501
Consuela - Dec 11, 2012 7:01:46 am PST #21647 of 25501
We are Buffistas. This isn't our first apocalypse. -- Pix
Do you want to stay with T-Mobile?
Yeah, probably. I've got a pretty good deal and my long history with them gives me some leverage.
Right now I'm looking at the Samsung Galaxy Blaze, except the review on Engadget says that setup is a real pain because it's bundled with a lot of junk software. I'm not in the mood to spend days trying to delete crap software.
I really just want email, web access, maps, calendar, phone & texting, and a couple of apps like Twitter and Kindle. I'm not a power user except in that I want to be able to customize it, and get rid of the crap I don't use: I hate the way my current phone is so often running apps I never ever use like Garage Band and stuff.
Rob - Dec 11, 2012 7:08:59 am PST #21648 of 25501
I'm carrying a Nexus 4 now and it is very nice. You might have to wait a few months for supply to catch up with demand and it's a bit pricey.
Prior to that I was carrying a Galaxy Nexus, which I also liked a lot. It looks like you can get it at Best Buy for $50 with a new contract.
Both are pure Google experience phones, so any junk software on them comes directly from Google.
Gris - Dec 11, 2012 7:20:43 am PST #21649 of 25501
Hey. New board.
Yeah, I think the Nexus line is your best choice if you want to avoid crapware. The Nexus 4 will likely be my next phone - we're going to switch to the T-Mobile Value Plans that are cheaper because they don't subsidize the phone (which will save us money in the long time)
Consuela - Dec 11, 2012 8:20:20 am PST #21650 of 25501
We are Buffistas. This isn't our first apocalypse. -- Pix
Hmm. The Nexus just looks too big for me: I like the narrow profile and light weight of the MyTouch. The HTC One S is looking pretty good in that arena; I just don't need a really high-powered phone with a lot of real estate.
Gris - Dec 11, 2012 10:59:43 am PST #21651 of 25501
Hey. New board.
I like my HTC phone quite a bit and will be sticking with it for the foreseeable future, but it definitely comes with some pretty annoying software. The HTC Sense interface is actually quite nice, but it's also a bit slow on the less powerful phones, so gauge carefully.
Consuela - Dec 11, 2012 11:01:28 am PST #21652 of 25501
We are Buffistas. This isn't our first apocalypse. -- Pix
Well, there's an article in Slate about how T-Mobile is going to stop subsidizing new phones in exchange for 2-year contracts; I may wait and see what happens with that.
My phone is currently annoying but it's perfectly functional.
§ ita § - Dec 11, 2012 11:16:17 am PST #21653 of 25501
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
T Mobile has never made it worth my while to buy a contract and one of their phones that I wanted. Last time the salesperson tried to sell me a two year contract, I asked her to run the numbers on how long it would take that to be more expensive than buying the phone outright (from them--not even shopping around) and then ask me again if I want to buy it. Her reply was, in that case, 8 months and a shrug.
omnis_audis - Dec 11, 2012 11:28:43 am PST #21654 of 25501
omnis, pursue. That's an order from a shy woman who can use M-16. - Shir
Seems Boxee has a new box out. Anyone have it yet? It looks like you can connect cable, but it says "basic cable" on the website, which leads me to believe it will not do cable card to unlock paid channels.
Gris - Dec 11, 2012 11:36:50 am PST #21655 of 25501
Hey. New board.
T-Mobile already offers that option with the "Value" plans you can configure from their website. I have stared at the 2-person family plan that gets 1000 shared minutes and 2GB of shared 4G data for $69.98 a month many, many times. We are currently paying about $100/month ($110 after taxes and fees) for a fairly similar plan on AT&T with less convenient data rules (wife has to stay under 200 MB or we get pinged for more money) AND with an employee discount we don't really qualify for. $720 savings over 2 years is enough to cancel out two subsidies for basically all mid-range smartphones, and it's not like we upgrade exactly every 2 years anyway.
For an individual, the savings are even more ridiculous. 500 minutes talk with 2GB of data on T-Mobile Value is $44.99 a month. The best similar deal on AT&T is $70/month - savings of $25/month = $600 over two years. iPhone 5 unlocked is $649 vs. $199 locked, so that $600 more than covers the difference. And that's the most expensive phone on the market. If you want unlimited texting, AT&T adds $20/month. T-Mobile only adds $5. Bumping AT&T to 5GB of data will cost an additional $20, while T-mobile will put you up to UNLIMITED for just $10 more. Like things unlimited in general? T-mobile gives unlimited talk/text/data for $70/month. On AT&T, that's $140/month and you still only get 5GB of data.
If you like T-Mobile's service and are willing to shell out full price for the phone every few years, the T-Mobile value plans are way better than the AT&T plans in general. (Of course, if you're an individual, you do even better with something like StraightTalk.)