Today in our world we have so many phones to choose from, and that choice can either leave you in a terrible loop or great place for however long you choose to keep the device. Generally, you have 3 choices: Basic phones, Feature Phones, and Smart Phones. So, if you are shopping for a new device (Or a first device for someone) you can't go wrong with either selection.
1. Basic Phones: They are always know for great battery life and phone for making phone calls in those desperate situations. They are available on every major carrier and have basic applications that have capabilities such as basic games (Any Brick Breaking Game) and picture mail. So, if you are shopping for a device for someone who doesn't need anything more than calling or texting that "LOL" to that special someone. These phones are given a great reputation as well for their reliability because of how long they can last when taken care of. Also, with years of ownership, the most you could pay for is probably a new SIM card or battery.
2. Feature Phones: These phones are generally given to people who receive their first phones (Teenagers). The variety of options you have to choose from can throw your mind into a frenzy. You can have phones with full QWERTY keyboard that have full MMS capabilities and some can even use 3G (HSPA or EVDO) networks. They make a great option for those who wonder what type of phone to give someone for their first phone. You may not want to embarrass them with basic phone or don't feel it's right for them to have a full fledged smart phone. They also can have GPS applications and can run some modern games. But, they can have terrible battery capacities, so if you don't charge your phone. bring an additional battery.
3. Smart Phones. These beast are just about made by any major manufacturer and have full email, GPS, gaming, and full applications. The best feature about owning a smart phone isn't about what comes on the phone, it is what can be downloaded on the phone. Users on Apple's iOS platform can choose from thousands of iPhone specific titles alone. Users on Google's Android platform can choose form thousands of applications specific to phone or tablet. But, with all of this power comes great responsibility. Users on Smart Phones can pay much more and carriers often try to deceive customers with buying what they don't need. Also, smart phone battery capacities can vary, so consider purchasing an additional battery.
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Custom ROM Don'ts
I figured with more people ditching their stock ROM for smoothing that they feel is more tailored to their needs and wants, it's time to start making a guide of don'ts for custom ROMs.
1. Don't flash a ROM without a proper Nan-Droid backup: So, you just installed a custom recovery and you're looking for new ROMs and mods to install? Great! If you are inexperienced with ROMs, don't flash a new anything but a recovery without a full Nan-Droid backup that will get your phone back to where it can be useful. Wondering about storage? Generally, a stock ROM is going to use the most space on a Nan-Droid backup, so I highly recommend downloading a stable version of CyanogenMod or Paranoid-Android so you can restore, should you stumble upon a brick. But, only install applications and contacts and other things on a need basis on this fail safe backup.
2. Don't flash anything that does not have your device's name on it: If you have the HTC One X, you should know that there are two model names for HTC's previous flagship. Those are Evita (Qualcomm Snapdragon) and Endeavor (nVidia Tegra 3). Only flash things like recoveries, kernels, and ROMs only for your device!
3. Don't flash anything just because it's new and flashy: This is not to offend anyone, but as a reminder that just because you see that KitKat nightly, that does not mean it is safe to approach without protection. Nightly/Weekly ROMs can come with the greatest features and tweaks, but this can also cause huge issues. For example, imagine flashing a KitKat nightly and you notice that the APN section keeps crashing and you know that you need the APN field to get data access. Or your GPS does not work after the latest nightly and you may need it because you are unfamiliar with the area. My point is, what ever that reflects is not a diamond.
4. Don't flash a new ROM without a power source: It is not best at all to flash a new ROM while you are at school, yes the changelog may include some appetizing features. However, what if while flashing this new ROM, your device were to lose 35% of it's battery? These are things to think about while flashing new anything.
5. Don't flash anything over a new update: If you just received any update, check to see if your bootloader or any firmware has changed. For example, when the Evita HTC One X received it's 4.1.1 update, it made the touch screen completely useless on custom ROMs. This made the device useless on custom firmware, so if you didn't make a backup and the RUU didn't come out, you were let in the cold.
1. Don't flash a ROM without a proper Nan-Droid backup: So, you just installed a custom recovery and you're looking for new ROMs and mods to install? Great! If you are inexperienced with ROMs, don't flash a new anything but a recovery without a full Nan-Droid backup that will get your phone back to where it can be useful. Wondering about storage? Generally, a stock ROM is going to use the most space on a Nan-Droid backup, so I highly recommend downloading a stable version of CyanogenMod or Paranoid-Android so you can restore, should you stumble upon a brick. But, only install applications and contacts and other things on a need basis on this fail safe backup.
2. Don't flash anything that does not have your device's name on it: If you have the HTC One X, you should know that there are two model names for HTC's previous flagship. Those are Evita (Qualcomm Snapdragon) and Endeavor (nVidia Tegra 3). Only flash things like recoveries, kernels, and ROMs only for your device!
3. Don't flash anything just because it's new and flashy: This is not to offend anyone, but as a reminder that just because you see that KitKat nightly, that does not mean it is safe to approach without protection. Nightly/Weekly ROMs can come with the greatest features and tweaks, but this can also cause huge issues. For example, imagine flashing a KitKat nightly and you notice that the APN section keeps crashing and you know that you need the APN field to get data access. Or your GPS does not work after the latest nightly and you may need it because you are unfamiliar with the area. My point is, what ever that reflects is not a diamond.
4. Don't flash a new ROM without a power source: It is not best at all to flash a new ROM while you are at school, yes the changelog may include some appetizing features. However, what if while flashing this new ROM, your device were to lose 35% of it's battery? These are things to think about while flashing new anything.
5. Don't flash anything over a new update: If you just received any update, check to see if your bootloader or any firmware has changed. For example, when the Evita HTC One X received it's 4.1.1 update, it made the touch screen completely useless on custom ROMs. This made the device useless on custom firmware, so if you didn't make a backup and the RUU didn't come out, you were let in the cold.
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
600 MHZ auction? Leave AT&T and Verizon
While we know that the 600 MHZ auction won't be until 2015, it just feels right to say that the two of the biggest carriers in the US, AT&T and Verizon are both spectrum hogs. Don't believe me? AT&T has AWS spectrum to reach all of it's customers. Verizon had both block C and block A before selling block A to T-Mobile. It's not like T-Mobile can use this spectrum where they bought it, they can't because there is still a lot of T.V signals still being broadcasted there that will interfere with this spectrum.
Right now, it seems as if AT&T and Verizon need to use more of their AWS and WRS (AT&T) spectrum before attempting to purchase any new spectrum. AT&T and Verizon have waited a long time to purchase spectrum to reach all of it's customers, but that is besides the point, while markets such as Washington DC still have capacity issues and it's been years since we've seen noticeable improvements from either carrier. These capacity issues have left me personally to switch to T-Mobile, but I'm not saying that anyone is perfect. Even with T-Mobile, I get very fast LTE with the trade off of having high speed data inside of buildings. But nonetheless, 600 MHZ for AT&T and Verizon will not give any benefits for coverage as their existing spectrum already tackled this issue.
Leave your idea's and comments of who should be in the spectrum auction of 2015 for 600 MHZ.
Right now, it seems as if AT&T and Verizon need to use more of their AWS and WRS (AT&T) spectrum before attempting to purchase any new spectrum. AT&T and Verizon have waited a long time to purchase spectrum to reach all of it's customers, but that is besides the point, while markets such as Washington DC still have capacity issues and it's been years since we've seen noticeable improvements from either carrier. These capacity issues have left me personally to switch to T-Mobile, but I'm not saying that anyone is perfect. Even with T-Mobile, I get very fast LTE with the trade off of having high speed data inside of buildings. But nonetheless, 600 MHZ for AT&T and Verizon will not give any benefits for coverage as their existing spectrum already tackled this issue.
Leave your idea's and comments of who should be in the spectrum auction of 2015 for 600 MHZ.
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