Galaxy S4 and close alternatives? & Micro Sim in old G600?

Stormster

Stormster

Stormster

Soldato
Joined
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Stoke-on-Trent
Hi guys, I really don't know much about what's on the market currently, but I can upgrade at the end of the month and may well do as struggling to find a deal good enough to warrant a swap of networks.

I pay £18 with Orange for 600 mins, unlimited texts, numerous magic numbers, 1GB data, tethering support etc and phone insurance.

My contract is up in January but I can upgrade at the end of this month. The timing is good as I've smashed my Lumia 800 last night! (ref this thread)

So I could really do with a decent phone, I don't think it's worth claiming on my phone insurance considering the value of the Lumia 800 now...

I have been eyeing up and following the Nexus 5 thread but none of the other threads on other phones really. However, it looks as though Nexus 5 won't be on Orange's shop any time soon to make upgrading easy.

So, it seems the Galaxy S4 is the main option with an Orange contract renewal. Are there other phones which are similarly spec'd, most certainly no bigger etc? I'd like to try an Android device for sure now.

Or do I buy a cheap crappy phone and wait out to see what new stuff is on the market in the new year?

Overall, S4 vs Nexus 5, which is the better, more polished phone? If we ignore out and out breakneck speed? :D

Secondly, I've fitted my Micro SIM into a micro sim holder/converter and when I fit to my G600 it says insert SIM. Everything is lined up, is it just that the SIM card is too new for that old temp phone?
 
Psycho Sonny said:
Ditch orange, go with 3, giffgaff or tesco rolling or 12 month sim only and buy a nexus 5.

Get insurance with your bank or home insurance.
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This.

If you really want to stay with Orange though, if the N5 is not coming to the network then look at either the Galaxy S4 or HTC One. These two would be my choices if I can't get the N5.
 
Yep, as already mentioned, get a new sim only deal and buy a nexus 5 or s4 outright. Works out much cheaper. Personally id say the s4 is a more polished phone but the n5 is slightly more powerful and is cheaper.
 
IvanDobskey said:
Yep, as already mentioned, get a new sim only deal and buy a nexus 5 or s4 outright. Works out much cheaper. Personally id say the s4 is a more polished phone but the n5 is slightly more powerful and is cheaper.
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I moved from the S4 to the N5 recently, and it's pretty hard to call between them.

Personally the extra speed of the N5 is too much to ignore, and when I went back to try and use the S4 again (to compare), I definitely noticed it to be slower! There's not really anything the N5 loses out on to the S4 though (except obviously the removable battery and MicroSD, but they may/may not be important to someone) apart from the rear speaker. The S4 is definitely louder, although I don't find this to be an issue as I never really use it for anything at full volume, as phone speakers still suck regardless.

So unless you NEED the removal battery, or extra storage, I'd recommend saying some money and going for the N5.
 
I have had a play with a mates n5 and it is a really nice device. I do think the samoled screen on the s4 is slightly superior although this is probably down to personal preference. Battery is definitely better on the s4 from what my mate tells me.
 
IvanDobskey said:
I have had a play with a mates n5 and it is a really nice device. I do think the samoled screen on the s4 is slightly superior although this is probably down to personal preference. Battery is definitely better on the s4 from what my mate tells me.
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I've found the battery on the N5 to be a fair bit better than that of my S4 so far, which is a nice surprise!

And yeah the screen is down to preference. I find the colours more vivid on the S4's AMOLED, but the brightness of the N5 wins me over, and I find text to look nicer and easier to read on it.
 
Sorry to hijack but what insurance do you guys use??

Looking for a cheap good all round insurance for phone, as home contents insurance tends to be lacking a lot, ie not covered if dropped or taken outside house:eek:

asking as ive got a n5 on the way:D
 
shadowcreaper said:
Sorry to hijack but what insurance do you guys use??

Looking for a cheap good all round insurance for phone, as home contents insurance tends to be lacking a lot, ie not covered if dropped or taken outside house:eek:

asking as ive got a n5 on the way:D
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i personally don't use any but many get it free with their premium bank account.

a premium bank account charges you like £5-£10 a month iirc for the privilege of having such an account but phone insurance and travel insurance as well as a host of other things are usually within the package.

if you travel regularly you should know well what the prices of travel insurance are and that for £5-£10 a month getting both phone and travel insurance included is a really good deal.

i would personally go with the bank option than the home insurance option if i was to go for such a service.

personally i have only ever broken 2 phones out of 20+ and the excess charges usually make it pointless anyway unless you have bought a top end overpriced device which doesn't depreciate like a bomb (iPhone which I have never owned).

i prefer just to be more careful with my phones, never lost one or had one stolen either, yet i know people who lose sometimes several in the space of a year or two.
 
The thing with Orange is I pay £18 a month at the mo as above and it seems to be a good deal. However, I am hoping I can sort of blag it as my bill *should* be £36, but I get numerous discounts applied.

I am hoping their website doesn't recognise this and thus offer me something like an S4 for 50 quid or less as an upgrade cost for the phone and then keep my contract as it is. This is good for me as phone insurance is included.

Obviously if this doesn't work out, I would have to look elsewhere. The main reason is that I smashed my Lumia 800 a couple of days ago, my contract ends in January '14 but I can upgrade in 10 days.

Looking on Orange's shop, the main contenders seem to be the S4, HTC One and LG G2. So if we can concentrate on those that would be ace. I hear the N5 is based on the LG G2, so are these phones good? Are all phones mentioned the same kind of size? A couple of friends have S4's, I am happy with that size. Would not like to go bigger.

Will the 3 phones mentioned also have a kit kat OS release?

Thanks for the comments so far, I aim to sit down on Saturday and watch some youtube reviews. I feel a little behind as the S4 has been out for a bit now and I often hold off until a newish release but with the N5 not likely to be on Orange as a contract phone and the fact I have no smartphone at all I need to upgrade asap :)
 
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There is no way that you will keep your discounts and get a brand new top of the range phone on your exact same contract for free or cheap unless it's a friends and family discount and the person still works for Orange and you do the same thing again.

You could always just buy a moto g outright and switch to giffgaff for £10 a month and be on pretty much the same thing you are on now minus the insurance.
 
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I certainly want something I am going to keep and not just a cheaper phone. I do hear what you are saying. I'll obviously have to wait ten days to see if I can do anything with my upgrade options but I don't have 300 quid spare for a Nexus 5 or that's where I'd be heading. As it stands though I'm paying for my contract and using a PAYG sim as this Samsung G600 I am lumbared with won't pick up my usual contract sim lol.

I guess all will be more clear in 10 days but if I can get prepared in case luck is on my side I will do :)
 
I think the LG G2 may be just a bit too big for me. The S4 and Nexus 5 are really pretty massive compared to what I'm used to :/ lol.

I will see if I can wangle an S4 but if not maybe I'll have to put my hand in my pocket for a Nexus 5 :( Didn't wanna spend all out on one really at this time of year!

Any other suggestions or have we got it all covered? :)
 
Stormster said:
I think the LG G2 may be just a bit too big for me. The S4 and Nexus 5 are really pretty massive compared to what I'm used to :/ lol.

I will see if I can wangle an S4 but if not maybe I'll have to put my hand in my pocket for a Nexus 5 :( Didn't wanna spend all out on one really at this time of year!

Any other suggestions or have we got it all covered? :)
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Moto G for £130 then in 4 months when you have £300 spare get a nexus 5 and sell your moto G on ebay or gumtree for pretty much £130.

or go and buy a Moto G today and if they do give you an S4 on contract sell the Moto G in a months time, your going to lose nothing on it in such a short space of time, budget phones which are under £150 tend to depreciate by nothing over 6 months if they are decent like the moto g is.

it basically means you have £130 tied up in a moto G but at least you dont need to use a G600 atm.
 
Personally I would pick the HTC One over the S4 because Sense feels much nicer than Touchwiz. Both these phones should be getting KitKat soon. The LG G2... no idea when that will get updated :p.
 
This is looking good for me. D-Day has arrived. I'm tired right now so not gonna click any buttons until after work but it's looking as though via the website I can choose either of these for free:

Samsung Galaxy S4
LG G2

I can keep my plan completely as it is, if the wording is accurate and no loss of my discounts!

Has anyone ever upgraded via Orange's website? I am that little bit wary of them taking my discounts away once I click submit as I get a significant £22 + VAT discount at the moment. My bill cost without is around £45 inc Phone Insurance, it turns out I'm paying approx 22 quid a month if I don't go over in any way after reading a bill properly. If it's "known good" that I can blag this one, then game on!
 
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