Not sure if this is the best place but need advice for a dummy.
Background:I have an Alcatel Android dual SIM phone. In fairness, I bought it in a very small town in Australia on a Sunday with it needing to be Android, dual Sim and unlocked so really shouldnt be surprised that it is a total waste of time for anything other than as a basic phone (and not even that good at that :-)
I was playing with Net on weekend and stumbled across Google Translate Phrase Book which looks like the bee's knees (as my Mum would say) but the offline version appears to be only available for Android Phones with lots of memory but seems sufficiently useful for me to take the opportunity to re-assess my phone.
Given all that, this is what I need and I seek any advice as I will actually be in France long enough this trip to probably buy something (though happy to get warnings of buying from UK/US/elsewhere if that makes sense - certainly can't buy it in Angola).
- An android phone that actually does other than just be a phone, with specific applications including Google Translate, possibly Google Maps
- Dual SIM if possible so I can also use it when I get back to Angola
- Lots of storage for photos and with decent camera but more importantly sufficient memory to run Aps which my current phone doesnt do
- Decent screen size for aging eyes/fat fingers but not so big I need a trolley to carry.
- Easy to use
All of this and I am prepared to spend up to $10 on it :-)
Appreciate any suggestions on whats worth buying or advice on any specs I havent thought of that I should take into account. PS if it is massively more sensible to buy from the US, I do have friends here who rotate to the States every other month and could buy for me
Thanks in advance
Steve
My "smartphone" is an old Nokia N95 from 2007 (Symbian), and I'm considering getting a new one. At the moment, I'm looking with great interest at the French brand Wiko, who has Chinese made Android smartphones.
http://fr.wikomobile.com/collection.php?s=Smartphones
As I don't want a big screen, the Cink Slim is current favourite. You find them in most French web shops, like cdiscount.com for example.
Damn,
Finally got to place my order (didnt want to do it too early as I am not going to France till next week). At the last minute in the checkout process they advised that they wont ship to France. Thanks anyway for the help
Steve
Well Steve, I know you can order on the Amazon UK site and get it delivered to France , as I do that.
If it will allow you to register your credit card on the site, and I see no reason why not, then you can get the UK advertise one delivered to France.
Does Amazon accept Paypal or Google Wallet , as another option?
Nick - Thanks again. The write ups on that one you mentioned look surprisingly good and looks like good value for money.
Only issue is that the link is to Amazon.UK and the French equivalent is a fair bit dearer, may not be the same phone and the seller has a very dodgy reputation (apart from that, all's good :-)
I have a Euro credit card linked to my French address but do not have a UK card. Do you know if I can still buy from Amazon UK and if so what their shipping times tend to be. ie is that a practical alternative way to get it
Tends to be if your contract is not in the country you are visiting both parties get a hit. Even if you have a contract in the country where you receive the call, it is worth finding out who pays what with the supplier. It is a mine field , and I always seem to get caught , one way or the other ;-)
Nick,
Thanks very much - I may have to just get used to swapping SIMs in and out as the dual bit is only useful when work tries to contact me whilst I am on holidays in France - may just need to get a proper French number and tell them to use that - although would that mean I was racking up massive roaming charges? I am never sure who pays for those sort of calls, the caller or the callee (if there is such a word)
Well, there are several out there which are extremely good, and I use the Google Nexus 4 , which is a great phone, and will do everything you need, but is not dual sim unfortunately, but then a lot aren't. There is a new version coming imminently, but I doubt it will be dual sim either.
I have come across recently a Chinese phone which has been getting good reviews, which is dual Sim has a large screen and decent specs, if not class beating. They are cheap as well, so it could be a contender for you.
Here is the link on Amazon --> Dual Sim Chinese phone
There are also lots of Chinese no-brand smartphones out there, but do a lot of internet digging to get other peoples reviews, and make sure it supports the Google play store and has at least Android 4.1 or above. You will then be able to access to the maximum number of apps.
Hope this helps your search.