Posts by bengoey49 61 publicly visible posts • joined 13 Dec 2015
Original Pixel ( 32 Gb) launched October 2016
Bought November 2016 £500.00
Google has no battery replacement service in the UK, can go to iSmash for battery replacement.
Still works fine but £500 for 3 years update is expensive compared to Apple
Last Security Update for the Original 2016 Pixel October 2019
Use iPhone 11 as my main phone since last year as I need to use Banking Apps
I still use the Pixel for back up
I often go to the far east and bought a Pocophone F1 just after its release in September 2018 to use in the East. Back in the UK I just connect it to wifi and use it for browsing, emails, Telegram, YouTube, WhatsApp etc. It still has regular updates, on Android 10 with security patch 1 September 2020. It is a solid phone with very good battery life. The WiFi and Signal receptions are better than my iPhone 11 ( which has the inferior Intel Modem ).
The Pocophone F2 is much better with better screen but is now expensive , one common problem with moderately expensive Pocos is the limited 4G/LTE Bands covering mainly EU and some countries in the Far East so don't expect it to have good 4G reception in the US.
Even the similarly priced or even cheaper Pixel 4a, iPhone SE 2020, OnePlus Noord have more than double the number of LTE bands. I expect the phones priced £400 -£500 to have more LTE bands coverage than what most if not all the top of the range Xiaomi phones have. For that reason I won't be buying Xiaomi phone if POCO F1 is unusable because it needs a new battery ( 94% at present ). If you don't go to the US and rarely go abroad Xiaomi phones are good value.
Problem with phone reviews are there are no assessments of signal and WIFI reception/performance which are important if you are going to use it as a phone. It is well known that the iPhones with Intel Modem have poor reception compared with other phones with Qualcomm modem. My iPhone 11 wifi reception is poor compared to Pocophone F1 and the old original Google Pixel (2006 phone) in my bedroom which is less than 7m from the router. Often I have to turn off and on the wifi again if I want to use the internet , never have problem with the Poco and old Pixel.
The OS is MIUI. I own the original Pocophone F1 which I use in Asia with local Sim when I am abroad ( in the UK connected to wifi only for emails, WhatsApp etc ). For the price it has been a good phone, still fast with no problems and battery life at 94% after approx two years of light use. It is on MIUI 11.0.9 , security patch 01/06/2020. The drawbacks are :
1. Bloatwares that you cannot uninstall and some you cannot force stop. Recently I keep getting notifications from the Xiaomi music App. I have turned off the notification from the app in the setting but still getting it everyday.
2. Limited LTE Bands , it is ok for EU and some Asian countries but not for the US. I noted even the cheapest iPhones and the £349 Google Pixel 4a ( to be launched in the UK soon) have far more LTE Bands.
I will not buy another Xiaomi phones because of the above if I were to buy an Android phone.
I am surprised that this phone has limited 4G / LTE bands despite its upmarket / expensive price ( compared to the original POCO ). For the next two years at least 4G is still important due to patchy coverage of 5G. This phone won't be good for the US. It has way less LTE / 4G coverage than the cheapest Google Pixel and iPhone SE. The LTE coverage is only good for the EU and parts of Asia. I have the original POCO (still using it as a back up and use in Asia ) and live in the UK but often travel abroad hence my interest in the coverage before buying a phone. Interestingly all the OnePlus phones have extensive LTE coverage, even the old models.
Not a lot better because of the exorbitant price ( considering quality of the hardware compared to iPhones ). Most important is the fact that compared to Apple , Google have poor support as far as back up service is concerned outside the US compared to Apple. For example if you need to change the battery Google does not provide the service in the UK and probably other countries outside the US. My original Pixel ( Costed £500 on Sale in Nov. 2016 ) has no more updates since October 2019. The battery needs replacement but probably is not worth replacing it as I am not sure how good is iSmash to replace the battery after my daughter had bad experience with them.
You are absolutely right. When I was in the process of moving carrier two months ago, my previous carrier tried to persuade me not to move by telling me that they are in the process of launching 5G. I told him that for the past thirteen years there has been no improvement in the poor 4G / LTE signal strength in my area , what is the point of 5G for me and that was the only reason for moving to a different carrier with much better signal. I should have done it years ago.By the way you will probably have better signal reception with Huawei P30 Pro than an iPhone ( Intel Modem ).
I bought a Pocophone F1 shortly after launch , I use it as my primary phone when I am in Asia and as a secondary phone when I am in the UK. It still works perfectly, battery at 95% according to Accubattery App. I downloaded GCam and the pictures are much better.
The problem with all Android phones other than Samsung , if you have problems outside the warranty period and when it is time to replace the battery where do you take them to ? Do you just throw them away ? My Pixel developed a fault after three months , Carphonewarehouse sent it back to Google and they sent me a ' Refurbished' Pixel. My daughter took her iPhone 7 to iSmash for battery replacement and the experience was not good at all , she should have taken it to an Apple Store.
My main driver was the original 5 inch Pixel of 2016 , it needs battery replacement , Google does not provide battery replacement service in the UK, I can take it to iSmash but after my daughter's experience I am not sure. Also no more updates now it is over 3 years old ( last update was October 2019.
So considering those problems I decided to move on to an iPhone after so many years with Android phones. iPhones have at least 5 years of updates and if I want to sell it after three years it still has some value unlike Android phones. The Pocophone F1 and I think F2 also lack most of the necessary LTE / 4G /3G bands to work in the US whereas iPhones have the necessary bands to work in the US, Europe and most of Asia. This only concerns those of us who travel to different countries.
Not only Samsung, Google only updates the Pixel for 3 years. I have the original Pixel from November 2016 , last update was November 2019. No more updates according to Google. So I have moved on to iPhone 11 which will have a longer updates compared to Android phones and although expensive initially, in the long run it works out cheaper compared to Google Pixel Wife still has the S7.
Longer software updates is more important than removable battery in my opinion. My original late 2016 Google Pixel had its last update November 2016, exactly 3 years which I think is too short for an expensive phone. The newly launched Google Pixel 4 /4XL are way too expensive for what they offer, so after considering length of updates, second hand value if I want to sell in the future and battery life I come to the conclusion that although iPhone is expensive in the long run it is cheaper than top of the range Androids. So last week ( after many years with Blackberry and Androids ) I bought an iPhone as my daily driver. I just cannot understand Google.
Bought the original small Google Pixel November 2016 , this year 2020 no more software updates. Last year when I was in the US I bought a used iPhone SE 32GB for $170, it was in like new condition with battery health at 100% , The SE was launched in March 2016 before the Pixel and still has software updates this year at least , may be next year. I use the SE as a back up phone and it is my first iPhone.
After many years using Blackberry and Android phones I have decided late last year that if I buy a new phone it has to be an iPhone as unless you buy the top of the range of iPhones ( Pro and Pro Max ) in the long run it is in fact cheaper despite the fact that in general iPhones are expensive. iphone 11 is probably going to be my next phone or the rumoured SE2. Bye bye Androids.
The LTE bands are unfortunately neglected by most reviewers of mobile phones. This is important if you often go abroad especially to the US and usually for the phones sold in the EU only the top of the range, the most expensive phone have LTE bands covering the US.
One Plus , Google Pixel and iPhones have wide coverage of the LTE Bands on all their phones.
Still have Nokia 640XL, occasionally use it for reading news and YouTube. It was a good operating system. Have been using Android since the demise of Windows Phone. Pixel 4 is too expensive, from past experience quality of the hardware is not going to be as good as Apple . My original Pixel (late 2016)had to be replaced after 3 months ownership. The Pixel still works and is on Android 10 but battery is now bad particularly as it is 2750 mAh to start with. I have got several different Android phones, from my experience Sony , Xiaomi and Samsung are good with updates. LG is terrible. Although I don't like Apple for its policies I guess if I am buying a new phone now I would buy IPhone because in the long run it is more economical ( up to at least 5 years updates and much better second hand value when you sell it ) especially as now I think the camera of the iphone 11 is at least as good as the Pixel and it is only slightly more expensive than the Pixel. Google please listen to your customers, price is too high and battery of the smaller Pixel 4 is too small.
Mid range Xiaomi phones ( Pocophone F1 for example ) as well as well as the cheap Xiaomi phones do not have the LTE Bands for the US. The top end Xiaomi phones ( Xiaomi Mi8, Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 ), I believe have most of the US LTE ( except CDMA ) Bands. Please check with your carrier before you buy.
To be fair you should compare the the price of the Pocophone to Iphone XR 128GB price ( £799 ).
Also to be considered is the fact that Pocophone has very limited LTE bands which covers Europe and most of Asia compared , Iphone XR has wider LTE Bands cover to include the US LTE Bands. I usually leave my Pocophone at home ( UK ) when I go to the US and take my Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact.
There were complaints that the latest Iphones have poor RF Performance / Signal Reception after they were launched last September, I wonder whether it has been sorted out.
I bought a Xiaomi Pocophone F1 a month ago when I was in Asia, it costed £280 for the 6GB/128GB version. It has the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 845, good screen and battery life (4000 MAh ). So far it has been a fantastic phone , camera is very good but not as good as my old original Google Pixel.
The software is good with regular security update as well as software update, only minus are there is no NFC and no LTE Bands for the US. Software / security updates are better than Huawei/ Honor ,Samsung, LG(poorest) etc.
I agree with you, I bought one out of curiosity and for use when I travel and need a second Sim ( mainly for Asia ). You have to accept that it is slow if you are used to mid or top of the range phones but for the price I am ok with it. Reception is good but I wish it covers more LTE / 4G bands . Android GO is good. I don't need fancy Apps, WhatsApp, Telegram and Google Map ( not for Navigation ) are enough for me.
I have similar thought and I wish there is a manufacturer brave enough to produce a mobile phones that have:
Good RF performance
Large capacity removable battery , forget the thinness of the phone, 4000 mAmh would be great
The size of BB Z10 , Sony Xperia X, XZ1 Compact
Good call quality and speakers
Screen brightness that is good enough for when it is bright outside.
No glass back , give me aluminium or good quality plastic like the old Nokia
USB C port for charging and data transfer
Good GPS performance for navigation.
Regular update of the software
Recently I also bought a Samsung phone ( in Indonesia) , an A5 2017. Dual Sim plus micro sd slot . I wonder why most if not all Samsung phones sold in Europe / UK are single sim phones. With the A5 the first sim up to 4G, the second Sim 3G only but that is ok for my purpose when travelling in countries outside UK.
I have been with Three for years because of the ' Feel at Home ' . have used it in Europe ( before the EU Directive June this year ), US, Indonesia, Hong Kong and at present using it in New Zealand .
If i want to call local number I can use my data and WhatsApp or data and Skype . I have less than £10 in my Skype account to call landline and local number that is not on my contact list for WhatsApp or Skype.
This is in contrast to my Blackberry DTek50 which i dropped from knee height position onto concrete floor ( it had BB hard case on it ), the screen was cracked and did not work anymore. The cost of repair quoted by the manufacturer was approximately 135 poundsterling ( could be higher or lower ). You can buy a new one now for 180 poundsterling. It now sits in the drawer, there is no point repairing it. What a waste. I am considering OnePlus, thank you for your information.
Until early last week my Honor 7 ( unlock) was on Security Patch August 2016.
It has just been updated today to Security Patch April 2017. The software is still EMUI 4 ( the latest EMUI 5 ).
For comparison my Sony Xperia X Compact ( Unlock ) has been having regular monthly update now May 2017 Security Patch and several months ago upgraded to Android 7 (Nougat ).
My wife's Blackberry Dtek60 also has regular monthly security patch , now on May 2017 but the Android software is still Android 6 (Marshmellow).
I wish Ofcom would do the same with broadband providers. Last week I cancelled my broadband with BT, after a long sales pitch they agreed and I have to pay £31 ' TERMINATION FEE ' . Why?. I bet most people don't know about termination fee when you leave BT Broadband. I was not in a contract by the way.
My wife has been using the Blackberry DTek60 since last year. I can tell you that Blackberry has been updating the software regularly, right now it is on Marshmellow Android 6.0.1 and the Security Patch is 5 March this year ( compare it with my HONOR 7 - Huawei the Security Patch is still June 2016, I presume Huawei has abandoned it ). I know that SONY is also good with software updates.
I can't find Blackberry keyboard on Playstore. Where did you get it from and how ? I have used Z10 and Passport and missed the excellent Blackberry keyboard on Android phone ( the original Wileyfox swift ) , the swipe up feature and the fact that I can use two languages (English and Indonesian) without having to change from one language to another constantly are very good.
Thank you for the information.
Don't get the Pixel yet. There is a problem with the loudspeaker ( see Google Pixel forums / problems on the internet ). I have the Pixel, two weeks ago the haptic feedback when you touch type makes scratchy noises , not sorted out by the latest update from Google that is supposed to cure the fault ).
The camera is superb , better I think than the iphone 6 Plus , I have no iphone 7 to compare it to .
If I were you I would wait for Pixel 2 which hopefully will be launched later this year and Google would have sorted out the loudspeaker and lens flare issue.
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