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ZTE Blade/Orange San Fran

OFI

Android Enthusiast
Apr 17, 2010
580
53
No talk on this phone yet?

orange_san_francisco.jpg


This thing is stupidly cheap for the spec. I can see people buying them up just for little experiments.

Paul @ MoDaCo has been playing with his for a week and already has it unlocked and rooted: I just picked up my San Francisco! Findings as I go in here... - Android @ MoDaCo

For
 
I got one for my daughter. Great phone for the money. It is no Desire, but well less than half its price, it will never be. If you not obsessed with it being super smooth in operation, i would highly recommend this android to anyone. The Price is its biggest selling point (not to mention the specifications only let down by a less than optimal cpu) and only seems to be on the shelves at Orange..eek !
 
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Interesting as well the Orange San Franciso is actually a specially built ZTE phone for Orange, so it remains to be seen end of this year or likley next year if that version will be available as cheaply on other networks or if it's still good value unlocked.

ZTE could be one to watch next year, maybe the HTC boys should be looking over their shoulder?

Might have a look at a demo soon enough.
 
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I got one of these for a friend who wanted a touch phone. I've got an HTC Desire and a Galaxy S already.

Although I won't be swapping my Galaxy S (or HTC Desire) for this, I was amazed at how good this phone is for the price. The screen quality is fantastic; the music sound quality with a decent headset is excellent (using PowerAmp app- and not the supplied hands free headset)- and even the speaker is pretty reasonable (and loud) for podcasts and music. And I didn't notice any particular difference with call quality compared to the Desire (but it's a different network).

Battery life is better than my HTC Desire (which sadly has appalling battery life). And, considering the price- a 4th to a 5th of the price of a sim free Desire or Galaxy (give or take) this phone is absolutely amazing. I had no problems using wifi at home with this (I don't tend to use wifi out and about- but use 3g). I changed the background wall paper and shifted the Orange apps and various widgets around and this now looks very good (compared to the out of the box set up which is a bit dull). It's not as snappy moving between the screens as the HTC Desire but it's more than good enough.

And the material that the handset is made of feels good in the hand- it's less slippery than the HTC Desire.

The biggest downside I found is that the Orange networks data tariffs/allowances are rather miserly compared (for example) to t-mobile (even though Orange can now use T-Mobile's network and vice versa, the phone isn't yet available on T-Mobile in the UK).

For any one wanting to get started with Android- or even someone wanting a decent, inexpensive Android phone this is hard to beat. (The camera isn't as good as the HTC Desire, and the video recording not as good as the Galaxy S- but for the price it is passable).
 
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The biggest downside I found is that the Orange networks data tariffs/allowances are rather miserly.

Totally agree ... thats why im using a giff gaff sim in mine with unlimited free data


You can get the code to unlock your San Francisco for free here:

http://www.nextgenserver.com/calculator/

Put your IMEI in, select ZTE, leave the default model as ZTE BLUEBELT, pop in the not-a-robot code. In the box above the IMEI you'll receive your code

UPDATE: The ZTE Orange San Francisco option is now available under models


Nice :cool:
 
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You can get the clock (called 'Fancy Widget') by scanning this,


View attachment 12257

Using a barcode scanner on the phone (I used 'ShopSavvy Barcode Scanner') it'll take you to the widget, there will be a message warning you that the widget has been discontinued due to HTC's complaints but it still lets you download and install it.

The update seems to have screwed this widget?

Weather not working, seems it needs a fix.
 
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thanks for pointing out to the free unlock clock.

just one question: once got the code, what are the steps/procedures to unlock the orange san francisco? TQ.

  1. Insert an Alternative Network SIM card into your Orange San Francisco. By alternative network we mean a network other than the network from which the phone originated.
  2. Switch on your Orange San Francisco. The phone displays 'Enter Network Key', 'Enter NP Code', 'Sim Network Unlock Pin' or similar.
  3. Enter the supplied code carefully then press 'OK', 'Accept' or Unlock.
  4. Re-start the phone. The phone should now operate with an alternative network SIM card and you do not need to re-enter the supplied code or any further codes.
 
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I had a ZTE Racer with the One plan from Three in the UK.

I bought an Orange San Francisco basic-pay-as-you-go and had it unlocked. I'm now using my Three sim with the san francisco. It works great in every way but one.

That is, there's no data detection.

I've selected that my network is 3UK, but without a WIFI connection, I can't browse the internet or access my Gmail.

Still trying to figure this out.....
 
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I had a ZTE Racer with the One plan from Three in the UK.

I bought an Orange San Francisco basic-pay-as-you-go and had it unlocked. I'm now using my Three sim with the san francisco. It works great in every way but one.

That is, there's no data detection.

I've selected that my network is 3UK, but without a WIFI connection, I can't browse the internet or access my Gmail.

Still trying to figure this out.....


First make sure Data Connection is checked under the Mobile network settings...

Settings>Wireless & networks>Mobile Networks

Then you need to make sure that the APN settings are correct for Three...

Settings>Wireless & networks>Mobile Networks>Access Point Names

Check you have the 3 APN selected, and the correct settings are below:


Name: 3
APN: three.co.uk
Proxy: <not set>
Port: <not set>
Username: <not set>
Password: <not set>
Server: <not set>
MMSC: http://mms.um.three.co.uk:10021/mmsc
MMS PROXY: mms.three.co.uk
MMS PORT: 8799
MMC: 234
MNC: 20
Authentication type: <not set>
APN type: default


If you dont have the 3 APN there to select under Access Point Names, press the menu key and select New APN, now enter the settings above and save them.

Cheers
 
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First make sure Data Connection is checked under the Mobile network settings...

Settings>Wireless & networks>Mobile Networks

Then you need to make sure that the APN settings are correct for Three...

Settings>Wireless & networks>Mobile Networks>Access Point Names

Check you have the 3 APN selected, and the correct settings are below:


Name: 3
APN: three.co.uk
Proxy: <not set>
Port: <not set>
Username: <not set>
Password: <not set>
Server: <not set>
MMSC: http://mms.um.three.co.uk:10021/mmsc
MMS PROXY: mms.three.co.uk
MMS PORT: 8799
MMC: 234
MNC: 20
Authentication type: <not set>
APN type: default


If you dont have the 3 APN there to select under Access Point Names, press the menu key and select New APN, now enter the settings above and save them.

Cheers

This worked perfectly! Especially after I restarted my phone after doing this. Thanks so much!
 
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I just realised that Orange has removed Google Talk. Something I sorely miss.

I read on another forum that one could "flash" your "MCR". I'm not that technically minded, but this got me thinking.

Would it be possible to install a vanilla android 2.2 version on my san francisco and make it like the Nexus? All android updates come directly from Google?

Is this possible? Is it safe? Does it compromise the phones security at all?

I've already unlocked it, am using another network provider and don't care about support from Orange. (Maybe hardware support from ZTE, if they even do that.)

So what do you guys think?
 
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