Help First cell phone, recommend me something

[EarlyMon]

Dang! Now *I* want a Sony lmao!

Thanks @Slug and @El Presidente - so, @Gobtron now you have the whole story.

 

[Hadron]

I have to admit that it's only been the limited internal storage (16GB) and the small development community (compared to a HTC flagship) which have kept me from buying a Z3 Compact. And with everyone else seeming to constantly creep up in size it's not impossible that I'll be stepping that way at some point (if they keep that series going).

 

[starkraving]

I just can't see the allure of 6" plus screens for a phone but i digress. My friend has a cell repair shop (actually 3 now) in the Vegas valley and he's thrilled with the new screen size...its increased his business substantially. (Fractured screens from pocket pressure, drops from fumbling getting it out from said pocket or purse etc.)

 

[Gobtron]

Ok, I too want a Xperia Z3C now. But is 16gb enough? How much internal storage is enough for apps only? I have no intention of gaming on my phone anyway. I sure will install a 550mb bird identification app. Probably one for plants too. Media files and other stuff will go on the sd card, probably a 32gb or 64gb.

I think this is the best way of using internal/external storage, correct me if i'm wrong. Apps on internal, other files on external.

Also, are the specs of the Z3C overkill if I don't game?

 

[El Presidente]

If you don't game, 16gb is most likely going to be fine. I do game a little and it's never held me back.

I wouldn't say they're overkill, if you're planning to keep the device for a while, there's no harm in going for the best device you can afford.

 

[Gobtron]

I just want to let you know, I ordered the Xperia Z3 Compact D5803 today. It is supposed to be delivered this week.

Can't wait to use it, flash rom and mess around with it.

Thank you guys for helping me through the process. This is really appreciated.

Now, do you have any recommendation for a good ROM?

Anyway I'll post my questions regarding ROMS in another thread, in a more appropriate section of the forum.

 

[Gobtron]

Yeah, I was thinking... What should I do first before starting to use the device everyday?

 

[EarlyMon]

Congratulations!

Yeah, I was thinking... What should I do first before starting to use the device everyday?

My two cents as I understand that this is your first Android -

First, use it without mods and try *every* hardware feature it has.

Make sure that you don't have anything defective - a rushed mod could sink your consumer protections.

Next, avoid the biggest new phone mistake in the world - if something is broken, it's broken - get it replaced. Updates and rooting can't fix broken. People that fail to realize that are the ones spreading bad names for phones in the majority of cases. ("I did everything but my pictures always came out foggy. XYZ makes bad phones, ABC doesn't have that problem." Illogical but common. Don't keep a lemon.) Test everything - GPS, reception, the works.

Finally - I would live with it for a week after that and find out what you like about the stock phone and what you might like to change.

Contrary to the opinion of some rooters, Android is not broken and only root with a custom rom can save it.

You might like the Sony experience - a lot - and just want to keep the rom, root it, and make subtle adjustments.

Or you might want a whole rom replacement, just as you think now.

Flash roms in haste, and suffer the longest - wise words from a friend of mine.

Just my personal opinions.

Congrats again on the new phone!

 

[Gobtron]

Wise words, indeed.

 

[EarlyMon]

Wise words, indeed.

Plus if you stretch it out just a teensy bit, it's like getting a new phone for your new phone.

Looking forward to hearing how much you like it - once up on the learning curve and I think that it's going to really put a smile on your face.

 

[MLSS]

Great thread. Lots of useful information ℹ

 

[Gobtron]

As for SIM cards, what should I do? I want to control as much as possible how invasive the mobile carrier can be in my life, so how does SIM card work? If I want to buy a plan from a mobile carrier, do I really need to buy their SIM card or I can bring my own blank SIM Card? I know that it stores contacts, my phone number, etc, so what happens if I bought a "company X" sim card and I want to move to "company Y"?

What are the pros of having a blank sim card in my situation?

 

[EarlyMon]

The days of storing contact info on a sim card on a smartphone are pretty much gone.

You can store to the cloud or store locally to phone storage.

I'm unaccustomed to carrier unlocked phones, I'll leave the rest of that to others. When I did use unlocked phones overseas I just put in a local sim and moved along.

 

[El Presidente]

Contrary to the opinion of some rooters, Android is not broken and only root with a custom rom can save it.

You might like the Sony experience - a lot - and just want to keep the rom, root it, and make subtle adjustments.

Gobtron, to add to this, I'm a mahoosive advocate of root, but for one reason or another I decided I'd try and live without root/ROM for the remaining couple of months of my contract.

I've been able to work around most of the things I've needed root for in the past, some stuff I can't do/has been annoying, but I only miss it because I've been rooted before. Don't think you need to root out of the box because it is absolutely possible to have a very good Android experience without being rooted.

 

[EarlyMon]

Good news, you're assured full support for the next generation of Android -

http://phandroid.com/2015/06/22/android-m-developer-preview-sony-xperia/

 

[Gobtron]

Hooray! I don't know how cool it is though, since I didn't use previous versions

 

[Slug]

I don't know how cool it is though, since I didn't use previous versions

It's cool because it reaffirms their current practice of supporting devices beyond two years, which is good news for owners.

 

[Hadron]

As for SIM cards, what should I do? I want to control as much as possible how invasive the mobile carrier can be in my life, so how does SIM card work? If I want to buy a plan from a mobile carrier, do I really need to buy their SIM card or I can bring my own blank SIM Card? I know that it stores contacts, my phone number, etc, so what happens if I bought a "company X" sim card and I want to move to "company Y"?

What are the pros of having a blank sim card in my situation?

I don't know what a "your own blank SIM card" is supposed to be, since they are by definition tied to a carrier.

A SIM is a Subscriber Identity Module, i.e. the SIM is the thing that identifies the phone to the network as being linked to your account & phone number. By definition if you have an account with carrier X you need their SIM. And if you want to move from company X to company Y then company Y will give you a new SIM and company X's SIM will be deactivated.

Conversely, if you want to stay with the same account and change handset, remove the SIM from your old handset and pop it in the new one, and your number moves to the new handset.

Disclaimer: everything I've said above is about how GSM networks work (most of the networks in the world). CDMA networks (mainly found in North America) will have a SIM for LTE, but the handset will still need registering with the carrier as well. Since we don't have those where I am I'm less certain of what's involved with them.

 

[Gobtron]

Ahhh ok i get it. I am pretty sure most of the companies are GSM in Canada too.

 

[EarlyMon]

Ahhh ok i get it. I am pretty sure most of the companies are GSM in Canada too.

Soon there will be no CDMA in Canada -

http://www.iphoneincanada.ca/carriers/bell/bell-shut-down-coma-network-2017/

 

[starkraving]

Soon there will be no CDMA in Canada -

http://www.iphoneincanada.ca/carriers/bell/bell-shut-down-coma-network-2017/

I would guess soon there will be no CDMA period. Seems like I remember an article saying Verizon will be moving away from it in 2017 or sometime in the distant future.
http://mobile.extremetech.com/mobil...ma-and-allow-unlocked-lte-phones-too?origref=

 

[EarlyMon]

I would guess soon there will be no CDMA period. Seems like I remember an article saying Verizon will be moving away from it in 2017 or sometime in the distant future.
http://mobile.extremetech.com/mobil...ma-and-allow-unlocked-lte-phones-too?origref=

Kinda sad, it's a far superior technology to GSM.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_CDMA2000_networks

It's also sad that we're going to be stuck with LTE, a GSM technology, rather than WiMAX2.

Oh well.

 

[Gobtron]

Well... I'm still waiting to get my package. It's been at FedEx warehouse in my town since thursday, but I can't match my schedule with theirs to pick it up

 

[Gobtron]

Well, I finally got to use the phone! This is fast and responsponsive, I like it so far! The size is good, and I think it will still be a good size after I put on a good sturdy case. But I think I might have a reception issue with the phone

I am working on it...