Comparing phones

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The_Unbeliever

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Hi there

I'm a little unclear on what to get for myself next year, so at the moment it's the phone comparision shufti...

A few questions I would like to ask :

How do I know if a phone is 3G compliant, or even HSPDA?

I mean, if you look at the specs (Nokia) on their website, for example, the 6680, their specs is (when comparing two or three phones)

GSM 900/1800/1900 and WCDMA 2100 networks

How the feck am I to sniff out that it's an 3G phone? I know by chance that it's a 3G phone as wife's got this exact same phone.

Does Vodacom supports HSCSD (High-Speed Circuit-Switched Data)?

This time I want to get the right phone as I require Internet access from home, and GPRS work, but is too slow. 3G is better as it is definitely faster.

And I want Nokia. ;)


Thanks in advance

Libs
 
I think WCDMA 2100 is what 3G uses, not sure how you tell the difference between 3G and HSPDA but there's only 1 or 2 HSDPA phones on the market at the moment AFAIK.

Not sure if they support HSCSD but why would you want to use it anyway? Its slower than GPRS and almost certainly more expensive.
 
WCDMA is the technology behind 3G (which is more of a marketing term) and HSDPA, the High Speed upgrade to 3G.

So look for entries like WCDMA, 3G or 2100MHz to know it's a 3G phone.

If the phone also supports HSDPA they'll typically say so as the specs are also WCDMA @ 2100MHz.
 
@ all who replied - thanks, so now I know what to look for.

Feels like Greek to me, seeing the phone and all its specs, but not having any Clue as to what these represent...
 
What you looking for in a phone? Going to buy it or get a contract upgrade?
 
Syndyre said:
What you looking for in a phone? Going to buy it or get a contract upgrade?
Click to expand...

Contract upgrade.

What I'm going to do is to cancel my current contract, and terminate my number, being getting BS from my work giving out my cellphone number to clients.

Then I'm going to get a new phone on contract, with new number, and keep the old phone, get a prepaid SIM, and use the old phone for work-related stuff.

Better that way, can my friends still phone me even though the work's phone is switched off.

Just getting fed up with this nonsense.


I want to be able to access the Internet via my phone (modem) and also do the occasional MXit chat/Opera postwhoring sessions. :D

The Nokia 6680 seems like the ideal phone for me.
 
Last edited:
The Nokia 6680 is obsolete, though a solid phone with later firmware releases. To check out 3G Nokias: www.nokia.co.uk - select "all phones" tab, select "high speed Internet 3G".
 
Ye, me would also not look at the 6680, it is quite old already...
There are better phones than that out these days.
Among the E- and N-Nokia series phones you should be able to get what you want in your price bracket :)
I am also still checking it out (yes, still, I take my time) and it is between the N73 and N80 at the moment.
 
Between the N73 and N80 the N80 is best. Seeing that you want to also use it for internet, the N80 can be forced to use 3G only in its network settings. This is quite useful in areas where the GSM signal is very strong but the 3G not so strong. This way you spare yourself the hassles of the phone constantly hopping between 3G and GSM.

If you're constantly in areas with good 3G reception, forcing 3G saves battery life as the GSM receiver is switched off. I get an extra 3 days out of my 6680 this way. [Of course, forcing GSM only also has the same effect on the battery]
 
ajax said:
Between the N73 and N80 the N80 is best. Seeing that you want to also use it for internet, the N80 can be forced to use 3G only in its network settings. This is quite useful in areas where the GSM signal is very strong but the 3G not so strong. This way you spare yourself the hassles of the phone constantly hopping between 3G and GSM.

If you're constantly in areas with good 3G reception, forcing 3G saves battery life as the GSM receiver is switched off. I get an extra 3 days out of my 6680 this way. [Of course, forcing GSM only also has the same effect on the battery]
Click to expand...
Yep, heard about this on the N73 the other day when Highflyer_GP mentioned it. Not :cool:
Would think a R4K phone would have the option to force the speed. :rolleyes:

This pushed the N80 ahead again. Reason I was favoring the N73 was because of better bettery life and being less bulky and the better camera, albeit without WiFi, which N80 has.

so ye... decisions decisions
 
The_Librarian said:
Hi there

I'm a little unclear on what to get for myself next year, so at the moment it's the phone comparision shufti...

A few questions I would like to ask :

How do I know if a phone is 3G compliant, or even HSPDA?

I mean, if you look at the specs (Nokia) on their website, for example, the 6680, their specs is (when comparing two or three phones)

GSM 900/1800/1900 and WCDMA 2100 networks

How the feck am I to sniff out that it's an 3G phone? I know by chance that it's a 3G phone as wife's got this exact same phone.

Does Vodacom supports HSCSD (High-Speed Circuit-Switched Data)?

This time I want to get the right phone as I require Internet access from home, and GPRS work, but is too slow. 3G is better as it is definitely faster.

And I want Nokia. ;)


Thanks in advance

Libs
Click to expand...

GSM 900/1800/1900 and WCDMA 2100 networks
These are the network bands on which the phones work, eg: they quad band meaning they work in the US.

Does Vodacom supports HSCSD (High-Speed Circuit-Switched Data)?
Thats old stuff now, csd works on a time basis, u get charged per minute when browsing instead of what you download.

The specs should say 3G or UMTS which is the same as 3G.
 
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