forums → Mobile

Sony Experia X10 mini/W8 - Any good?

Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 09:39

Hi, I was waiting for the Huawei G330 to be released soon, but I need a phone by the end of this month and I am not holding my breath for the G330 to be released this month.

So Im just browsing ebay and mobicity and saw the Sony Experia X10 mini and the W8. Are these good basic android phones? I'm with Optus and need wifi and 3G enabled.

If these are not a good phone, can you suggest anything else for a bdget of NO more than $200,-?

Cheers!

Comments

  •  
    issh on 02/11/2012 - 09:45

    Xperia p or Xperia U

    •  
      scubacoles on 02/11/2012 - 09:52

      Yeah, these are current gen…
      The x10 mini is 2 years old (and was not well received) and the W8 is also pretty low end.

    •  
      zelda707 on 02/11/2012 - 09:59

      The P way over $200 and you'll struggle to find a unlocked U for under $200

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 09:56

    Hmmmmm thanks for that. Wwhat about the HTC wildfire S and explorer?

  • +1 vote
    zelda707 on 02/11/2012 - 09:57

    The Sony Xperia Sola is available for $199 and can be unlocked from Vodafone for free

  • +2 votes
    scubacoles on 02/11/2012 - 09:59

    Looks like this deal is still live
    https://www.jbhifionline.com.au/?P=672601&T=11036
    $208 delivered Motorola Atrix
    1Gb RAm
    Dual core 1GHz CPU
    16Gb SD plus microSD expansion slot.
    Compatible with all Australian 3G networks

    Easily the best value hardware available from OzBargain's "back catalogue" at the moment.

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 10:01

    Experia P and U are both above 200 dollars and this is my absolute maximum.

    What about the experia ray and tipo? It will be used as a backup as I do have an iphone gen 2 that works just fine still.

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 10:05

    How can the sola be unlocked than?

    Would the sola be better than the Motorola Atrix? (I saw the Atrix v2 as well, but a bit too dear with the postage from top buy).

    •  
      zelda707 on 02/11/2012 - 10:07

      I unlocked my Sola for free on the voda website

      The Atrix is a high end model but its old and won't be getting any more updates

      The Sola is new mid range model with newer software

      •  
        scubacoles on 02/11/2012 - 10:26

        Atrix has 1Gb RAM vs Sola's 512Mb

        512Mb RAM is likely to become a limitation for Android 5.
        If you're happy to root and use a custom ROM, the Atrix will have far better software support for far longer as a result of its 1Gb RAM.

        Apart from that, the Sola looks pretty good with an official ICS ROM "planned".

        •  
          zelda707 on 02/11/2012 - 10:29

          I wasn't planning to root so i chose the Sola and i like the design better. The Atrix is only officially supported up to 2.3. The Sola has a chance of getting 4.1 or even 4.2

        •  
          scubacoles on 02/11/2012 - 10:59

          I wouldn't bet on getting anything past ICS without relying on the Hacking community.
          My Original Galaxy S is rocking Jelly Bean beautifully.
          Samsung wouldn't support it past Gingerbread blaming the 512Mb RAM being too small for their Touchwiz User Interface.
          I have no idea what Sony's user Interface is called these days, let alone how easily they will be able to squish it into 512Mb RAM, but rest assured they'll use the hardware limitation as a lame excuse to stop support.

        •  
          zelda707 on 02/11/2012 - 11:00

          r u talking about the atrix or sola?

          Apparently Sony's Timescape UI is very resource efficient compared to TouchWiz and Sense

        •  
          scubacoles on 02/11/2012 - 11:03

          The Sola.
          I realise the Atrix is dead in the water officially, but the hardware can easily cope with 4.2 and most likely 5 when it comes, so it actually has a better chance at long term software support..thanks to the community.
          I also realise that hacking is not for everyone, so I support the nomination of the Sola for the OP.

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 10:16

    Im looking at the vodafone site and it says it costs $25,- to unlock online :o\

    http://support.vodafone.com.au/articles/FAQ/Network-Lock

    •  
      zelda707 on 02/11/2012 - 10:27

      its meant to cost $75. When you get the phone, put the IMEI from the box into the voda website and it will generate a code for free. Then put a non-voda sim card in and put in the unlock code.

    •  
      scubacoles on 02/11/2012 - 10:27

      It's not uncommon for Vodafone unlock to be free even if the website says it will cost.

      •  
        plmko on 02/11/2012 - 10:37

        Yes, I unlocked my Samsung S2 within 2 months of my 24months plan for free on their website.

        It's as simple as following prompts and putting in your IMEI.

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 15:14

    Thanks everyone. Sola looks like it will be. And yes, I am into hacking computers, but not into phones as I dont use them often enough ;)

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 15:17

    Are the Samsung Galaxy Ace's any good? My samsung galaxy tablet and galaxy S phones were utter cr@p and the S1 died just out of warranty and the tab is going the same way :o\

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 19:35

    Galaxy S is a lot dearer than the Ace, so I wouldn't expect the Ace to be a lot faster or any better at all. Also the Galaxy S is no longer available. Can't find one anywhere. Even the S22 is becoming hard to find :o(

  •  
    Shout It Out on 02/11/2012 - 19:40

    So Sola is still the best bet than? If the Sola breaks down and I have unlocked the phone, does Vodafone still cover the warranty?

    • +1 vote
      scrimshaw on 03/11/2012 - 01:24

      Unlocking the phone doesn't void the warranty, but flashing your own firmware might.

      That's why you keep ROM backups, so you can revert to the original ROM when required!

    •  
      scubacoles on 05/11/2012 - 10:45

      It's such an illogical argument that unlocking/flashing your phone is a major issue for warranty claims.
      In the unlikely event that a phone is so buggered due to a dodgy ROM flashing that you can't recover it yourself, the service centre is just as unlikely to be able to resurrect it to a state that they can tell that you've flashed it.

      •  
        Shout It Out on 05/11/2012 - 15:22

        TBH I don't even know what ROM flashing is, so I'm sure I'll be pretty safe ;o)

  • Login or Register to Join The Conversation