The Technology Thread

[Martin Phillp]

I think most of them now only come with a USB cable and not the plug. The excuse given that it reduces waste, as many people already have a plug and some plug their phone into a USB power socket these days. Rather conveniently by not including the plug it potentially avoids needing different versions for each country. It also almost halves the depth of the box, meaning they can transport more devices in less space, which reduces cost.

It worked out fine, I still use my old Samsung USB-C charger.

[Alexia]

Just upgraded my Xperia 10 mk1 to Xperia 10 mk4. Nice narrow form factor for my tiny hands, all the bells and whistles I need, nice long battery life and 3.5mm jack. Decided not to go mk5 because of a couple of downgrades on the Mk4 model.

Happy enough - it does what I want. Only niggle was seeming lack of a decent flip cover but I've remedied that now.

The 3.5mm jack come in useful with my Marshall Major II headphones which are hybrid bluetooth / wired with a detachable wire for places where Bluetooth is discouraged (like planes).

[Martin Phillp]

I had to upgrade my handset from a Samsung Galaxy A53 5G to the A54 5G after I lost my balance and the phone slammed on a shelf knackering the screen. (Yes, I could have got the screen repaired, but I needed it ASAP as I was porting from O2 to 1p Mobile)

For a mid-range, it helps that the RAM is now 8MB with the updated Exynos processor. It may not be a Samsung S23 Ultra, but it's very snappy in comparison to the A53 with apps downloading and installing fast and very fluid between apps.

[Blewatter]

I still have my A52 5G as a dedicated MP3 player. The battery is still good, even better now it's only used for music. The SD expansion is handy, and I still have the headphone jack. My Pixel 7A has none of that, and I think the A54 has unfortunately gone down the same rout, correct me if I am wrong.

[Dr Lobster*]

I’ve still got an iPhone 11 I purchased in October 2019, and to be fair, it’s still really smooth and responsive, no cracks or major scratches, it’s in generally good shape… problem is battery health is now at 80% and if I’m somewhere where the signal isn’t great, it seems to die very quickly and once the battery level gets to about 30% it chuggs a bit too.

So, I will bite the bullet and get an iPhone 15 Pro (I know the Pro Max is only £100 more but I’m not a fan of big phones)

What’s interesting though, is if you walk into a random phone shop like EE or O2 (my current SIM only provider) and say “I want to buy an iPhone 15 Pro outright, can I have one?” they won’t sell you one without a contract, which is quite interesting.

[tillyoshea]

I’ve still got an iPhone 11 I purchased in October 2019, and to be fair, it’s still really smooth and responsive, no cracks or major scratches, it’s in generally good shape… problem is battery health is now at 80% and if I’m somewhere where the signal isn’t great, it seems to die very quickly and once the battery level gets to about 30% it chuggs a bit too.

Could you not just get the battery replaced? I recently got the one in my iPhone 12 Mini changed at the Apple store. I had assumed it would involve hassle like resetting the phone and having to restore from a backup and re-authenticate Apple Pay cards etc etc etc, but there was none of that at all.

[Martin Phillp]

I still have my A52 5G as a dedicated MP3 player. The battery is still good, even better now it's only used for music. The SD expansion is handy, and I still have the headphone jack. My Pixel 7A has none of that, and I think the A54 has unfortunately gone down the same rout, correct me if I am wrong.

The headphone jack was axed with the A53 5G and continues with the A54 5G. I have a USB-C to 3.5mm jack adaptor to use with the handset if required, but I use Bluetooth headphones.

[thegeek]

I think the reason that I'd be wary of adapters is that USB-C cables aren't robust enough to survive long while being jostled around in your pocket. The little cable I use for my powerbank seems to have given up the ghost after not all that much use.

That said, my wireless earphones have already ended up in a puddle under a parked car, so I guess everything's got its own risks.

What’s interesting though, is if you walk into a random phone shop like EE or O2 (my current SIM only provider) and say “I want to buy an iPhone 15 Pro outright, can I have one?” they won’t sell you one without a contract, which is quite interesting.

That is interesting.

I guess it's their prerogative. If you want it outright then there are plenty of other places who'd be happy to sell you one.

[Martin Phillp]

I bought my current phone in Argos. I didn't want the hassle of the hard sell if I go to a phone shop as I'd already looked at reviews and specs online.

[Dr Lobster*]

Could you not just get the battery replaced? I recently got the one in my iPhone 12 Mini changed at the Apple store. I had assumed it would involve hassle like resetting the phone and having to restore from a backup and re-authenticate Apple Pay cards etc etc etc, but there was none of that at all.

Good question - yes, definitely could, and had my battery hit 80% health this time last year, I would have done it, but the other problem the phone has (which I neglected to mention) is the charging port is intermittent and sometimes randomly stops charging - even with a new cable (which I thought was the problem).

I will say, the iPhone 11 was my first iPhone and is the longest I've ever had a single phone, I used to replace my Samsungs every couple of years. - in part because 5-10 years ago the difference between each handset was a big upgrade, the handsets were still quite affordable and the resale value good, so I never felt like I lost any money doing it.

iPhone 11 is without question the most reliable, and most consistent phone I've had, I've just felt no need to upgrade... but my wife got an iPhone 14 pro max earlier this year, and, whilst fundamentally not that different, the screen is a lot, lot better in bright sunlight and the new bedside mode with the always on display enabling you to have it set up as bedside clock is really cool feature (not worth a grand mind lol) - so sooner rather than later I will need to replace it, and, the new iPhone feels like a decent upgrade this time.

That is interesting.

I guess it's their prerogative. If you want it outright then there are plenty of other places who'd be happy to sell you one.

It is - so the main reason I went to a couple of phone shops was that I was in town, and, there is hardly any stock of the natural titanium iPhone 15 Pro - not in my nearest Apple Store, not in Argos, or John Lewis... so thought I'd have a look in the other most obvious place - a phone shop and just see what it looked like and if there were any deals or freebies to be had (remember the days when they used to bung in a free case???)

The only phone shop which would have sold me one sim free was Three, but they didn't have any in stock anyway - the others wouldn't and O2 - if I purchased it with a contract outright, actually wanted to charge me £70 more than Apple directly, thieving bastards.

Actually. I would say that since the merger between O2 and Virgin, O2 has become a real cowboy company - their contract plans online are just an absolute con - like cost of the airtime plan is massively inflated compared to buying it standalone (in addition to the nasty mid term price rise clause) with an iPhone. Currently paying £8 for 30gb... been paying that for years now jumping between products on uswitch.

[BBC TV Centre]

What’s interesting though, is if you walk into a random phone shop like EE or O2 (my current SIM only provider) and say “I want to buy an iPhone 15 Pro outright, can I have one?” they won’t sell you one without a contract, which is quite interesting.

That is interesting.

I guess it's their prerogative. If you want it outright then there are plenty of other places who'd be happy to sell you one.

Three words, profit and supply/demand.

They'll make more money selling the phone attached to a contract than outright. So it's best to reserve the phones for those that do want to get the expensive contract - and there is the option to sell the extras for more margin.

The SKUs on Apple iphones are often severely restricted in the weeks post launch - whether this is down to actual demand or artificial constraint by Apple to "hype" it a little and make it seem more exclusive, I've never been too sure. I suppose also Apple have too many SKUs and a finite amount of factory capacity to make them all and it is quite hard to predict what variants people will likely go for.

Gone are the days of people would just jump out their seat and line up round the block in all weathers for the latest iphone.

You're probably best off keeping your 11 for just that little longer and then buying once the fuss has all died down. Places will have more free availabiity of the inventory and whilst the prices won't drop, they'll be more likely to sell one outright once they've worked through al of the prospects who do want to purchase one with a contract.