Mobile phones & Mobile Broadband data only sims

[Paulatic]

day.

Not cheap, but (IIRC) something like 30GBq of data transferable with your phone as a hotspot, enough to keep a family happy

Not if you’ve gone off for the day on your bike and your phone.

Ive had a Huawei for around 7 yrs now it’s only 3G but if you get 3G then we find it good enough. I carry a couple of sims with it in case of different signal strength areas. Predominantly use a Giffgaff sim with a 'goody bag'. My other sim is an old 'Telecom' now EE allows buying data for as little as a days use.

The O2 signal is usually stronger than the EE on places we stay at.

[mercalia]

on another matter how much memory do you need in a smartphone? The Nokia Lumia 635 has only 512mb standard memory with 8gb store. The few apps I have downloaded seem to be never more than 100mb more like 10-30mb ie very small. What has taken nearly 1gb of the store is Microsofts maps for the whole of the Uk( similar to google street maps, but dont need a online connection). I must say I do like this little Windows phone very easy to use and setup and seems reliable & responsive, esp with wifi ( unlike some Android ones I hear which drop the connection frequently )

[mjr]

The few apps I have downloaded seem to be never more than 100mb more like 10-30mb ie very small.

Careful how you measure that: download size is smaller than installed size, which is itself smaller than the size it takes up in memory, which is smaller than it uses while running, which is smaller than it takes up for its storage. For example, OsmAnd~ was about 50Mb download, 70Mb installed, 85Mb in memory, 87Mb in use and then 450Mb of storage.

esp with wifi ( unlike some Android ones I hear which drop the connection frequently )

Never had that in 7ish years of Android devices from various makers, but I've rarely heard good things about Windows phones and I don't think you've had yours long.

[mercalia]

The few apps I have downloaded seem to be never more than 100mb more like 10-30mb ie very small.

Careful how you measure that: download size is smaller than installed size, which is itself smaller than the size it takes up in memory, which is smaller than it uses while running, which is smaller than it takes up for its storage. For example, OsmAnd~ was about 50Mb download, 70Mb installed, 85Mb in memory, 87Mb in use and then 450Mb of storage.

esp with wifi ( unlike some Android ones I hear which drop the connection frequently )

Never had that in 7ish years of Android devices from various makers, but I've rarely heard good things about Windows phones and I don't think you've had yours long.

Well you have now

well I was thinking of getting a Moto E4, one of the few Android phones you can still replace the battery But the version it has - Android 7.1.( Nougat) seems poor at maintaining wifi or even gps connections- do a google about Android Nougat wifi problems - and not just for that particular model many that use the same version

well I have proabably tried it enough - on the way back from Northamampton using the wifi aboard the train, a lady not far away was complaining her Adroid phone was keeping losing its connection. Another guy not far away had to stand in the aisle rather than sit down to get reception - all the way from Northampton to London, I dont think he was using a Windows phone. I had an unbroken connection all the way.

The only criticism is there is no way to store Microsoft maps on an sd - thats 1gb of main memory taken up. And of course windows 8.1 phones are now not supported by Microsoft last updates last year. But there are a few worthwile apps in the store. Any way not bad for £15 in pristine condition

[mjr]

well I was thinking of getting a Moto E4, one of the few Android phones you can still replace the battery

Oddly, the Moto E4s I can see don't have replaceable batteries, although it looks like there's been more than one model with that name ( ). It seems like the major makers (Moto, Samsung, Sony, Huawei) rarely have replaceable batteries now, while smaller competitors (LG maybe the biggest?) do.

But the whole Lumia range was discontinued last year and the 635 model 18 months before that, so I suspect spares availability will be tailing off anyway unless it uses a common size.

But the version it has - Android 7.1.( Nougat) seems poor at maintaining wifi or even gps connections- do a google about Android Nougat wifi problems - and not just for that particular model many that use the same version

I've a Nougat device and it works fine. I don't google, but I can find plenty of search results - but searching for "Windows Phone 8.1 wifi problems" also returns plenty of results - not as many as for Android Nougat but it's a much less common system so that's understandable.

Wifi is particularly annoying to debug, more so than most networking, but the tools for doing so on Android are better than most. Train wifi tends to be rather overloaded and brittle these days and it seems a bit random who gets stable connections - but I'm glad it worked for you once.

[mercalia]

well I was thinking of getting a Moto E4, one of the few Android phones you can still replace the battery

Oddly, the Moto E4s I can see don't have replaceable batteries, although it looks like there's been more than one model with that name ( ). It seems like the major makers (Moto, Samsung, Sony, Huawei) rarely have replaceable batteries now, while smaller competitors (LG maybe the biggest?) do.

But the whole Lumia range was discontinued last year and the 635 model 18 months before that, so I suspect spares availability will be tailing off anyway unless it uses a common size.

But the version it has - Android 7.1.( Nougat) seems poor at maintaining wifi or even gps connections- do a google about Android Nougat wifi problems - and not just for that particular model many that use the same version

I've a Nougat device and it works fine. I don't google, but I can find plenty of search results - but searching for "Windows Phone 8.1 wifi problems" also returns plenty of results - not as many as for Android Nougat but it's a much less common system so that's understandable.

Wifi is particularly annoying to debug, more so than most networking, but the tools for doing so on Android are better than most. Train wifi tends to be rather overloaded and brittle these days and it seems a bit random who gets stable connections - but I'm glad it worked for you once.

this Moto E4. I would have preferred to get this as they are cheap and seem well speced. Any way I only paid £15 for mine.

https://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_moto_e4-8721.php

Argos have them cheap now £70!!!
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/7391970

removing & replacing the E4 battery ( take the back off then pull the battery out )
https://www.verizonwireless.com/support/knowledge-base-212408/

there is an E4+ that you cannt easily replace the battery - if you want to you have to undo like 10+ screws inside

regarding spares ( batterys )I will probably get a few then put them inthe fridge - any temp down to 0C is ok for lithium batterys. I bought one recently and tested it and it would seem to give the full 25 days standby. I can still get batterys for my Loox pda that goes back to 2006 so will probably be able to get batterys for some time yet

[mjr]

Argos have them cheap now £70!!!
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/7391970

there is an E4+ that you cannt easily replace the battery - if you want to you have to undo like 10+ screws inside

Except that Argos claims that phone is the xt1771 which is the model number for the international E4+, while the specifications look more like the E4, so $DEITY knows which one they're actually selling!

Moto are devils for reusing model names. They're the Schwalbe Marathon of phones, possibly even worse than Samsung who at least seem to update the end number or stick a suffix on it. But hey, how many Nokia Lumia were there?

[mercalia]

Argos have them cheap now £70!!!
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/7391970

there is an E4+ that you cannt easily replace the battery - if you want to you have to undo like 10+ screws inside

Except that Argos claims that phone is the xt1771 which is the model number for the international E4+, while the specifications look more like the E4, so $DEITY knows which one they're actually selling!

Moto are devils for reusing model names. They're the Schwalbe Marathon of phones, possibly even worse than Samsung who at least seem to update the end number or stick a suffix on it. But hey, how many Nokia Lumia were there?

when I google XT1771 I get the Moto E4 plus - the bigger one with the bigger battery that cost quite a bit more. So I suspect a mistake on Argos part

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8471167
same code but E4+ and £139 or so

[mercalia]

as a recent buyer of a now obsolete Windows 8.1 phone - a Lumia 635 ( nice phone and some useful apps some to do with bus/train times in London and around and a nice cheap google maps interface app that is much smoother/better than thru a browser) to be exact @ just £19 incl postage in mint condition from Ebay I take heart from this bit of research about Android -

"The researchers found that more than 88% of free apps on Google Play shared information with firms owned by Alphabet."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-45952466

seems like Google is data trawling from most of the free apps. I nearly bought a Moto E4 but was put off by the many complaints that wifi and gps was unreliable

Google is not a fit company to control a dominant mobile os? would you buy a laptop/desk top pc that got its updates ( if you are lucky) from either your isp or the pc/laptop maker? Thats how it is with Android. You are lucky if your phone is supported for a couple of years ( the phone maker wants you to buy a new one )?

( fortunately Windows phone has a rep for being the most secure design and now its obsolete hackers cant be bothered )

[mercalia]

so Apple is power throttling its latest phones due to batteries wearing out. This is what happens when you make phones with batteries that cant be replaced due the cases being stuck together with glue that you need a hair dryer to melt to disasemble? That design philosophy is now coming home to roast

"Apple has previously stated that a "normal battery should retain up to 80 percent of its original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles".

After that, the battery on all iPhone models can be degraded, which could be as soon as 18 months after initial use if you've run the phone through about 90 charges over a quarter year. "

https://www.zdnet.com/article/iphone-x-gets-speed-throttling-months-after-apple-said-it-probably-doesnt-need-it/?ftag=TRE3e6936e&bhid=24962977509660577768954919538126

[gbnz]

Well, thought I may as well add to the thread!

I've accessed mobile broadband via a dongle for the past ten years, unreliable connections in my current area have twice led to me upgrading the dongle (NB. I merely wished to replace the dongle on the basis that poor connections could be due to issues with an elderly dongle, but with my operator(3) have had no choice but to swap over to a mobile wi-fi unit (I.e. Mobile broadband, but connects via wi-fi to the lap top, rather than plugging into a USB socket).

Both trials have resulted in a far better connection both in terms of speed and reliability, but with a huge increase in data use. My average 2.8GB used pcm, has immediately increased to 2.0GB every twenty minutes (NB. I calculated my monthly cost would rise from £7.00pcm to £456.00pcm).

Anyone experienced this? And if so, is the huge rise in data useage due to the new device automatically downloading loads of "company/network/security data" while "setting itself up", or do the newer devices simply use vastly greater quantities of data?

[mercalia]

Well, thought I may as well add to the thread!

I've accessed mobile broadband via a dongle for the past ten years, unreliable connections in my current area have twice led to me upgrading the dongle (NB. I merely wished to replace the dongle on the basis that poor connections could be due to issues with an elderly dongle, but with my operator(3) have had no choice but to swap over to a mobile wi-fi unit (I.e. Mobile broadband, but connects via wi-fi to the lap top, rather than plugging into a USB socket).

Both trials have resulted in a far better connection both in terms of speed and reliability, but with a huge increase in data use. My average 2.8GB used pcm, has immediately increased to 2.0GB every twenty minutes (NB. I calculated my monthly cost would rise from £7.00pcm to £456.00pcm).

Anyone experienced this? And if so, is the huge rise in data useage due to the new device automatically downloading loads of "company/network/security data" while "setting itself up", or do the newer devices simply use vastly greater quantities of data?

2gb every 20 minutes is absurd if its all the time. I have a THREE 4G data sim in one of my Windows phone and for simple pages like this forum or the BBC News website the usage is very low. I have been trying to use up my data sim as the 12 months expires middle of September. Very hard I am finding it to do so.

re your usage is some one else using your connection? What sort of web pages do you go to? You down loading videos? You using it to update eg Windows 10?

[gbnz]

2gb every 20 minutes is absurd if its all the time. I have a THREE 4G data sim in one of my Windows phone and for simple pages like this forum or the BBC News website the usage is very low. I have been trying to use up my data sim as the 12 months expires middle of September. Very hard I am finding it to do so.

re your usage is some one else using your connection? What sort of web pages do you go to? You down loading videos? You using it to update eg Windows 10?

With a dongle data usage my internet connection averages 2.7GB per month.

In contrast the wi fi mobile broadband connection data usage connecting to the same pages (ctc forum/guardian/email - NB. I don't use a mobile connection for any sort of download, watching videos, listening to music or whatever) is in the region of 2GB every twenty minutes - the first time I tried it, took it back to 3 mobile and obtained a full refund & credit. This time I'll be taking it back to 3 mobile and obtaining a refund - having kept a close eye on how much data the connection was using and reverted to using the dongle after twenty minutes online.

I was just wondering if anyone else has used a wi fi mobile broadband connection and experienced the same

[mercalia]

2gb every 20 minutes is absurd if its all the time. I have a THREE 4G data sim in one of my Windows phone and for simple pages like this forum or the BBC News website the usage is very low. I have been trying to use up my data sim as the 12 months expires middle of September. Very hard I am finding it to do so.

re your usage is some one else using your connection? What sort of web pages do you go to? You down loading videos? You using it to update eg Windows 10?

With a dongle data usage my internet connection averages 2.7GB per month.

In contrast the wi fi mobile broadband connection data usage connecting to the same pages (ctc forum/guardian/email - NB. I don't use a mobile connection for any sort of download, watching videos, listening to music or whatever) is in the region of 2GB every twenty minutes - the first time I tried it, took it back to 3 mobile and obtained a full refund & credit. This time I'll be taking it back to 3 mobile and obtaining a refund - having kept a close eye on how much data the connection was using and reverted to using the dongle after twenty minutes online.

I was just wondering if anyone else has used a wi fi mobile broadband connection and experienced the same

The closest thing to your situation I have is that one of my notebooks has a sim slot for mobile internet. My experience is the same as for my phone.

Some thing is clearly wrong with your device, unless as I say you have eg a PC with Windows 10 and it decided to update its self over your connection thinking it was normal broadband wifi rather than a 4G mobile connection? In which case you would have to set up the connection in the pc as a metered connection rather than unlimited broadband. This could arise as I assume you are connecting to this device using a normal wifi connection rather than 4G radio and your pc/laptop dont know how that device is connecting to the internet whether it is landline/fibre broadband or 4G radio, assuming it is normal unmeterd broadband that you get thru a telephone line. Still 2gb every 20 minutes excessive unless updating your operating system. just guess.

Windows 10 for instance will only update its self with essential security updates over 4G radio rather than the much larger version updates it will do automatically over normal broadband