New 3G Phone....Htc Desire?

[thaicbr]

Ok guys. I would like some info.. I need to get a 3G phone. I have seen the HTC Desire going 2nd hand for about 8,000b, Is it any good? any one had one. battery life etc.

Also if any one HAS a 3g phone, HTC Desire ,Samsung Galaxy S etc for sale for about 8,000b let me know (must be as new with box etc)

(i would prefer 850/2100mhz but 900/2100mhz is ok.

[TongueThaied]

I had two pre-3g top-of-the-line HTC smart phones (in succession). Both were full featured and very nice phones. However, both had problems right after the warranty was up (1 year), one the proprietary charging jack stopped working and the other, the screen stopped working. I took both of them to the HTC service center in Bangkok, and the repair cost quoted was prohibitive. HTC seems to have a track record of coming oout with a great product, then the next year it is forgotten, and new models come out. For this reason, I had a very difficult time

finding accessories. They also used proprietary jacks, which complicated the problem. I will never own another HTC product.

In fairness, maybe all this has changed, as I owned my last HTC two years ago.

[poanoi]

Have a look at the water resistant Motorola DEFY in case you are on the bike when a rain storm hit you

It was 10.500 baht including Sygic 10 GPS program & some other sh!t

I have been swimming with it myself

[FarangBuddha]

I have an HTC Desire and love it. It still has one of the best screens around and a fast CPU. I have not had any quality problems as described above and would recommend the brand to anyone.

[JoePai]

My wife has the Desire and I have the Desire HD - both very good reliable phones with good screens

[Tywais]

I also have the Desire and purchased shortly after its release in Thailand. Very good smartphone and never had any problems with it. Memory can be a bit tight but with the ability now to move many apps to SD card less of an issue. No proprietary connector, standard micro USB which most phone companies adapted a couple of years ago to standarize.

[GreenSnapper]

Only buy 3g phones in Thailand which have 850, 900, 2100 MHz. These are necessary if you want to be flexible in this chaotic 3g market.

[janverbeem]

Only buy 3g phones in Thailand which have 850, 900, 2100 MHz. These are necessary if you want to be flexible in this chaotic 3g market.

I think yet there is only 1 that meets those spec and that is the Galaxy s II.

To the OP,I think you can now find a Galaxy S new for around 10.000 Baht if take the time to look around.

[MTH]

Only buy 3g phones in Thailand which have 850, 900, 2100 MHz. These are necessary if you want to be flexible in this chaotic 3g market.

I think yet there is only 1 that meets those spec and that is the Galaxy s II.

To the OP,I think you can now find a Galaxy S new for around 10.000 Baht if take the time to look around.

There are quite a few phones that support even more than those 3 Frequencies.

The Nokia N8, C7, E7 to mention a few, supports HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100.

[GreenSnapper]

There are quite a few phones that support even more than those 3 Frequencies.

The Nokia N8, C7, E7 to mention a few, supports HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100.

Yep, these phones are still top-notch hardware.

But iPhones also support these frequencies, some Blackberries do, and what I have read that some Samsung phones can be hacked to either support 850 or 900 MHz. Not for the inexperienced user, though.

If I'd be in shopping for a new phone these days, I'd either get one of those Nokias for around 10-13K, or the Samsung Galaxy S2. There is little that can compete with them.

[FarangBuddha]

There are quite a few phones that support even more than those 3 Frequencies.

The Nokia N8, C7, E7 to mention a few, supports HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100.

Yep, these phones are still top-notch hardware.

But iPhones also support these frequencies, some Blackberries do, and what I have read that some Samsung phones can be hacked to either support 850 or 900 MHz. Not for the inexperienced user, though.

If I'd be in shopping for a new phone these days, I'd either get one of those Nokias for around 10-13K, or the Samsung Galaxy S2. There is little that can compete with them.

Funny the op is asking specifically about the HTC Desire and we have people flogging Nokia and Samsung phones

[lomatopo]

I think the older HTC Desire is 900/1900/2100 Mhz 3G. I think DTAC was the local launch partner for the newer HTC Desire S, which is 850/1900/2100 Mhz.

http://www.thaimobilecenter.com/spec/HTC_Desire.asp

http://www.thaimobilecenter.com/spec/HTC_Desire_S.asp

I was looking at a used SGS1 (I9000) and found listings (Thai for sale forums) from end-use sellers 9,000 - 9,500, not sure how firm the sellers here are? YSR Shop still has Captivates (AT&T version of the SGS, for 850/1900/2100 Mhz 3G), NIB, for 11,300.

http://www.ysrshop.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=149

[MTH]

There are quite a few phones that support even more than those 3 Frequencies.

The Nokia N8, C7, E7 to mention a few, supports HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100.

Yep, these phones are still top-notch hardware.

But iPhones also support these frequencies, some Blackberries do, and what I have read that some Samsung phones can be hacked to either support 850 or 900 MHz. Not for the inexperienced user, though.

If I'd be in shopping for a new phone these days, I'd either get one of those Nokias for around 10-13K, or the Samsung Galaxy S2. There is little that can compete with them.

Funny the op is asking specifically about the HTC Desire and we have people flogging Nokia and Samsung phones

Really? Did you even bother to read the full post, or did you get stuck at the title?

[GreenSnapper]

The new Nokia 500 goes for 6600 Baht. It is the cheapest Pentaband (all Thai 3G frequencies) on the market. You can use it all over the world, not only here.

C7 goes for 9900. New 701 will be 11700.

These phones are all superior to a used or grey market phone with dubious warranty.

If you want Android, get a Galaxy 2.

[lomatopo]

^^ I've seen the Nokia C7 for 8,300, and the Nokia 500 for 6,200. Make sure you are happy with the displays and general lagginess of the UI. I looked at quite a few Nokia models recently and was very, very disappointed in the displays (small, low resolution) and the UI was very slow, laggy and stuttered. Definitely not something most users would be happy with unless they'd never seen a better display or faster UI. Maybe Nokia can improve these with newer Symbian releases?

The OP did ask about a used Desire, i9000 and other suggestions.

[GreenSnapper]

^^ I've seen the Nokia C7 for 8,300, and the Nokia 500 for 6,200. Make sure you are happy with the displays and general lagginess of the UI. I looked at quite a few Nokia models recently and was very, very disappointed in the displays (small, low resolution) and the UI was very slow, laggy and stuttered. Definitely not something most users would be happy with unless they'd never seen a better display or faster UI. Maybe Nokia can improve these with newer Symbian releases?

Utter nonsense. The UI is not laggy at all. You surely have never touched one. Google is no substitute for experience.

I suggest everybody to check it out yourself. TGfone, in the major shopping malls, has most Nokias on display together with the current Android Phones.

Make sure you know what you look for.

My personal criteria are:

Display size - 4" and more if you like extensive ebook reading and/or browsing.

Otherwise smaller, if you like a handy device.

iPhone is 3.5" and slightly wider than Nokia (C7, N8, 701) which all have 3.5"

They are all fine for phone and quick browsing, to small as a tablet subsitute.

Get Samsung GS2 which has a great big screen. But too bulky for daily use IMHO. Consider the Samsung Note, if you want to go even bigger. Comes out in a few months.

Battery: Android's problems are famous. If you don't mind charging every night, it won't matter. Carry a spare battery just in case.

Otherwise Nokia. I charge mine every 3-5 days. iPhone in between. Depends on your usage pattern, of course.

Camera: Top is still Nokia N8. Better than many real cameras. Otherwise, most phone cameras suck. The GS2/C7 are ok but not great. iPhone camera is not bad too.

3G Frequencies: if you want to be flexible, travel often inside and outside Thailand, you need at least 850/900/2100 MHz. Most Androids, incl. HTC and LG, don't support these frequencies.

So get Nokia or iPhone or Galaxy S2.

USB OTG: You can connect a USB-stick, camera, mouse, keyboard.

Only Nokia or GS2.

Quality of radio/connection: Nokia still top.

Quality of sound: Nokia and iPhone - nothing compares.

Gimmicks: FM transmitter. Very handy when renting a car and you want to play your music over the car speaker. Nokia only.

Routing/GPS: iPhones and Androids have google maps which is acceptable but not great. Need to be online(3G) which can be a problem in Thailand on the road.

Nokia has free offline maps for the whole world. I just used it driving in Europe and it was great. No extra GPS navigation necessary. Maps will be updated regularly. European maps are fantastic detailed, those in Thailand and Malaysia are mediocre, though.

Other things to consider:

Operating System: all are good, iOS limited the "Apple way" which is not necessarily bad. Symbian will end in 2016, but the current user base is still huge and app development goes on. Symbian Anna and Belle are a great step forward and can fully compete with Android/iOS. A matter of taste basically. Android is the best for hacking if this is your aim.

Browser: Symbian browser is crap. Most people use Opera. Supposed to be better with Symbian Belle. Android Browser much better, but many use Opera as well. I personally like Safari (Apple) a lot too.

Games - get Android or iPhone. Huge app store / selection.

Coolness - get iPhone.

Price: Nokias very competitive at around 10K Baht if you consider the whole package. I would not buy a Android in that price range. If you have the dosh, iPhone or GS2 is the way to go.

[frenchfarangjomtien]

Hi, Do you know any way to use an HTC Desire S 850 mhz on AIS network which is 900 mhz ? Apart from burning people who take so stupid decision, what can I do ? Thanks.