Galaxy grand duos or IQX or other IQ?

[jonnyscot]

Hi, looking to purchase a second cheaper phone mainly for use at my work location in west Africa,, sick and tired of changing out the micro sim on my iPhone between different network locations depending on what works best as,, so I thought it a better idea to buy a cheaper dual sim phone that would cover most of my needs,,,

Important factors in order of importance,, dual sim,,,,, decent cam (with front facing cam also) and decent size touchscreen but pocketable,,, uses mainly for email, web browsing, Skype ,,, don't understand too much about this 850mhz,, 900mhz 2100mhz and so on, but hoping to get something that's compatible with the networks available in west Africa where I mainly work ,, down there I use glo com Nigeria,, airtel and Mtn Nigeria,, back here in Thailand if I use the phone I'll mainly use it via wifi at the house,,

Any recommendations or advice appreciated

Thanks

[sumrit]

I've got an i-mobile IQ XA and my daughter has a Galaxy Grand. The IQ X is superior in every way, except for the screen size. The Grand is 5" against the IQX at 4.7"

Testing with the AnTuTu benchmark the IQ X scored 13,572. I can't remember exactly what the Grand came out at but it was around 6,500.

For 3G internet with both the Grand and the IQ X you must choose either the 900 and 2100mhz version or the 850 and 2100mhz version. However the i-mobile IQ5.3 is virtually the same spec as the IQ X and operates on all 3G frequencies (and is about 3000 baht cheaper).

Whatever phone you decide on check the 3G frequencies on the network you use in both Thailand and Africa to ensure the phone you get is compatible.

Edited July 15, 2013 by sumrit

[Shurup]

A little better Dual SIM Samsung phone now is the Galaxy Mega 5.8", which is 12,900 baht? Comparing Mega and Grand, Mega has an edge in CPU power, RAM size, Screen size and a Battery size. And in a price too obviously.

Can't say much about the IQ phones, heard they are good deal for what they offer, but when it comes to updating the software, Samsung is way ahead of many other phones, if not from manufacturer, there would always be some custom ROMs on XDA Developers web site. Very easy to flash new or custom updates too, can't say that about the IQ phones so the chances are it will stay on the current OS years from now. Not an issue for many people but not for me, I like keeping everything updated and upgraded.

[jonnyscot]

Thanks for the info,, I was very impressed with the stated spec of the front cam and rear cam on the IQX, the phone appears good value for the price, I think 9400 baht at the shop I checked out, pity I didn't see the IQ5.3 there,, I saw the iq6 I think was the one with dragon tail scratch proof glass,, but I guess I'll have to try and get the correct match for the frequency of the mobile operators in Africa,, regarding the Samsung mega I just wonder if that one may be a wee bit too big for slipping in and out of the jeans pocket, but I'll check it out before discounting it

Thanks again

[bangkokstick]

Hello,

Galaxy Mega has the same low screen resolution and DPA as Galaxy Grand and is almost too big.

I also want a second cheaper phone and checked a lot then hate to say that one more time Samsung has the best choice for Dual Sim.

I checked Oppo and Lenovo and finally went back to Samsung. Lenovo S920 is better because of quad core processor but the on top Lenovo software is very bad.

As someone said, Samsung will always be ahead when it concerns updates, even though I think all these updates are ridiculously useless, but its good to be able to install a cyanogen rom:

http://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/Devices#vendor="Oppo","Samsung";

I don't know IQ phones, do they have a quad core processor and dual sim ?

Do they run a pure virgin Android or add a <deleted> interface as HTC Sense on top of Android ?

Thanks.

[bangkokstick]

IQX imobile is clearly better than cheap dual sim samsung as mega and grand, thank you.

But I still wonder about the software, do them come with a shit software layer as HTC sense ?

Thank you again.

[bangkokstick]

IQ9 is the same phone as IQ10 but with bigger screen (5.7), so for almost the same price it seems better:

http://product.i-mobilephone.com/1271_%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%97%E0%B9%8C%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%96%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD-i-mobile-iq-9

[jonnyscot]

I went ahead and purchased an IQXa as my second phone, happy with the phone so far, delighted with the camera quality compared to my iphone4,, I'm currently holidaying in uk with wife and kids, the phone seems to pick up the networks here no probs,, only thing that concerns me is the google pay store when purchasing some apps a statement appears asking for consent for some of those apps to have access to things such as security settings,, personal details,, email accounts,, phone records etc etc,,this also sometimes appears when selecting for download free apps too,

I've never previously used google pay store but is this normal?

[Shurup]

Yes its normal, at least android apps notify you what sort of permissions they require, if any. You have a choice then to install them or look for alternatives with less permissions.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Issangeorge]

I have an I-mobile IQ6 and think it is a great phone at any price. It has the dragon tail glass and it works great, no plastic protector needed, although it comes with one and a spare. My phone has been dropped many times and even thrown, by my one year old, but it still works great and has no scratches. The only complaints I have is the battery life is poor, but I work around that, and there is no compass, but that's not a big deal.

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[jonnyscot]

Oh dear,, just as my praises of the IQX were increasing, looks like it died on me last night,, unsure if its an issue with the battery as it was charging at the time but wasn't yet fully charged, phone back was unusually warm to the touch where the battery compartment is, now it won't power up at all,, oh well, I suppose I'll have to return it to the dealer when I return from my hols in a couple weeks,, pity as I was really getting to like the phone and was using it more than my iPhone 4

[TommyTucker]

Try taking the battery out and putting it back in. Plug the charger back in and leave for a few minutes the battery indicator should start flashing and charging

[jonnyscot]

Thanks tommy,,, that's done the trick,,, tried many times last night to power up to no avail,, now I'm a happy chappy again

Cheers

[sumrit]

Oh dear,, just as my praises of the IQX were increasing, looks like it died on me last night,, unsure if its an issue with the battery as it was charging at the time but wasn't yet fully charged, phone back was unusually warm to the touch where the battery compartment is, now it won't power up at all,, oh well, I suppose I'll have to return it to the dealer when I return from my hols in a couple weeks,, pity as I was really getting to like the phone and was using it more than my iPhone 4

I'm confused by your reply to this because you can't take the battery out of the IQ X. If the phone won't switch on/start press and hold down the start and volume down buttons for a few seconds to reboot the phone

Sent from my i-mobile IQ XA using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[jonnyscot]

Hi Sumrit, the 2 screws at each side of the battery, I tried loosening these, I couldn't get anything small enough into the space between the battery and side of phone to try to see if I could prise it out a bit so I tried loosening the other 2 screws at the bottom side of battery, still couldn't physically get it out, but whatever, something worked as the phone switched back on, I assumed that the battery was sufficiently loosened enough to do the trick,

I tried to reboot before, but everything just seemed to be dead, I didn't mention that in addition to the battery being overly hot to the touch also the charging plug was rather hot, anyway so far no more problems, hopefully it'll stay that way as I'm really getting to like this phone, initially purchased as a second (travel phone), but now it's mostly my iPhone that's sitting idle, (partly due to the IQX having the bigger screen) although sending this from the iPhone whilst IQX sits charging after being used for most of the day

[thaicbr]

One thing with the Media tek chips they have a thermal management app to control overheating. Make sure if using a Ram booster app that you have this thermal management app white listed. Sometimes it's baked into the rom other times not.

Sent from my i-mobile i-STYLE Q6

[Pib]

I went ahead and purchased an IQXa as my second phone, happy with the phone so far, delighted with the camera quality compared to my iphone4,, I'm currently holidaying in uk with wife and kids, the phone seems to pick up the networks here no probs,, only thing that concerns me is the google pay store when purchasing some apps a statement appears asking for consent for some of those apps to have access to things such as security settings,, personal details,, email accounts,, phone records etc etc,,this also sometimes appears when selecting for download free apps too,

I've never previously used google pay store but is this normal?

Yes its normal, at least android apps notify you what sort of permissions they require, if any. You have a choice then to install them or look for alternatives with less permissions.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I'm an Android user and not an Apple user, but it always been my understanding that Apple Apps can access various things also....just the way Apps work. But maybe the Apple Apps privacy notifications are less upfront than Android Apps. This article on Apple and Android Apps gives some insight on permissions requested by Apps. Link

[Shurup]

The linked article is a little old (one year) but you're right, that's just how apps work and android apps are up front telling about their permissions while apple apps don't.

[bangkokstick]

Have you found a small cheap and good battery pack for your phone ?

Dual sim phones kill the battery way too fast.

[Shurup]

Have you found a small cheap and good battery pack for your phone ?

 

Dual sim phones kill the battery way too fast.

 

 

 

I've tried a few options and ended up getting an extra battery with a battery charger (with built in USB charging port) so I always have a fully charged spare battery.

I have tried a battery case and an oversized extended capacity battery that came with its own back cover. The first solution was a good idea but poor design starting with really bright charge indicator LEDs in the front (made it a pain to use the phone in the dark) and ending with the way it was charging the phone. If both batteries (phone and case battery) were depleted and you plug them in, the phone batt would charge 1st then disconnect and charge the case batt, leaving it connected to the charger until unplugged. So by the morning, if your phone is connected to a WiFi or doing something else, its battery would be depleted and case batt full. If I wanted to charge my phone batt from the case, I had to manually push the case charge button... just a bunch of little design flaws, would have worked so much better if case batt stayed connected to the phone all the time until it's depleted and then letting the phone batt run on its own. Case itself was very nice though. There were other models of the case so maybe the others don't suffer from the same design flaws.

Another solution was an extended batt which was x2 the capacity of the original phone batt (and twice the size) and it worked well until th cheap back cover it came with fall apart. Didn't like using iPhone without case also.

Carrying a spare batt works the best as I don't always run out of juice but when I do, it's only one minute to switch the batteries, and it doesn't take much room to carry it with me, it's actually stays in its battery charger all the time when I don't need it.

Hope it helps.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[bangkokstick]

Thanks a lot.

Where to get an extra battery with battery charger ? As you said it's the best solution I prefer just to follow !

[Shurup]

EBay. :-)

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[frankxxxxxxxxxx]

Is iqx imobile still the best imobile phone ?

[FiftyTwo]

IQX imobile is clearly better than cheap dual sim samsung as mega and grand, thank you.

But I still wonder about the software, do them come with a shit software layer as HTC sense ?

Thank you again.

All the I-mobile phones are missing the internal compass.

A disaster if you want to seriously use GPS.

All the Samsungs have the hardware compass.

It was a deal breaker for me.

[sumrit]

IQX imobile is clearly better than cheap dual sim samsung as mega and grand, thank you.

 

But I still wonder about the software, do them come with a shit software layer as HTC sense ?

 

Thank you again.

All the I-mobile phones are missing the internal compass.

A disaster if you want to seriously use GPS.

All the Samsungs have the hardware compass.

It was a deal breaker for me.

Wrong. My IQ X(A) has a compass as a standard pre loaded app, (app is on bottom row)

[FiftyTwo]

IQX imobile is clearly better than cheap dual sim samsung as mega and grand, thank you.

But I still wonder about the software, do them come with a shit software layer as HTC sense ?

Thank you again.

All the I-mobile phones are missing the internal compass.

A disaster if you want to seriously use GPS.

All the Samsungs have the hardware compass.

It was a deal breaker for me.

Wrong. My IQ X(A) has a compass as a standard pre loaded app, (app is on bottom row)

Compass is hardware not software.

An app that calculates a compass bearing generated from two separate GPS readings from a moving device is not the same, vastly inferior and essentially useless for hiking.

I-mobile do not have magnetometers in any of their phones.

Samsung have them in all their phones.

[bangkokstick]

Samsung phones are ridiculous compared to the chinese generic sold for half of the price now...

[thaicbr]

There are so many low cost phones now NOT just I - mobile. Look at Lenovo as well. Some decent phones.

Sent from my phone with the app thingy.

[bangkokstick]

I checked all the Chinese phones as Lenovo and Oppo and they all suxx compared to the imobile iqx.