Do I need 4G?

[TheCruncher]

I have to decide on a replacement phone for the little boy ( 11yr).

I'm going between a 5.5" which has 4G and a 5" which has only 3G.The price difference is only 1000 Baht, but it's of course 1000 Baht wasted if does extra futures are no use for him, and taking in consideration that maybe a boy of his age will need a new phone next year anyway.

I will add that he doesn't have the attitude like many that he NEED an Iphone to feel comfortable, and also that he already has a tablet and PC to play games.

So since it is for a young boy I'm undecided which is the best choice for him.

Will 5.5" be too big for him to carry around everywhere, and will 5" be better, or is this just a prejudice from me? Also I'm used to a Note 3 so everything smaller than 5.5" that looks small to me.

Will he need 4G or will 3G be more than sufficient for him?

[lopburi3]

How could we even ask - 4G is new so we must need it.

Am sure he will outgrow phone before 3g becomes an issue. Remember that 1000 baht might be more if phone is stolen - having the newest/greatest is not allows good and also puts pressure on child that we probably should not. As you say it is not an issue for him (more power to him) believe you should help and lessen his needs to protect with something he does not really want.

Disclaimer - still using basic Nokia as hate battery charging and prefer to watch people: will likely have to change within a year or so as we are forced into 3G.

[WhizBang]

To me, anything over 5" is starting to get too large. As for 4G, why? Personally, I have had nothing but trouble with my phone since AIS turned on 4G. AIS told me to switch the prefered network to 3G. Which I did, and most issues disappeared.

If your son does not need the fastest possible internet, then why go for 4G. Phones don't last long anyway, so you will probably be replacing it in another year or two anyway, and that might be a better time to consider 5G.

[KhunBENQ]

3G vs 4G is no important criteria.

Advertised speeds are pure theory/marketing numbers and of no need/relevance for the typical smartphone use (FB, LINE, youtube etc.).

Size?

How big are his hands?

Can he operate it with one hand? That is a popular use.

Our granddaughter (15y) can and she has a smaller one.

Would have to check exact size this evening.

[gandalf12]

There is nothing I can think of off hand that 4G can do that 3G cant. In theory the download speed with 4G will be faster but apart from that there is little to be gained. Videos may, and I say may because with high usage by users it may not be so, download faster.

Functionally nothing to be had

[Pigdog747]

To me, anything over 5" is starting to get too large. As for 4G, why? Personally, I have had nothing but trouble with my phone since AIS turned on 4G. AIS told me to switch the prefered network to 3G. Which I did, and most issues disappeared.

If your son does not need the fastest possible internet, then why go for 4G. Phones don't last long anyway, so you will probably be replacing it in another year or two anyway, and that might be a better time to consider 5G.

AIS told you to switch to 3G ??? My wife's phone is 3G and she's getting bad service, disconnects, unable to hear the other party etc., AIS told her she must change to 4G to get better service.

[sulasno]

Forget about 3g phones; they are obsolete

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk

[WorriedNoodle]

I just bought the wife a 4G phone, was a 3rd the price of my current three yo 3G model. Besides a slightly newer Android version, I cannot tell much difference. Using net notice no difference at all.

[sulasno]

4g is definitely faster than 3g (many times)

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk

[TheCruncher]

To me, anything over 5" is starting to get too large. As for 4G, why? Personally, I have had nothing but trouble with my phone since AIS turned on 4G. AIS told me to switch the prefered network to 3G. Which I did, and most issues disappeared.

If your son does not need the fastest possible internet, then why go for 4G. Phones don't last long anyway, so you will probably be replacing it in another year or two anyway, and that might be a better time to consider 5G.

AIS told you to switch to 3G ??? My wife's phone is 3G and she's getting bad service, disconnects, unable to hear the other party etc., AIS told her she must change to 4G to get better service.

4G doesn't support voice calls, they happen over 2G and 3G, so changing to 4G would make no difference for your wifes issue.

And now before some smart alec post the VoLTE supports voice calls over 4G, that technology is so new that we will have that in Thailand in 15 years.

[TheCruncher]

Thanks for your contributions, they confirmed that 5" with 3G for several reasons would be the best choice for him, so I ordered that phone.

[beerzy]

His first Phone?

is the phone purchase outright or a plan is involved?

brand of phone?

Mobile company?

Prepaid or post paid plan?

i am a telco consultant

Please advise thanks.

[torpedo1970]

would not worry about the 3G versus 4G issue if may say so

Thailand have not been able to deliver anything close to 3G so there will be years to they get up to a standard close to 4G.

A 1000 saved..... is saved..... for later to spend

[sulasno]

Testing 5G very soon; should be up and running in 2020

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk

[gandalf12]

4g is definitely faster than 3g (many times)

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk

At present yes but once every user moves to 4G it will be a lot slower

[KamalaRider]

3G vs 4G is no important criteria.

Advertised speeds are pure theory/marketing numbers and of no need/relevance for the typical smartphone use (FB, LINE, youtube etc.).

Size?

How big are his hands?

Can he operate it with one hand? That is a popular use.

Our granddaughter (15y) can and she has a smaller one.

Would have to check exact size this evening.

I don't know about 3G and 4G not being an issue, my wife has 4G whilest I still have a phone with 3G.

When she's using Tango or whatsapp with someone else with 4G, her video is smooth and crystal clear while mine is a bit choppy even if I have a faster CPU, more internal memory and better graphics.

I haven't investigated it yet but it seems she's got faster Internet than me in everything she's doing online, could be because we have different providers.

Edited February 19, 2016 by KamalaRider

[beerzy]

whether your son uses 4g or 3g is irellevent. in my purchases one criteria is to purchase the latest possible device at the best price

Edited February 19, 2016 by beerzy

[TheCruncher]

3G vs 4G is no important criteria.

Advertised speeds are pure theory/marketing numbers and of no need/relevance for the typical smartphone use (FB, LINE, youtube etc.).

Size?

How big are his hands?

Can he operate it with one hand? That is a popular use.

Our granddaughter (15y) can and she has a smaller one.

Would have to check exact size this evening.

I don't know about 3G and 4G not being an issue, my wife has 4G whilest I still have a phone with 3G.

When she's using Tango or whatsapp with someone else with 4G, her video is smooth and crystal clear while mine is a bit choppy even if I have a faster CPU, more internal memory and better graphics.

I haven't investigated it yet but it seems she's got faster Internet than me in everything she's doing online, could be because we have different providers.

Everything depends on the signal strength. At one location you can have a strong 3G signal and a weak 4G signal, or vice versa.

[TheCruncher]

whether your son uses 4g or 3g is irellevent. in my purchases one criteria is to purchase the latest possible device at the best price

My criteria for an 11 year old boy is to purchase a phone as cheap as possible while still have decent spec and reasonable quality.

I purchased the Wiko Pulp.

[beerzy]

whether your son uses 4g or 3g is irellevent. in my purchases one criteria is to purchase the latest possible device at the best price

My criteria for an 11 year old boy is to purchase a phone as cheap as possible while still have decent spec and reasonable quality.

I purchased the Wiko Pulp.

yes so we have same criteria. Your son will drop and dirty the phone as its his first one....but some of the cheapies out there have 4g now.

[SheungWan]

Now using the 4G service from True on a Samsung Note. Much better.

[robin33]

4 g is not only faster but the latecy is lower , whitch is good for VoIP calls , but for an 11 Year old , the cheapest smartphone Will do

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