Chinese Android Phones 2 - Read First Post!

RIchieNouveau

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

Thanks, but as you say it's a bit over the budget I was thinking



That Redmi 3 looks like it'll fit the bill nicely - cheers

Good stuff! Just have a read of these if you've never bought Chinese before. There's a couple of things to take in to account like customs and delivery time etc.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/buying-advice/mobile-phone/grey-market-tech-pros-cons-risks-of-buying-from-overseas-3598433/

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/test-centre/mobile-phone/20-best-chinese-phones-2016-uk-3616945/

Check out a few screenshots of MIUI OS too, that's the UI that Xiaomi phones come with. It's actually very good, but could probably be accurately described "if Android did IOS." I actually prefer it to IOS and Samsung version of Android but you're mileage may vary as they say. Good luck!

Chad_Fantastics

Chad_Fantastics wrote: »

That doesn't look to be working from my attempt, pity as I'd have pulled the trigger, anyone else have luck with it or UK only?

<update>
It's for the UK store, lets see if it's Parcel Motel for the win!

OK, through the magic of parcel motel I've an order in via the UK store. Got the flip case and the key ring type c adapter along with it for 371 once the exchange rate was factored in.

Very happy with that price, I'll get a box of usb 3 bits and bobs from a cheaper site later in the week to cover the various cable/converter/powerbank needs.

Thanks for the heads up AllyAll!

Kavrocks

RIchieNouveau wrote: »

It's actually very good

If you don't care about missed notifications or apps not working in the background as you'd expect.

As a UI MIUI is nice. As a productivity tool its flawed.

RossieMan

Good luck with parcel motel if its caught by customs. It's really not worth the added hassle if ya ask me for the 10-15 euro you spare.

spongerobinson

Kavrocks wrote: »

If you don't care about missed notifications or apps not working in the background as you'd expect.

As a UI MIUI is nice. As a productivity tool its flawed.

Whats the story with notifications not working etc? Causing you much of a problem? Still in the market for something new myself, and the Note 2 is one I'm definitely considering.

Chad_Fantastics

RossieMan wrote: »

Good luck with parcel motel if its caught by customs. It's really not worth the added hassle if ya ask me for the 10-15 euro you spare.

If it's me you speak of, it's not a issue, it was ordered off oneplus.net, I just set my country to UK, not Ireland so I was able to use the 40 pound off code. So it's all within the EU.

Only thing that might happen is when they process they decide is a post box due to the parcel motel and decline to fulfill the order.

The same order direct to Ireland from oneplus.net would have been 429 so I'm happy out and if it falls through I'll stalk it some more.

RossieMan

Ah didn't see it was direct from one plus, my apologies.

delph09

T-Bird wrote: »

First batch will be full of problems. Best wait about 3 months, read about problems etc about the device and then make a judgment call.

yes, and the price of first batch will also higher than the batch after 3 months.

Kavrocks

spongerobinson wrote: »

Whats the story with notifications not working etc? Causing you much of a problem? Still in the market for something new myself, and the Note 2 is one I'm definitely considering.

One of their big "features" is all their power saving stuff and being able to clear apps out of RAM the downside is you've to jump through hoops and disable all optimisations for apps like WhatsApp or Pushbullet to even have a chance of working. After disabling all battery and memory optimisations, "locking" apps so they can stay in RAM and allowing them to autostart I never got any notifications until I manually opened the app. Once they announced a Qualcomm version of the Redmi Note 3 a week after receiving mine I instantly decided to sell it and did.

I should also add that MIUI completely removes one of the most useful Android features, expandable notifications. I've also gotten quite used to lockscreen notifications for a quick glance to see if something warrants a closer look, these disappear in MIUI after the first time the screen is turned on instead of remaining there until being cleared. There are other issues with MIUI that aren't present in AOSP and are a direct result of them attempting to customise Android so much but that's everything on notifications.

Xiaomi make cracking hardware but for what I (and I expect most people in Europe and America concerned with more than just selfies) use a smartphone for MIUI makes it unusable. If you are looking for a Xiaomi phone and want it to work as you'd expect I'd wait until their is a custom "stable" AOSP-like ROM available for it or be prepared to port one yourself.

Raoul

Have to agree with that about Miui. It can be a pain in the ass. I eventually got my whatsapp notifications working on my z9 mini after months and months of not getting them. Also, the lockscreen is sh*te. I can't get spotify or yatse remote control to ever appear on the lockscreen .

Allyall

Raoul wrote: »

Have to agree with that about Miui. It can be a pain in the ass. I eventually got my whatsapp notifications working on my z9 mini after months and months of not getting them. Also, the lockscreen is sh*te. I can't get spotify or yatse remote control to ever appear on the lockscreen .

Try UCCW

Raoul

Cheers but I just put the mookee rom on my phone, seems good so far .

RIchieNouveau

Ran a couple of tests this morning and my wife is getting whatsapp, Gmail and phone notifications immediately. She doesn't use anything else with notifications so I couldn't test anything else. Like I said before, vendor rom so there's no guarantees it will work the same on other ones.

Kavrocks

RIchieNouveau wrote: »

Ran a couple of tests this morning and my wife is getting whatsapp, Gmail and phone notifications immediately.

What were the tests?

RIchieNouveau

Kavrocks wrote: »

What were the tests?

Ok, maybe that was a poor choice of words for a forum of this nature. I... sent her whatsapps, texts and emails from another device.

gn3dr

morgana wrote: »

Just pulled the trigger on an Ulefone Power. Sounds like excellent specs for the price (166 e) and initial hands on on gizchina is favourable. Shall write up my impressions when I get it in a few weeks. 😢ðŸ˜

I'm very tempted by this phone also. Looking forward to hearing your feedback.

scout353

Went with the OPO 2 - the discount code worked with the address for Parcel Motel so hopefully all will work ok.

Payments done through Revolut so total cost was €325

scout353

Went with the OPO 2 - the discount code worked with the address for Parcel Motel so hopefully all will work ok.

Payments done through Revolut so total cost was €325

Update: Got shipping confirmation an hour ago!

Pink Fairy

What would be the best bang for your buck Chinese android?
2-3gb ram and 32gb 5.5" screen
Don't want to go above 250 if possible, any suggestions , I've seen the power discussed recently, anyone got their hands on it?

morgana

Pink Fairy wrote:

What would be the best bang for your buck Chinese android? 2-3gb ram and 32gb 5.5" screen Don't want to go above 250 if possible, any suggestions , I've seen the power discussed recently, anyone got their hands on it?

It's in transit ☺- will report when I finally get it. Not expecting it for another week or so. It only has 16 gig though but the second sim slot can also take a memory card.

horse7

Got a nice one for 85pounds on Amazon,

Search ulefone be pro 2 on Amazon uk

Pink Fairy

horse7 wrote: »

Got a nice one for 85pounds on Amazon, www.amazon.co.uk/Ulefone-Unlocked-Smartphone-Cellphone-SIM-Free-Black/dp/B019SU1VLO/ref=pd_sim_sbs_23_4?ie=UTF8&dpID=41KQB9T%2B9GL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=121AEK1YW3DZV7RN61YC

Getting a 404 on that link

bigmike99

gizchina have the Letv one with x10 chip and 3Gb ram for only 159dolla from EU.

Was going to post looking for the best sub $100 model as a temporary one for my mother, But all i can find is the Cubot s6 (or x6!) note @ $79 it has no 4g but she lives in the countryside where 4g doesnt work anyway.
Any other ideas for sub $100 devices? there is a couple more nice ones at the moment featureing full metal frames such as the umi rome x for $69 and another device i forget the name but these are still presale and she needs one Asap.

I might just recommend the Letv one for an extra 50quid and no customs charge.
the specs are great for that that new reduced price and the camera has ios. The Audio has great reviews
HOWEVER only 16gb memory Not good enough for me but anyone who doesnt need the space its a great device. Im sure there is cloud service from Letv but probably a huge hassle with the chinese app.

EDIT: That EU shop adds $35 for the 2-4 day delivery so its now $195 which isnt all that much of a bargain after all. I though it might have been $10 from the Italy warehouse.

Kavrocks

bigmike99 wrote: »

Any other ideas for sub $100 devices?

Homtom HT7 is $59.99 in several places. If it came with stock Android and Marshmallow I'd have one by now but I don't think those things would bother your mother as much as me. Quad-core, 1GB RAM and 8GB ROM with a microSD card will run Android 5.1 perfectly for most people.

bigmike99 wrote: »

EDIT: That EU shop adds $35 for the 2-4 day delivery so its now $195 which isnt all that much of a bargain after all. I though it might have been $10 from the Italy warehouse.

They include the VAT into the shipping cost so they don't lose anything.

fixXxer

http://www.gizchina.com/2016/02/01/ulefone-power-review/

review up of the Ulefone Power on Gizchina. Was interested in this but might wait to see if any updates for the camera are pushed first. The review says its disappointing but could be fixed with software updates.

fixXxer

Out of curiosity, what's the best price people have seen on a Redmi Note3? I'm finding around €250ish from EU warehouses or €200ish from China. This would be the 3GB version specifically.

Raoul

Just a word of warning. My gf is stuck with a z9 mini in which part of the screen has lost functionality. Bought from AliExpress. The product originally said 6month warranty but doesn't now, I can't find out where it did. The shop can't be contacted even by ali express. So basically 260 euro for about 5 months worth of a phone .

eamonnq

Raoul wrote: »

Just a word of warning. My gf is stuck with a z9 mini in which part of the screen has lost functionality. Bought from AliExpress. The product originally said 6month warranty but doesn't now, I can't find out where it did. The shop can't be contacted even by ali express. So basically 260 euro for about 5 months worth of a phone .

What shop was it bought from on Aliexpress ?

Kavrocks

fixxxer wrote: »

Out of curiosity, what's the best price people have seen on a Redmi Note3? I'm finding around €250ish from EU warehouses or €200ish from China. This would be the 3GB version specifically.

€210 shipped via Europe, so no customs, on AliExpress.

fixXxer

Kavrocks wrote: »

€210 shipped via Europe, so no customs, on AliExpress.

Do you have a link to the seller? I'd appreciate the help. losing track of all these Chinese sellers at this stage.