Android-smartphone-page-02

= ZOPO ZP500+ Andorid Chinese Dual-Sim, Dual Core Smart Phone Review =

ZP500+ (22-November-2012 email review)
The ZP500+ is an Android GNU/Linux smartphone from China. This wiki page section has notes from emails sent to the GNU/Linux club on this phone

Overall
Wrt to the Chinese Android (GNU/Linux OS) phone that I purchased, it is working very well. ☺ ☺  It is a ZOPO ZP500+, dual sim, dual core, quad band, and dual camera. It is very slim. The construction is good. The phone looks nice. Perhaps the one caution is the glass is NOT gorilla glass, so it is important not to drop the phone on a hard surface. I dropped the phone once (with it inside its very thin leather case), and I quickly put my foot out to break/ cushion the phone’s fall, and the phone was fine afterward. Not a scratch ☺

Cameras
The Phone’s cameras work well (5MPixel back and 0.3 Mpixel front) with my having used it with Skype to video chat with my mother in Canada (who at 86 years old is also a GNU/Linux user).

GPS
I tested the GPS and it works well. The data connection also works well. I use the guest WLAN at EUMETSAT for data, and at home I use my home WLAN. This reduces the phone data access and the wireless is much faster.

Dual Sim
The dual SIM feature is very neat. If one is using one SIM, and someone phones on the other, they get a busy signal (this is closer to a passive dual SIM than to an active dual SIM). If no one is chatting on the phone, both SIMS are active waiting for a call. Data access is interrupted by any phone call.

Battery Life
The 1300mA battery typically gives 2 days of nominal phone access. On a ‘heavy day’ the battery will be down less than 50%. With very light use I can stretch to 3 days. (I have Bluetooth turned off, and switch OFF data when not in use). I have a spare 2100mA battery (with a separate somewhat wider back to the phone) that I have not used.

I keep an extra USB capable at EUMETSAT, so that I can charge the phone when not in use.

General use
I don’t have an automobile (I walk/take the bus/tram everywhere), and I use the phone to dynamically get the bus schedule, give me weather updates, stock updates, email (EUMETSAT and home email), record notes (when shopping), calculator, wifi-analyzer (to look for legally free wifi when in restaurants and such), camera, skype, GPS (google maps), calendar, contact list, etc ...

The phone works well with multimedia, although I don’t use it as such. I also happen to have an Android tablet, which I use instead for multimedia, although I have played 1080p videos on this phone (mind you I first processed the 1080p videos with handbrake first so as to ensure they would play with no problem).

Accessories to consider
If one purchases such a phone, I highly recommend paying the extra $4.99 to have the phone rooted by the supplier (if offered by your chosen supplier). I also purchased a $4.99 leather case with it (which is superior to the $14.99 cases in Saturn). I also recommend buying an extra USB cable for charging (one for home and one for the office). Copying files to/from with the AirDroid application is a breeze over a WLAN (if both computer and phone are on same WLAN).

Costs for Chinese Smart phone
After coming home tonight, a further note on the ZOPO ZP500+ smartphone I purchased. The supplier I purchased the phone from (http://www.etotalk.com/) has just dropped the price by $25 US, from $184.99 US to $159.99 US. After one converts to Euros, and pays the $34 US DHL shipping cost, and pays the 19% VAT (when it arrives in Germany) the total cost is ~176-Euros for this phone (before some accessories that I recommend - so plan on spending a bit more).

Paying to have phone rooted
I also recommend one pay $4.99 US for the Etotalk MOD ROM (which roots the phone, removes Chinese language applications, installs additional languages and installs Googlestore), plus $4.99 US for the thin leather case (cheaper than cases not as good at Saturn), plus $4.99 US for an extra USB cable (ie for the office to charge the phone, cheaper than the 7 euros this costs at Zimmerman), plus $4.99 US for a car lighter charger adapter. That sums to an extra $19.96 US (or 15.60 euro) which won't cost any extra shipping if ordered with the phone.

Extra battery
I ordered an extra 2100 mA battery, but thus far I have not needed it, and I note it is cheaper to buy from other Chinese suppliers to order/ship than Etotalk, so I recommend buying that extra capacity battery elsewhere (if desired).

Extra pay software
Don't go for all the extra software application installations offered by Etotalk. Such software is easy to install from Googlestore once the Etotalk custom PROM is in place.

ZP300+
If one wants a more capable phone than the ZP500+, there is also the ZP300+ (price also just reduced) for $209.99 US, which has a 4.3" display (instead of 4.0"), has 1GB RAM (instead of 512MB) has a 8.0MPixel/2.0 MPixel back/front camera combination (instead of the 5.0/0.3 MPixel combiantion in ZP500+) and has a 1800mA battery (instead of the 1300mA battery in ZP500+). Its also slightly larger at 133x68x11.3mm (instead of the 123x61.6x10mm of the ZP500+). Again, after one pays the shipping, 19% VAT and converts to Euros, price is 222-euros for a very good Dual SIM phone. the 1GB RAM is nice (not to mention larger capacity battery and better cameras). I would also suggest one spend the extra $19.96 US (or 15.60 euro) for the custom Etotalk MOD PROM, thin leather case, extra USB cable, and car-lighter charger adapter.

The ZP300+ is also availble in white or black (like the ZP500+). My phone is white.

Caution wrt ZP300+ (23-November email)
A caution about the ZOPO ZP300+ (android gnu/linux smartphone) that I noted last night as having a good price, where I note a user on the xda-developers forum (a good Android forum) noted that the ZP300+ has a 'sleep issue' associated with its red missed call LED.

The ZP500+ does not have the problem (it also does not have the same miss called notification LED).

The thread is here:  http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1911475&page=10

Purported the ZOPO will not go back into deep sleep after a notification comes in. Even if notification is deleted, problem exists (and hence batteries are run down). Purported only a restart cures. I have not seen widespread complaints about this so I can not say if this is one specific user's misconfiguration.

I checked here but could not find an answer to this ... http://www.zopomobileshop.com/zopo-rom/zopo-zp300-review-plus-mtk6577-dual-cores-antutu-test-score/

Again, ZP500+ (that I own) works well with no such hiccup.

= Mobistel (Elson) Cynus T1 (Korean brand) (from 24-November email) =

Another post for the GNU/Linux club on this subject, with more on the topic of dual SIM Android smartphones ....

If ordering a Smartphone from China (with any of the inherent/unknown risks) is not something one wishes to try, there is a Korean dual SIM, dual Core smartphone (Mobistel (Elson) Cynus T1) that an EUMETSAT colleague reminded me about on Friday, where the smartphone is available easily here in Germany.

Price Mobistel Cynus T1, Dual SIM, Dual Core
About 2 months ago the Cynus T1 was selling in Saturn for about 180 Euros and I note it can be ordered "locally" in Germany via mail order, with various prices found on " http://geizhals.at/eu/ " ... ie search " http://geizhals.at/eu/?in=&fs=mobistel+cynus+T1 " ... and I see one can order this (including shipping) for 179 euros from some shops. It is also referred to as an Elson Cynus T1, with a German web page here: http://www.elson.de/cynusT1.htm.

Frequencies
It is a triband (2G: 900/1800/1900 and 3G: 900/2100) and hence does not have the North American coverage that I was looking for. But that North American functionality is not a need for most people in Europe.

some specifications
It has a 4.3" screen (800x480 resolution), 8Mpixel back camera and 1.3 MPixel front camera. Battery is 1800mA, and it runs Android-4. As noted it is a dual SIM, dual Core, with 512MB RAM and 4 GB ROM.  It does not come 'rooted' although there are guides on the web which may work to root the phone. I don't know of any English language forums for this phone, but there is a German language forum here: http://www.android-hilfe.de/mobistel-cynus-t1-forum/ . I have not read the posts on that forum, so I can not comment on the content/support ... but it does appear to have a reasonable following.

= ALCATEL OneTouch 997D (from 24-November email) =

On the topic of 'non-Chinese' relatively inexpensive dual SIM Smartphones, I had pointed out to me that 'Real' were selling the Dual SIM, Dual Core ALCATEL onetouch 997D smartphone for 198.00 euros.

Frequencies
This is a quad band for voice (2G: 850/900/1800/1900) but only a European/Asian dual band for data (3G: 900/2100). So one has 2G North-American/European/Asian voice coverage (when travelling) but only 3G European/Asian data coverage, and without 3G 850MHz there is likely no North American Data coverage.

( ... as an aside, thus far the different Chinese ZOPO brand is one of the few relatively inexpensive dual SIM smart phone brands I have found that have 3G that will work in many places in North America. Having a phone that will work with data in North America is difficult, due to the lack of acceptance of common data stanards there)

Specifications
The ALCATEL onetouch 997D dual SIM, dual Core, running Android-4 has a 4.3" display (800x480 resolution), with 1GB RAM and 4GB ROM. Camera is an 8MPixel (back) / VGA (likely 0.3 MPixel - front). GPS. Bluetooth-4. Battery is 1800mA.

One can read the specifications here: http://www.gsmarena.com/alcatel_ot_997d-5110.php

Cost notes
While 'Real' are selling this for 198.00 euros, I note when searching on http://geizhals.at/eu/836963 one can purchase this phone for 186.90 euros, including shipping. The advantage here is one is dealing with a non-Chinese supplier, which means if phone needs to be returned, it should be less expensive.