Recommend me a Mobile Phone

[LondonTom]

I managed to find a way to send XBMC to the Chromecast, using Yatse (an XBMC remote app)...however because Chromecast "apps" actually just seem to send the media URL, this is pretty useless for football streams as most of them in XBMC are still just technically the flash streams it seems ..just presented nicely!

The chromecast extention for Chrome seems to work great, apart from you can't get any sound from Flash video!

[eFestivals]

I managed to find a way to send XBMC to the Chromecast, using Yatse (an XBMC remote app)...however because Chromecast "apps" actually just seem to send the media URL, this is pretty useless for football streams as most of them in XBMC are still just technically the flash streams it seems ..just presented nicely!

there's some that aren't Flash, and I know it's possible to get sopcast to work on XBMC too.

I'll check out Yatse, thanks.

The chromecast extention for Chrome seems to work great, apart from you can't get any sound from Flash video!

eh? You're getting Chrome to play flash files? How?

---------

I've managed to get XBMC installed and working again. I currently have a forked version installed that allows the use of external video players (so that I can send from that external play [Avia] to Chromecast ... but I can't suss out how to use that external player which is driving me nuts.

[LondonTom]

eh? You're getting Chrome to play flash files? How?

Chrome on my PC, plays the flash file then you use the browser extension to cast the tab to Chromecast. Seems to stream the video just find, just without sound.

I guess you could turn the radio on for commentary

[eFestivals]

Chrome on my PC

doh, of course. I was thinking Android.

[5co77ie]

just go old school and plug the phone into the telly:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cable-Matters-Micro-USB-Black-Metres/dp/B006V7F380

I'm thinking of getting one of these next month - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-DMP-MS10EB-K-Networking-Streaming-Player/dp/B00BYUGN7Y to take the cable out of the equation on my non smart tv upstairs

[t8yman]

I would just advise caution for some users with DNLA streaming, I've found that .mkv files dont pause, ffwd or rewind via DLNA playback. Might just be my setup, might just be the files I have tried, and might not be an issue for a lot of people - but its a real pain in the arse for me.

[eFestivals]

I would just advise caution for some users with DNLA streaming, I've found that .mkv files dont pause, ffwd or rewind via DLNA playback. Might just be my setup, might just be the files I have tried, and might not be an issue for a lot of people - but its a real pain in the arse for me.

I'm not 100%, but that's probably more about the hardware capabilities of one or more parts of your system than it is DLNA itself. DLNA is a control method that merely sends a signal for something else to take the action, it doesn't have anything to do with the actual action (the play/forwarding/etc of the files).

For example, my lovely hi-fi won't play mp3s as gap-less over DLNA, but if I were to get the latest version of the same system it will do. If I hadn't read up about it, I'd probably be thinking that no-gapless was a limitation of DLNA and not of my hi-fi.

DLNA is definitely able to signals to pause, ffwrd & rewind, so I'm pretty sure it'll be to do with your hardware.

Edited April 5, 2014 by eFestivals

[Spindles]

mkv files can be a strange beast as well. More than once I've found some that won't allow you to search on certain devices/software due to a dodgy index or some such.

[Spindles]

The USB connector on my trusty 2012 Nexus 7 has finally given up the ghost, it has had a bit of a wobble about it for a while and now lo longer charges the tablet. A quick look on ebay and the replacement part is £19, so going to give the replacement a shot (looks a doddle, already popped the case apart to see if it was something I could sort with a soldering iron, but I think I'll just replace the whole modular part)

[atomised]

So. What's the best phone currently on the market or should I wait a couple of months for the next bunch of new models to emerge and what do people reckon will be the notable advances. I'm trying to decide between Samsung, HTC and Apple

[LondonTom]

So. What's the best phone currently on the market or should I wait a couple of months for the next bunch of new models to emerge and what do people reckon will be the notable advances. I'm trying to decide between Samsung, HTC and Apple

Note 3 if you don't mind a big screen

I'd wait, Samsung changed their lead designer recently so what ever they put out for the Christmas run could be intresting (Likely a Note 4 rather than the S6 which is normally March time).

Plus we might finally get some more curved/flexi screens in the next batch, that and any new phones will push the prices of current phones down, which is't a bad thing. Other than that standard improveds, camera/slight UI tweaks etc.

[atomised]

Cheers. Useful info. Don't mind the big screen at all and heard good things elsrwhere about the Note series. Im kind of tempted to wait for the Christmas run anyway

[Dave1.1]

My G3 has been draining the battery from full charge to zero in a couple of hours the last few days, checking the battery usage it looks as though it is the Android os that is causing the drain. I have tried a factory reset but still the same, anyone got any ideas on what the problem could be? The battery has never been great but I at least used to get a day out of it, I am thinking of rooting and trying a custom rom.

[eFestivals]

My G3 has been draining the battery from full charge to zero in a couple of hours the last few days, checking the battery usage it looks as though it is the Android os that is causing the drain. I have tried a factory reset but still the same, anyone got any ideas on what the problem could be? The battery has never been great but I at least used to get a day out of it, I am thinking of rooting and trying a custom rom.

 

have you installed any new apps in the last few days? If so, uninstall them all, and then put back one-by-one (with a time gap between each one) to see if one of those is causing an extra drain.

[Dave1.1]

have you installed any new apps in the last few days? If so, uninstall them all, and then put back one-by-one (with a time gap between each one) to see if one of those is causing an extra drain.

I did a factory reset and didn't load any of the apps I had installed, still the same battery drain.

[t8yman]

have you tried an external charger? could be that the solder from the charger port top the battery is going/gone. and it might display 100% when you take it off charge, but the battery hasnt been properly charged at all. try a cheap external charger with a full 16 hour charge, or just get a new battery. 

[LondonTom]

My G3 has been draining the battery from full charge to zero in a couple of hours the last few days, checking the battery usage it looks as though it is the Android os that is causing the drain. I have tried a factory reset but still the same, anyone got any ideas on what the problem could be? The battery has never been great but I at least used to get a day out of it, I am thinking of rooting and trying a custom rom.

Is it just Android OS draining or is something else?

 

I updated to Lolipop recently and had "Unified Daemon EU" sucking my battery like never before, turns out this is out the phone does stuff like fetching weather etc. (and the S health pedometer ). So make sure to check for any Widgets you might have still running on the other "home screens" rather than your main one.

 

(Mine ended up being the pre-installed Bloomberg app using the above mentioned service, disabled that and its been fine since)

[Dave1.1]

Looks as though it was the pre-installed McAfee antivirus which was the culprit. I installed os monitor app which is a bit like task manager for Android and noticed McAfee was using a fair bit of the cpu. I have now disabled McAfee and all seems much better, in fact battery life is better than ever.

[Spindles]

Does anyone have any experience of virgin mobile as a provider?  I've been with EE/T-mobile for 10 years but the pricing of the plans that virgin offer mean that I could halve my monthly cost from 23 to 11 quid and get a cheapy tablet thrown in.  I'm not fussed about the latest handset so I'll just use the bog standard galaxy core thing (or stick with my current handset at worst).

[poetrychatbore]

very interesting reading this about phones and what you all use it for but I can not help but think - a phone is for a call and in the case of a emergency - don't understand doing all your emails etc on it ? whats the point having a pc ? maybe its me - I need a bit social activity - might have to leave my number in a phone box.

[LondonTom]

very interesting reading this about phones and what you all use it for but I can not help but think - a phone is for a call and in the case of a emergency - don't understand doing all your emails etc on it ? whats the point having a pc ? maybe its me - I need a bit social activity - might have to leave my number in a phone box.

Need to stay connected 24/7 these days

 

I dunno twitter/instagram is fun, the games mean you don't another device on you etc.

[eFestivals]

I need to go and buy an iPhone, to try and get this ads problem that's affecting iPhones nailed.

Is anyone able to tell me the cheapest way to get one?

(note: I don't need a phone contract, unless that turns out to be the cheapest way).

[LondonTom]

My guess is ebay/ask around on facebook for people selling ones with a crack, lot of the time the screen is still fairly usable but if its your day to day you are going want rid.

[eFestivals]

thanks tom, tho just picked up a 5 at a secondhand shop.

[luckysalt]

So I created this phone thread a long time ago and its that time again.

Im not getting a contract this time just gunna get a giff gaff deal.

So gunna buy a phone around £200 mark, id go upto £250-270 if its worth it.

My wants Ram between 3-4, battery life 3000mAh upwards, Android phone, Micro SD slot which will take minimum of 128gb.

The whole chipsets, snapdragon whatever and the benefits are going completely over my head.

Ive been looking at OPPO phones as they seem to tick the boxes but im unsure. 

Any ideas?