Experiences with Huawei Phones?

[flipflops 1,274]

I will be buying a new phone in the near future. Does anyone have any experience with Huawei phones? Specifically the Ascend P7? I can buy one unlocked so I would imagine most if not all GSM carriers world work. I can buy through an American distributor.

 

I have used Google phones mostly so I am very familiar with Android. But the new Google phone is just too big. I don't have any interest in iPhones. (or any Apple product really) As for connectivity, I use Linux on my desktop and laptop.

 

One big requirement is an option for a microSD card. I took a lot of pictures on my Samsung Galaxy Nexus in Chiang Mai and BKK, and when I got home I had some problems turning the phone on. I thought I'd lost them. after an hour or so research I found a sequence to get it up and running again. I prefer not to use cloud services to backup.

 

Any thoughts appreciated.

[Rodrigo 1,011]

The best and value for money is the Chinese phone one plus one. The downside is that you have to order it online. The best one I ever saw and price of around 499 or less. It is very fast and very good camera and 64G capacity

[flipflops 1,274]

Thanks for the pointer dav662. That phone is in the running. When I looked at it before it was invitation only. But now I see it is widely available.

 

There are 3 drawbacks to that phone. 1) size. I want to stay at 5 or below. That will be hard as most manufacturers are going bigger. 2) I want an sd card expansion 3) it is cyanogenmod.

 

The need for sd card expansion came out of problems with cyanogenmod on my galaxy nexus. I had lots of problems after I installed cyanogenmod and one of the biggest was battery problems. When I returned from Thailand with a phone full of pictures on the internal memory the batter went so low while I was on the phone that the phone died. Then I could not reboot the phone and it would not charge in the normal way. I thought all of my pictures were lost. I did get it fixed with a lot of effort.

 

I doubt this would happen with cyanogenmod on the 1+1 as it is for prime time people. The lesson for me is always have a sd card to write pictures to. I refuse to sync with the clouds.

 

My head might be in the clouds half the time.... but i don't need my personal info there.

[cutefarang 100]

I actually work for the Chinese Cell Phone OEM's, I am a middle man between them and suppliers (Mediatek, Corning, Sharp LCD etc). The P7 is a nice phone but it is a little overpriced and it doesn't have the best UI. Huawei themselves are an excellent company, their phones have very good build quality and they have excellent service. I have extensive history with many Chinese brands and I think I can help you choose a phone that will suit your needs. Do you want a phone with a really good camera? What is your budget? You already said 5 inch size but are you willing to go just a little bit over (if the phone dimensions are still the same) or under? What countries will you be using it in?

[flipflops 1,274]

@cutefarang I just happened to like the looks of the Ascend P7. As long as English (US) is installable I'm probably good to go. Maps, email, chat apps and a browser and I'm happy.

 

If I don't buy the Ascend P7 I'll likely look for a new Google 5 on eBay. Really good phones get stolen way too often. I don't want that headache.

[cutefarang 100]

@cutefarang I just happened to like the looks of the Ascend P7. As long as English (US) is installable I'm probably good to go. Maps, email, chat apps and a browser and I'm happy.

 

If I don't buy the Ascend P7 I'll likely look for a new Google 5 on eBay. Really good phones get stolen way too often. I don't want that headache.

The Ascend P7 is a beautiful phone. I like the Honor 6 from Huawei too, it's a little cheaper but still just as nice. 99% of the places you order it from will change the language to English if the phone is shipping to an English speaking country. If you are in BKK any one of the shops in MBK, Fortune Town or Patpong can easily change the language as well.

[Rodrigo 1,011]

flips, yes I agree with you about the size and the SD card. My one plus one is 64gb and I have no issues with the battery so far. The Huawei is a good phone too but so is the Mii. At this moment in time I would not change my one plus one for any other phones and not even for an iPhone 6.

[flipflops 1,274]

I did buy the Huawei Ascend P7. I like it, but then I'm not hard to please 555. As long as I have a browser, maps, Line and a couple other apps I'm good to go. I don't do any online banking or anything requiring secure connections.

 

A couple of quirks I have yet to sort out:

 

1) Gmail app is in a folder and I have not found a way to place it directly on a screen.

 

2) There is no way to add an attachment in the messaging app. I can receive MMS though.

 

All in all.... for $300 plus shipping it is an excellent phone.

 

On the same day mine arrived a Thai GG friend here bought a new iPhone 6plus. She could have bought 3 of mine.