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adaliabooks: You can get the older ones, the original Swift and Spark on contracts (very cheaply), just not the new ones. Maybe if I give it a few more months they might turn up.
Yeah, annoyingly it would actually be helpful to have both a second sim and an SD Card (and then I wouldn't need a separate business mobile) but with second sim phones it seems to be one or the other (and the SD Card is more important to me).
Spark isn't an old model, it was released last August.
I consider myself lucky with getting 1 of the last Swift phones here. It was discounted from €159 to €129 which was the reason I didn't buy the Spark +.
The Swift 2 seems to have a few design features I don't like, like a none removable battery and a shared 2nd sim/SD card slot. We have 3 local providers which offer Swift 2, Spark + and Spark X phones.
The Spark line does have a removable battery and can use 2 sims plus an SD card. Should you choose a Spark, go for the Spark + or Spark X. The normal Spark only has 1 GB memory and 8 GB storage. That's OS included.
Post edited December 06, 2016 by HertogJan
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HertogJan: Spark isn't an old model, it was released last August.
I consider myself lucky with getting 1 of the last Swift phones here. It was discounted from €159 to €129 which was the reason I didn't buy the Spark +.
The Swift 2 seems to have a few design features I don't like, like a none removable battery and a shared 2nd sim/SD card slot. We have 3 local providers which offer Swift 2, Spark + and Spark X phones.
The Spark line does have a removable battery and can use 2 sims plus an SD card. Should you choose a Spark, go for the Spark + or Spark X. The normal Spark only has 1 GB memory and 8 GB storage. That's OS included.
Hmmm, I didn't realise that. From what I'd seen it seemed the Swift and Spark were comparable (or released at the same time anyway) and all the + and X models were the newer ones...
I'll take another look at the Spark ones then, but I don't think I've seen anything other than the basic Swift and Spark on contracts.
Thanks for the info, it's handy to have someone with a bit of first hand experience :)
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adaliabooks: Hmmm, I didn't realise that. From what I'd seen it seemed the Swift and Spark were comparable (or released at the same time anyway) and all the + and X models were the newer ones...
I'll take another look at the Spark ones then, but I don't think I've seen anything other than the basic Swift and Spark on contracts.
Thanks for the info, it's handy to have someone with a bit of first hand experience :)
Swift and Spark + are comparable.

Swift: 2 GB memory, 16 GB storage, 5" screen, Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor
Spark: 1 GB memory, 8 GB storage, 5" screen, Mediatek MT6735A processor
Spark +: 2 GB memory, 16 GB storage, 5" screen, Mediatek MT6735 processor
Spark X: 2 GB memory, 16 GB storagen, 5.5" screen, Mediatek MT6735 processor

http://system-on-a-chip.specout.com/compare/1166-1213/Mediatek-MT6735-vs-MediaTek-MT6735A

A Dutch reviewer from 1 of the major Dutch smartphone sites compared the Spark + and Swift in daily life.
The Swift is slightly faster and the battery last a bit longer. He concluded that the differences in real life use were hardly noticable and adviced getting the Spark + as it will be support for at least 2 years. That also goes for the Swift, but it is already a year old.
Post edited December 06, 2016 by HertogJan
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HertogJan: Swift and Spark + are comparable.

Swift: 2 GB memory, 16 GB storage, 5" screen, Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor
Spark: 1 GB memory, 8 GB storage, 5" screen, Mediatek MT6735A processor
Spark +: 2 GB memory, 16 GB storage, 5" screen, Mediatek MT6735 processor
Spark X: 2 GB memory, 16 GB storagen, 5.5" screen, Mediatek MT6735 processor

http://system-on-a-chip.specout.com/compare/1166-1213/Mediatek-MT6735-vs-MediaTek-MT6735A

A Dutch reviewer from 1 of the major Dutch smartphone sites compared the Spark + and Swift in daily life.
The Swift is slightly faster and the battery last a bit longer. He concluded that the differences in real life use were hardly noticable and adviced getting the Spark + as it will be support for at least 2 years. That also goes for the Swift, but it is already a year old.
For the extra £70 the Swift 2 Plus still seems the best bet for me. Thinking about the dual sim thing it's not really a deal breaker as it may be better in the long run to have a separate business phone anyway.
Shame you can't get them on contract (yet), but for under £200 it's not a huge ask, and it should mean I can get a ridiculously cheap contract if I'm not getting a phone with it.

Thanks again, that's really helped.
An Asus Zenfone 2 Laser ZE550KL. Although becoming for a Windows Phone, I'm shocked with how inefficient is Android M managing SD cards. Basically, if I like to save data directly to the SD card, I'm need to use it in adopted mode, that means that I cannot use it in another device for recover it content if the phone dies, and if i use it in external mode, the only thing that i can directly save to it, are photos. All downloads and other app data are stores in the internal memory, and even most of the apps that have the option to save to the sd card, are redirected by the os to a virtual folder inside the internal memory. It no have even the option of move app to SD card such previous versions of the OS.
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timppu: I guess I am quite pragmatic with my needs. The smartphone is merely a "screen" to me so I don't care how its design is anymore than what kind of design my PC monitor or my TV has. The technical details are more important, in those things that matter to me (e.g. for the phone, how much internal storage it has, or for the TV that it has a "PC mode" for non-laggy picture).

So for example for my cheapo Samsung Galaxy J5, what I e.g. like is that the volume +/- buttons are separate (so it is easier to feel which I am pressing), but on the other hand it is stupid that the power button is exactly at the opposite side of the phone, so quite often when I grap the phone in order to push one of the volume buttons, my other fingers accidentally push the power button, which shuts off the screen. I keep doing that and I'm getting tired of it. I wish they would have put the power button either in the middle (of the right side), or even on the top of the phone.
Some thing you can evaluate by looking at the product if you can see it in front of you: how it looks, how it feels on the hand, its weight, etc..
Some technical specs you have to look up: memory, battery life, connections... (but they can be misleading)
Some other aspects you can only grasp during actual use of the product: construction quality, missing signal, long-term ergonomics, annoying glitches, ...

The problem is that, after a year, a new model is out, and all the issues people are talking about may be solved, and others may be introduced. I would really like to read review after one month of use, or 4 months of use, not just "return it after a week or two".

I'm not looking too hard, but the technical specifications of the mid-price smartphones seem to be quite similar.
Google Nexus 6. I can't deal with anything but pure Android.
Motorola A1200e (Ming). Used it for nine years and still using.
No cellphone of any kind.<3
My three years old Jolla phone. :)
Though I'd love to switch for a Fairphone 2, when/if that gets an official Sailfish OS port.
Post edited December 07, 2016 by nulljdq
I sold my LG V10 to my coworker and just bought the blue Honor 8, so only had to pay 1/3rd of the cost, plus it come with a bunch of accessories and $50 gift card.

I missed smaller slim phones and wasn't going to get another 5.5 - 5.7" screen phone. The Google Pixel is ridiculously expensive and lacking in features, so the Honor 8 with a very good camera and a lot cheaper was the way to go. Also it look way better.

Software is my concern, but have been unlocking, rooting and flashing Android phones for years, and Huawei phones bootloader can be easily unlocked, so it shouldn't be a problem, although I'll probably not bother. Used to be a heavy Nexus user, but stock Android is less important to me now compared to hardware features.
Post edited December 14, 2016 by eksasol
Moto X 1st gen.
LG G2 Pro. Got it for free off a friend a few years ago.Still works great. Looking for a new phone for travelling though - tossing up between getting a 2nd one like this or a different dual sim phone....
Got my Pixel XL yesterday. Love it and recommend it to everyone!
iPhone 6S also as some others afraid of moving to the Plus, and maybe not like anymore my still "be in my pocket" 6S, and a Xiaomi RedMI, going to change the old Xiaomi soon for a new one.

I need both Android and iPhone for work, but my Xiaomi is getting very old, it was never too powerful but is a good phone.
Post edited December 15, 2016 by YaTEdiGo