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SO Qs and stuff
November 23, 2008
10:12 pm
byron
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One thing that I hate about pay-per min is when you get your phone run over by a car, or drop it in a glass of beer, (welcome to my life) or have it stop charging, or anything really, you have to buy a whole new phone at full cost, and they don't give two damns about you. Thats fine because what can you expect when you are buying a phone from a supermarket or 7-11 :)? Yet 7-11s promos seem like a really good pre-paid way to get a free replacement phone and only at the "expense" of buying bulk minutes. How are 7-11s Nokias for reliability? And how often do they run these free phones for a $100 airtime things? I guess Petro Can does similar promos and I could move my SO SIM from one to the other if I needed to right?

November 23, 2008
10:39 pm
byron
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well now that I think of it obviously I can't use PC promos to get new phones because then I have PC minutes...but I guess I could sell the SIM w/mins but that isn't foolproof. Used GSM phone market must be pretty soft though.

November 23, 2008
10:49 pm
iamdrumming
Niagara Falls
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How are 7-11s Nokias for reliability?

7-11 Nokia's ARE Nokia's, some some cheap knock off. I've had mine for awhile with no problems.

And how often do they run these free phones for a $100 airtime things?

Usually twice a year. They usually run the promo (around Aug 1) just before school starts to cater to the school/college kids. The second time they run it is just before Christmas, That promo just started a week ago.

I guess Petro Can does similar promos and I could move my SO SIM from one to the other if I needed to right?

Yes, if your phone is unlocked, you can use either your SpeakOut or PC sim in it. The only thing though is obviously you won't be able to use a SpeakOut top-up voucher with your PC account, and vice versa.

November 24, 2008
8:27 am
bylo
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you have to buy a whole new phone at full cost, and they don't give two damns about you. Thats fine because what can you expect when you are buying a phone from a supermarket or 7-11 🙂

Wrong. With other carriers and offers your phone is locked. If you need to replace it then you are at the carrier's mercy. With SO and PCM you can buy an unlocked GSM phone from a variety of sources for as little as $20 or $30. So if fact, that's yet another benefit of SO and PCM compared to the other PAYG carriers.

How are 7-11s Nokias for reliability?

As good as anyone else's Nokia phones. BTW Nokia sells the same model phones that SO offers to carriers worldwide so it's unlikely that they are unreliable.

And how often do they run these free phones for a $100 airtime things?

Typically in September (for the back to school market) and Nov/Dec (for Christmas.) ISTR they've also run the promo in late spring.

I guess Petro Can does similar promos and I could move my SO SIM from one to the other if I needed to right?

I'm not aware that PCM has ever offered a buy $100 airtime and get a free phone promo. But if they did the airtime you get from them cannot be applied to a SO SIM and vice versa.

November 24, 2008
8:28 am
bylo
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7-11 Nokia's ARE Nokia's, some some cheap knock off.

"7-11 Nokia's ARE Nokia's, NOT some cheap knock off."

or

"7-11 Nokia's ARE Nokia's, some cheap knock off. NOT!"

November 24, 2008
9:25 am
mireckca
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I agree wholeheartedly - even the little Nokia 1208 is a sturdy little phone. I bought mine in October - just missed the promo in Sept - and I am very satisfied it. I doesn't have alot of bells and whistles, but serves its purpose very well - which for me is just a phone for emergency use. In my experience, the more features on anything, the more chance of something going wrong, so if you don't need 'em, do without 'em. Cathy M.

November 24, 2008
11:57 am
Big Ang
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For the most part, Nokias are pretty reliable phones. Of course, there are a few exceptions here and there, but I think Nokias stand up better than other manufacturers.

The phones that Speakout sells are low-end Nokias, which isn't as bad as it sounds. Nokia considers these phones for "emerging markets" - meaning that these phones are designed to be used in rough conditions (ie the Nokia 1208 is advertised as having a dust-resistent front, so sand doesn't get in). As well, the phones are designed to be shared among many people in a village, as seen by having up to 5 different addressbooks. A $50 phone is a much larger purchase to people in the Third World than a $600 unlocked Nokia N95 would be to someone in North America, so that $50 phone in the Third World had better last for years.

Nokia has numerous test centres around the world, and each centre tests phones through the harshest of conditions. You can check out a video of a podcaster visiting the test centre

http://3lib.ukonline.co.uk/ssh...../ss69.html

(The first half of the show is a review of a new Sony Ericsson and the second half talks about a Nokia test centre in England)

However, not all Nokias are perfect. Many years ago I had a Nokia 8260 which was a crappy phone (not just mine, but many of them). My brother recently had a Nokia 5300 (similar to Speakout's 5200) which only lasted a few months. Not sure about how the 5200/5300 lasts in general, maybe my brother's phone was a lemon.

November 24, 2008
6:36 pm
iamdrumming
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bylo said:

7-11 Nokia's ARE Nokia's, some some cheap knock off.

"7-11 Nokia's ARE Nokia's, NOT some cheap knock off."

or

"7-11 Nokia's ARE Nokia's, some cheap knock off. NOT!" ;)


I see my typo now 🙂 I'm still getting the hang of this thing called typing typing 🙂