anything I need to be aware of before this purchase?

[dabuddha]

I'm bout to bite the bullet and purchase a google nexus 4 (huge purchase for me since I somehow got permission from the wife).

I'm currently on straight talk and I'm using an old iphone 3gs (with a purchased full sized AT&T sim card). Is there anything I need to know before getting the Nexus? I was told I'd have to cut my sim card to micro size in order to use the Nexus. Was going to order this:

http://www.amazon.com/Micro-SIM-Cutt...cro+sim+cutter

TIA!

UPDATE (05/17/2013)
Just thought I'd post an update for anyone that cares.

I got my phone in yesterday. Pulled out my sim card from the iphone and cut it using the noosy cutter. Pretty simple and painless. Popped it into the phone, and voila, no sim card detected. After I finished shitting my pants and my kids pants, I took the sim out and using an adapter, popped it back into my iphone. It worked fine. Popped it back into the nexus, nada. Googling online it was suggested that I might need to reboot the phone. Did so and finally worked.

I put in all of my APN settings for Straight Talk I found on Howard Forums and got the data to work. I've tested the picture text messages and they seem to work. The connect icon shows a H+ in the top right. I ran a couple of speed tests and it looks like I'm getting about 6.7mbps down/1.8mbps up. I used to barely get 700kbps down/100kbps up on the iphone before so this was a pleasant surprise.

I was able to sync my outlook contacts (which I got from my iphone) into my gmail account and then pulled them onto the phone painlessly. Overall, I have to say I really really love this phone. It's like night and day compared to the iphone. I almost feel guilty about giving the iphone to my wife but it's a huge upgrade compared to her nokia e-71

Now I just need to find a couple of apps. One is an email app that'll handle all of my accounts (including 2 gmail, 2 personal hosted accounts, 1 yahoo account). Another is a reminders/calendar app that's more robust than the one it came with.

thank you all again for all the help/advice!

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Have fun with your new phone. It'll be way faster than that old phone.

 

[Ravynmagi]

I took my Sim into the T-Mobile store and they cut it for me. Looks like they were using the same cheap sim cutting tool as that, so I guess it works.

 

[poofyhairguy]

huge purchase for me since I somehow got permission from the wife

Congrats!

 

[RedRooster]

Wouldn't your provider simply swap your old sim for a new micro sim, instead of cutting things?
I'm looking at a Nexus 4 too, but waiting until next week to see if they announce an LTE version. If not, N4 it is!

 

[dlock13]

Wouldn't your provider simply swap your old sim for a new micro sim, instead of cutting things?
I'm looking at a Nexus 4 too, but waiting until next week to see if they announce an LTE version. If not, N4 it is!

They would, but he said he's on ATT Straight Talk meaning that if he got a new SIM for Straight Talk, it would only be a T-Mo one.

Have fun with your Nexus 4. It's a fantastic phone. I got to play with one the other week, and it was a joy to use 100% pure Google imagined goodness.

 

[Dankk]

They would, but he said he's on ATT Straight Talk meaning that if he got a new SIM for Straight Talk, it would only be a T-Mo one.

Oh? Did Straight Talk recently switch to only T-Mo SIMs? I have a Straight Talk AT&T SIM in my Galaxy Nexus. Is one better than the other for any reason?

 

[OBLAMA2009]

I'm bout to bite the bullet and purchase a google nexus 4 (huge purchase for me since I somehow got permission from the wife).

I'm currently on straight talk and I'm using an old iphone 3gs (with a purchased full sized AT&T sim card). Is there anything I need to know before getting the Nexus? I was told I'd have to cut my sim card to micro size in order to use the Nexus. Was going to order this:

http://www.amazon.com/Micro-SIM-Cutt...cro+sim+cutter

TIA!

wait until google i/o next week, they may announce something like a nexus 4s with lte, a faster chip, a bigger battery, a non glass backing, availability on verizon etc... it would be foolish to get one before then

 

[dabuddha]

wait until google i/o next week, they may announce something like a nexus 4s with lte, a faster chip, a bigger battery, a non glass backing, availability on verizon etc... it would be foolish to get one before then

One of my main priorities is that it has to be cheap. I don't mind waiting (especially if it'll drop the price on the nexus 4 even lower )

 

[dlock13]

Oh? Did Straight Talk recently switch to only T-Mo SIMs? I have a Straight Talk AT&T SIM in my Galaxy Nexus. Is one better than the other for any reason?

T-Mo has less coverage than AT&T that's for sure. They never specifically said as to why they dropped them, but the internet assumes it was because AT&T didn't like the deal they were in and how much money they weren't getting from Straight Talk for how many people jumped on their network.

If you go to buy one here, you'll notice that you can only get a T-Mo SIM. The thing is if you already have an AT&T one, you can use it without a problem. If you throw it away, good luck getting a new one. People sell them on eBay for like $40 bucks.

 

[Dankk]

T-Mo has less coverage than AT&T that's for sure. They never specifically said as to why they dropped them, but the internet assumes it was because AT&T didn't like the deal they were in and how much money they weren't getting from Straight Talk for how many people jumped on their network.

If you go to buy one here, you'll notice that you can only get a T-Mo SIM. The thing is if you already have an AT&T one, you can use it without a problem. If you throw it away, good luck getting a new one. People sell them on eBay for like $40 bucks.

Good to know, thanks. I'll be keeping my AT&T card then.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

T-Mo has less coverage than AT&T that's for sure. They never specifically said as to why they dropped them, but the internet assumes it was because AT&T didn't like the deal they were in and how much money they weren't getting from Straight Talk for how many people jumped on their network.

If you go to buy one here, you'll notice that you can only get a T-Mo SIM. The thing is if you already have an AT&T one, you can use it without a problem. If you throw it away, good luck getting a new one. People sell them on eBay for like $40 bucks.

even if you have an att card they werent offering att lte data anyway were they? so tmobile hspa+ "4g" is at least for that reason preferrable

 

[dlock13]

even if you have an att card they werent offering att lte data anyway were they? so tmobile hspa+ "4g" is at least for that reason preferrable

You're right about that. There is no AT&T LTE with their Straight Talk SIMs, but the fact is that AT&T has the better coverage map and their HSPA is plenty fast enough everywhere. T-Mo HSPA+ is only in so many parts of the state.

 

[dabuddha]

Well I bit the bullet and ordered it today. Took me a long time to click on the purchase button I've never spent anywhere near this much on a phone before lol

I also picked up the sim card trimmer, some screen protectors (Halo I think), and the Ringke fusion case. Really wanted an otterbox but apparently they don't make one yet. I am quite intrigued by the wireless charging capability but I can't seem to find where to get it. Any ideas?

thank you all for the advice/information!

 

[Fire&Blood]

Well I bit the bullet and ordered it today. Took me a long time to click on the purchase button I've never spent anywhere near this much on a phone before lol

I also picked up the sim card trimmer, some screen protectors (Halo I think), and the Ringke fusion case. Really wanted an otterbox but apparently they don't make one yet. I am quite intrigued by the wireless charging capability but I can't seem to find where to get it. Any ideas?

thank you all for the advice/information!

Hold off on the wireless charging orb for right now, read some reviews before you get it. People are reporting issues. Check the phone for backlight bleed, use a black background with the screen on to see if you have it or just pay attention when it's booting. If you notice nay issues, they will send you a replacement unit before you ship it back.

Notification light (at the bottom) for missed calls, texts and emails may not work out of the box, check out the light flow app. I use handcent for sms and it doesn't work without the app, for me at least.

If you take the phone out of the case, do not leave it on the bed to charge, the weight of the cable is enough to overcome friction to slide and fall off the bed or any other smooth surface.

If you get annoyed with ads, get the N4 toolkit here http://www.skipsoft.net/?p=727 to easily root the phone and install adaway from the play store.

 

[vshah]

the wireless charging is QI compatible. I personally haven't had any trouble with 2 of the official orb chargers, but others have had problems with dust buildup/the phone slipping off.
LG and Nokia both make QI compatible chargers that are flat and work without issue.

 

[dabuddha]

Hold off on the wireless charging orb for right now, read some reviews before you get it. People are reporting issues. Check the phone for backlight bleed, use a black background with the screen on to see if you have it or just pay attention when it's booting. If you notice nay issues, they will send you a replacement unit before you ship it back.

Notification light (at the bottom) for missed calls, texts and emails may not work out of the box, check out the light flow app. I use handcent for sms and it doesn't work without the app, for me at least.

If you take the phone out of the case, do not leave it on the bed to charge, the weight of the cable is enough to overcome friction to slide and fall off the bed or any other smooth surface.

If you get annoyed with ads, get the N4 toolkit here http://www.skipsoft.net/?p=727 to easily root the phone and install adaway from the play store.

TY for the info. I've been a little concerned about getting it setup to work with Straight Talk (perusing Howardforums shows lots of people had trouble doing it) but hopefully it should go smoothly!

 

[bearxor]

even if you have an att card they werent offering att lte data anyway were they? so tmobile hspa+ "4g" is at least for that reason preferrable

You're right about that. There is no AT&T LTE with their Straight Talk SIMs, but the fact is that AT&T has the better coverage map and their HSPA is plenty fast enough everywhere. T-Mo HSPA+ is only in so many parts of the state.

Yeah, I would take AT&T's HSPA+ over TMo's any day of the week, simply because TMobile's network is so tiny.

My real-world speeds between the two of them are about even, and as far as I'm concerned, anything over 3Mb/s is "fast enough" for my usage.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

Well I bit the bullet and ordered it today. Took me a long time to click on the purchase button I've never spent anywhere near this much on a phone before lol

I also picked up the sim card trimmer, some screen protectors (Halo I think), and the Ringke fusion case. Really wanted an otterbox but apparently they don't make one yet. I am quite intrigued by the wireless charging capability but I can't seem to find where to get it. Any ideas?

thank you all for the advice/information!

google i/o starts tomorrow why didnt u wait?

 

[bearxor]

Well within the return period.

Anyone expecting a new phone tomorrow anyways is going to find themselves really disappointed.

 

[Sid59]

Yeah, I would take AT&T's HSPA+ over TMo's any day of the week, simply because TMobile's network is so tiny.

My real-world speeds between the two of them are about even, and as far as I'm concerned, anything over 3Mb/s is "fast enough" for my usage.

Bay Area here - East Bay to be specific.
Nexus 4, ATT Sim - 4.6 Mbps
Tmobile Sim - 5.5 Mbps

 

[dabuddha]

google i/o starts tomorrow why didnt u wait?

I just assumed that the price of the new phones would be higher than what the nexus is going for right now. $350 is actually over what I was allowed to spend on the new phone so I'm already pushing it lol. Plus I used my chase freedom card so that gives me a 90 day price match guarantee in case the price drops.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

Bay Area here - East Bay to be specific.
Nexus 4, ATT Sim - 4.6 Mbps
Tmobile Sim - 5.5 Mbps

thats pretty good. here in the bay area on verizon lte i get 6-10 mbps on average, not much faster than what youre getting (and nothing like the 40 mbps some people report)

 

[Bman123]

Good job with the nexus 4, it's a nice phone for sure. My friend got one yesterday and i got a note 2.

I couldn't believe there's not a otter box for the nexus 4, can you link the case you ordered please

 

[Sid59]

thats pretty good. here in the bay area on verizon lte i get 6-10 mbps on average, not much faster than what youre getting (and nothing like the 40 mbps some people report)

hope this doesn't derail the thread ..

my buddies Verizon LTE Samsung G3 was getting 15Mbps or something. Did you see the video of LTE testing in various parts of SF?

TMO vs ATT vs Verizon - iPhone 5

http://www.gottabemobile.com/2013/04/14/t-mobile-vs-att-vs-verizon-4g-iphone-5-speed-tests/