[Dry Ice]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Strictly, no. Its network relies on phone numbers, and its authentication on installation relies on an SMS OTP. So, for a tablet to run Whatsapp, it needs to be a big-phone type of tablet, with a phone sim in it. But if does 4G mobile networking...

You don't really need a calling tablet to get Whatsapp working. I setup Whatsapp for one of my relatives on her tab using her old Nokia phone. And it still runs fine.

You can sideload the app and start the verification. The sms will be sent to the phone and you can type it in. Whatsapp will start working with Wifi. No issues. You can even update it once in a while via the same route, if you feel the new updates are needed or they plug some security flaw.

[deathwalkr]

Originally Posted by vb-san

I had a detailed look at the V30 yesterday - not fully convinced as an upgrade to the V20; other than the audiophile credentials, nothing much there. I was thinking of the V30 as the next change in April 2018, but the Pixel 2XL looks like a better option. Another problem with LG is the poor resale/trade-in value. Yesterday got around 500 SGD for iPhone 7+ 32GB with a couple of small knocks/dents whereas my V20’s quoted rate was just 200 SGD.

I would love to get the pixels but the lack of a memory card kills that. I need the GBs to store my FLACs. My 128GB card is already maxed out on my v20. Waiting for a good deal to get a 200GB card.

Anyhow, i wanted the v30 because of the display upgrade and the camera upgrade. Low resale value i can live with, but LGs rather slow patching speed is a concern.

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by sidhu_hs

I would be happy to answer any specific questions from BHPians about Pixel 2 XL which you can't find in reviews.

Hearing a lot about Pixel 2 XL's low light photography capabilities.

Take photo of a room under lights (or perhaps the street outside) and compare it with any other phone you might have.

[civic-sense]

My wife's iPad 3 Retina bought in 2013 is still working fine in 2017, except for reduced battery life. In 2014 I bought a Nexus 7 so that I can carry it around. By 2015, after a couple of updates, the Nexus was crawling, virtually unusable. I crashed it trying to install some third party ROM from XDA. So I bought a MI Pad to replace the Nexus. Xaiomi was smart enough not to provide any Android updates, instead updating only MIUI version. Yet, after 1.5 years the MI Pad is not a joy to use. I rarely pick it up.

A week ago, a friend of mine asked me to suggest a cheap tablet for his son to use at school. After looking at the Lenovo tab 4 and Samsung tab E, I pointed him to wards the iPad. Despite his protestations on the cost, I made him but the iPad, as I am sure he would get more useful years out of the iPad than any Android tablet out there.

I have no love for Apple as a company, but if you are not the kind of person who flashes your gadgets around (you show off your phones, rarely tablets) and hence want a new version every (other) year, you are better off with an Apple device.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Dry Ice

You don't really need a calling tablet to get Whatsapp working. I setup Whatsapp for one of my relatives on her tab using her old Nokia phone. And it still runs fine.

You can sideload the app and start the verification. The sms will be sent to the phone and you can type it in. Whatsapp will start working with Wifi. No issues. You can even update it once in a while via the same route, if you feel the new updates are needed or they plug some security flaw.

Thanks, Dry Ice. I;m aware that there is a workaround --- but it would be sad to be the guy it didn't work for, so, ideally, I'd prefer not to take the risk. But if we have to, we will

[JonSnow]

Originally Posted by proton

TL;DR. Google will update each OS version through Playstore, taking away the job from the manufacturer. All phones launching with Android Oreo MUST provide hooks to these updating features, by implementing Project Treble in their version of Oreo.

Just a little correction here. Google will not be updating the phones. That job will remain with the manufacturers. But Project Treble will definitely make it much easier to update the OS.

[pixantz]

Originally Posted by deathwalkr

I would love to get the pixels but the lack of a memory card kills that. I need the GBs to store my FLACs .

Talking about FLACs, please pm me any good source. It's been ages since I once downloaded music online and I want to go the flac way. Getting a Sony Xperia today and wanna rock it.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by vb-san

On a separate note, good this headphone (AKG) as a freebie with my wife’s Samsung Note 8. Not opened the package yet, are these any good?

Very very good set of BT headphones. Sound quality is very good but mic has issues for calls. delight for music listening.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Very very good set of BT headphones. Sound quality is very good but mic has issues for calls. delight for music listening.

Thank you..! Great if its good for music/movies as I hardly use headsets/earphones for mobile calls.

[fiat_tarun]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

...Seems like a lot of the OEM's like Nokia and Oneplus are not signing up to Project Treble.
...

The reason Oneplus gave for not including the 5 & 5T makes sense and might apply to the Nokia's as well.

Apparently Project Treble requires the phones to have storage partitions which the current Oneplus devices don't have and trying to do this over an OTA could brick the devices.

https://www.digit.in/mobile-phones/h...ces-38548.html

[sidhu_hs]

Originally Posted by smartcat

Hearing a lot about Pixel 2 XL's low light photography capabilities.

The results have been a bit dramatic (), taking into consideration even the fact that HTC Sensation is from 2011!

All photos have been taken from the same point, indoors and in heavily overcast conditions within 5 minutes of each other.

HTC Sensation

Flash Off


Flash On


Pixel 2 XL

Flash Off


Flash On


Edit: First picture is how it felt to the naked eye.

[proton]

Originally Posted by JonSnow

Just a little correction here. Google will not be updating the phones. That job will remain with the manufacturers. But Project Treble will definitely make it much easier to update the OS.

Absolutely right.

The long answer would have needed hard to understand explanation, so that's why I suggested support for upgrades would be by contribution from Google.

Another indirect way to explain the good news is that the way we could choose to get good support would be to buy phones with good developer roms. IOW, buy phones which attracted hacking from hobbyists. They would, in effect, create upgrades for your phones, do the job manufacturers are supposed to do.

Developers are attracted to phones with unlockable boot loaders, good hardware, and resistance to bricking, accidental damage caused by hacking.

Now, with Project Treble, even these guys benefit:

https://www.xda-developers.com/how-p...-android-oreo/

The Revolution in Custom ROMs: How Project Treble makes Porting Android Oreo a 1 Day Job

Quote
The XDA forums have been the central gathering of custom ROM development for years. It’s thanks to the hard work of developers on our forums that many older Android smartphones are kept alive by custom ROMS sometimes years after devices were abandoned by the device maker. Though most manufacturers release bootloader unlocking methods these days, frequent delays in kernel source releases has stifled custom ROM development on many smartphones. That may soon change, however, thanks to something called “Project Treble” which was announced near the release of Android Oreo. Thanks to Project Treble, the time it takes to port an AOSP ROM onto a device should no longer take weeks or months—instead it should take merely days

[k_ajay]

LG V30 launched in India today, at a price of ₹44,990. Will be made available exclusively on Amazon India, from 18 December 2017.

Wish the V30 wasn't struggling with the P-OLED screen issues, would have been the Android flagship to have in 2017.

[deathwalkr]

The V30 from LG launches at 44,990 exclusive to Amazon. Good price by LG.

[proton]

Opinion: Android is a Mess, But the Solution is Simpler Than You Think (Dec 13, 2017)

https://www.xda-developers.com/andro...roid-proposal/

Quote
Android and OEM skins has gotten out of hand. Depending on whether you use a phone from Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, Lenovo, ZTE, or OnePlus, you’re guaranteed to get a massive difference in user experience – and that’s not always a good thing. Besides the obvious discrepancies in user interfaces, the availability of software updates, security patches, and major version upgrades varies immensely manufacturer to manufacturer.

It’s not uncommon to see a company put out a phone, keep it up-to-date for a couple months, and put it on the back-burner in favor of the “next big thing.” Take the Moto E (2015), for instance. It launched with Lollipop, and it hasn’t been updated to Marshmallow or newer since. The OnePlus 2 was touted as a “flagship killer” in 2015, but it never tasted Nougat. Lenovo’s Moto X, which was also released in 2015, was abandoned a few short months later, much to the dismay of customers. Worst case scenario, OEMs feel that major updates are “optional” — Lenovo saw no reason to update the Moto G4, for example, despite the fact that its hardware supports newer versions of Android.

........


But some things would change. The distribution of Android with Google Play Services — that is to say, any firmware preloaded with Google Maps, Gmail, and Google’s Android application framework — would be renamed AndromedaOS, and Google would handle it much the same way it handles ChromeOS. Releasing software updates, both minor and major, would be Google’s responsibility. No longer would you have to wait for an OEM to get its act together and release a new version of Android for your smartphone — you could update as soon as Google rolled out the new version.