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barring U.S. companies from using telecommunications equipment made by firms posing a national security risk Huh. Did the US government just make my cell phone

barring U.S. companies from using telecommunications equipment made by firms posing a national security risk Huh. Did the US government just make my cell phone illegal to use? Replacement is on my list of things to do, but I wasn't really planning on it this month..... Not to mention basically every other option I could look at is also made in China, with the exception(?) of Samsung - which I'm not inclined to cough up the $$ for.

mises 7y ago
Just got a Galaxy J7 V 2 for less than $250. Does what I need it to, snappy, expandable storage, and an actual all-day battery life (probably day-and-a-half). I guess I don't understand why people want super-powered phones: just carry a decent laptop. It's not easy to make use of that much power in that small a form factor any way, particularly now that very few manufacturers allow bootloader unlocks and root. Also, people buy 8-core cpu, 8-gb-ram, 1440p screen phones and expect a long battery life? It's much easier to drive a reasonable processor, reasonable ram, and a 720p screen. I guess the market has different ideas. I get the "it's a slick piece of tech" factor, but can some one who likes flagships talk about what makes them good? For what it's worth, I consider the Samsung Galaxy S3 the pinnacle of smartphone design. It retailed for $250 at launch. I feel like prices are going up because the smartphone industry is trying to innovate faster than chips are improving.
- thrower123 7y ago
  Never had an S3, but I had an Aviator and an S5. I miss the swappable batteries on those models... On the other hand, I have an S8 now and it labors to render most websites. That's more an indictment of the websites, but such is the world we live in.
  - fencepost 7y ago
    Try Firefox with ublock origin, see if that makes a difference. Since it's an AMOLED screen, "Dark Background and Light Text" may also make a difference for you.
- welly 7y ago
  Because people like to play games, take photographs (the camera on your J7 while probably adequate pales in significance to top end phones) and other high processing tasks that your budget phone simply can't do and that is often inconvenient to pull out a laptop for. Such as photos, or gaming on public transport.
- fencepost 7y ago
  Eh, I'm on a 2 year old Honor 8 that may have now stopped getting security updates (last patches were the 12/2018 ones) that was under 250 when I got it and which needs a new battery. I'd probably be on a Nokia right now if they'd released a 6.2 this spring. I haven't looked at the J7 specifically but my impression in the past has been that there are a variety of midrange phones that are a better value than Samsung's offerings.
bigiain 7y ago
" ... to ban American telecommunications firms from installing foreign-made equipment ..." is how NY Times is reporting it. A loose enough reading of that includes Chinese manufactured iPhones, it seems...
ImprovedSilence 7y ago
Interpret how you want, but I take it to mean basestations and back end infrastructure.
seppin 7y ago
Two different things here. The odds that all Huawei hardware is setup for mass surveillance is low. The odds that the Chinese gov could use that hardware to target specific people for spying is close to 100%.

mises 7y ago

Just got a Galaxy J7 V 2 for less than $250. Does what I need it to, snappy, expandable storage, and an actual all-day battery life (probably day-and-a-half). I guess I don't understand why people want super-powered phones: just carry a decent laptop. It's not easy to make use of that much power in that small a form factor any way, particularly now that very few manufacturers allow bootloader unlocks and root. Also, people buy 8-core cpu, 8-gb-ram, 1440p screen phones and expect a long battery life? It's much easier to drive a reasonable processor, reasonable ram, and a 720p screen. I guess the market has different ideas. I get the "it's a slick piece of tech" factor, but can some one who likes flagships talk about what makes them good? For what it's worth, I consider the Samsung Galaxy S3 the pinnacle of smartphone design. It retailed for $250 at launch. I feel like prices are going up because the smartphone industry is trying to innovate faster than chips are improving.

thrower123 7y ago
Never had an S3, but I had an Aviator and an S5. I miss the swappable batteries on those models... On the other hand, I have an S8 now and it labors to render most websites. That's more an indictment of the websites, but such is the world we live in.
- fencepost 7y ago
  Try Firefox with ublock origin, see if that makes a difference. Since it's an AMOLED screen, "Dark Background and Light Text" may also make a difference for you.
welly 7y ago
Because people like to play games, take photographs (the camera on your J7 while probably adequate pales in significance to top end phones) and other high processing tasks that your budget phone simply can't do and that is often inconvenient to pull out a laptop for. Such as photos, or gaming on public transport.
fencepost 7y ago
Eh, I'm on a 2 year old Honor 8 that may have now stopped getting security updates (last patches were the 12/2018 ones) that was under 250 when I got it and which needs a new battery. I'd probably be on a Nokia right now if they'd released a 6.2 this spring. I haven't looked at the J7 specifically but my impression in the past has been that there are a variety of midrange phones that are a better value than Samsung's offerings.

bigiain 7y ago

" ... to ban American telecommunications firms from installing foreign-made equipment ..." is how NY Times is reporting it. A loose enough reading of that includes Chinese manufactured iPhones, it seems...

ImprovedSilence 7y ago

Interpret how you want, but I take it to mean basestations and back end infrastructure.

seppin 7y ago

Two different things here. The odds that all Huawei hardware is setup for mass surveillance is low. The odds that the Chinese gov could use that hardware to target specific people for spying is close to 100%.