Tuesday, July 1, 2014

VenuG Presents: Android Phone Essentials for a Low Cost Phone. Micromax Unite 2 A106 Apps etc. Will be updated regularly as I use the phone.

I bought a new phone.
It is Micromax Unite 2 A106 review.

If you are a proud owner of a Micromax Phone
And you are in Kolkata
Here is the adress of the best Micromax Authorised Service Centre(ASC)

Tecnique Services,
16, Princep Street,
Opposite Embassy Hotel,
Kolkata 700 073
email techniqueservices_kolkata@mmxcheckpoint.com
Telephone +913340071827
Landmarks:
1. Chandni Chowk Metro Station.
2. E-Mall.
3. Orient Cinema.

Way to go from Dharmatolla/Esplanade. If coming from park street side(South Kolkata)
At CESC, take a right turn into Central Avenue.
If coming from ITO/Bentinck Street side(North Kolkata) take left into Central Avenue.
Cross Chandni Chowk Metro,
Praful Chandra Sarkar Street,
& E-Mall
Move ahead. Take the first left turn.
Immediately, you reach a road splitting into two,
Take the left turn.
This is Princep Street,
You now see Embassy Hotel on your right.
Bang opposite, you see a Micromax ASC symbol of the Orange Fist.
Enter the corridor, enter the 1st door, on your right,
At the counter turn left.
Climb the staircase to 1st floor.
You see a door, enter into an altogether different world
You came from a non descript shady looking place,
Into a hep office.
Take a token from the person handing them & wait patiently for your number to be called.
Trust me, after Nokia Service , which IMHO was 6sigma, this place is if not equal, it is as good as Nokia Service Centres of past.

If you are not in Kolkata
Click THIS LINK.
SELECT PRODUCT, MODEL, STATE, CITY
AND YOU GET OPTIONS.
Tip visit the second option

You can also find the ASCs in your city, by sending an SMS
Locate the nearest Micromax service Centre through SMS
Type SSC your City Pin code
Send this SMS to 9212230707 ( SMS Charges Apply )

Why did i buy a new phone?

A) The screen of My MTV Volt bought on 14-4-2013 broke, but still,
That broke at Congo Square Jazz Fest , at Dalhousie institute, ( see Video ) Kolkata, in December 2013.
Still it worked beautifully, as I was wise enough
To apply a screen guard, which stuck the broken screen together,
I still love the phone, better than Micromax Unite 2 A106 for it's GUI, controls at the top, quick access to control buttons for data, flight mode, brightness, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi,
Volume controls, Sleep mode time, plus, its home screen had great options

B) Its battery was getting drained, could not charge it in power on position( i .e. Could not use it while charging)
I went to service centre.
They told me
Rs 2600 for the touch Screen, Rs600 for the new battery, Rs200 for thr new charger.
Will be supplied within 15-25 days!!!
(I am editing this on 8/10/2014, in between on 31/7/2014 my Micromax Unite 2 A106 developed a snag due to water seeping into its touchscreen, while driving in torrential rain.
I gave it to Technique services mentioned above, on 6/8/2014, who assured me to try to restore it, without any guarantee, which they did yesterday 7/10/2014, all this time, luckily for me, my MTV Volt stood me in good stead, and worked seamlessly & effortlessly!!!)
That's why I mentioned Technique Services in this post.


So Instead of spending Rs 3400 on an old phone, I bought a new KitKat Android phone
Price Rs 7200(8Gb internal memory NOT 4 In specs everywhere ONLINE!!!
 Plus Rs350 for screen Guard, Rs650 for its metal case. So totally Rs8200.

I had three phones before me.
Moto E vs Lava Iris X1 vs Micromax Unite 2 A106.

How I went about it.

Googled "Best Android Phones under Rs 10000 in India"

Got this link
Top 10 Android phones under Rs10000
Then
This
Top 5 Android Kitkat Smartphones in India under Rs10000.

In both Moto E was no 1/10 & Micromax Unite 2/10 A106 No 2/5
Lava Iris X1 was No 9/10(yesterday) no 8/10(today) on 1st link
And 5/5 in second.

Still on specs Lava Iris X1 was much better than Moto E.
For Camera & removable batrery.

Would I buy a phone for Gorilla Glass only?
I'd be stupid if I did so!!!

Here is a comparison between Micromax Unite 2 & Moto E.
Moto E is a HIGHLY OVERRATED SMARTPHONE.




1 Read fonearena review of Micromax Unite 2 A106.
2 Read fonearena review of Lava Iris X1.
3 Compared Micromax Unite 2 with Lava Iris X1 on
99mobiles . Point to point except the Camera Lava Fell short.
I was buying a smartphone not a camera. Plus my MTV Volt phone is there
Works fine  . Is 8MP with dual flash. Can transfer pictures via bluetooth.
4 Compared on gadgetguide4u , Moto E , Micromax Unite 2 & Lava Iris X1. Moto E was NEVER AN OPTION TO ME!!!
5 Read Tech parameter benchmark tests on fone arena. THIS HIT THE NAIL
Micromax Unite 2 was the chosen one. It was no 2 & Lava nowhere near it.
Getting Moto E was a pain. Since, I had seen the lowest price Rs6862 at mobilestore online,  & Amazon India, I went to Brick & Mortar Shop.
Sneha, showed me and STRESSED ITS A 8GB PHONE SIR NOT 4 GB.
Price is Rs7450. I told her, I'd check at Mobile Store & come back. She dropped to Rs7250
I gave Sneha Rs100 as she said "If you buy now 7250 if later 7450, to which she understood, that i was a serious buyer.
I went to Mobile Store, when I asked the Salesperson "Micromax Unite 2 A106" he first gave me a scornful look, then advised me to approach at cash counter. The guy at cash counter, searched online on his computer systems & said, "stock mein nahin hai, 4 GB ka phone hai! Rs8000 ka hai"
MORAL OF THE STORY
1 Research online check lowest price. If you check price now, the online prices on fonearena are up from yesterday!!!
2 Go to Mom & Pop Sethji generic store, have a chat to storeperson. Be specific, ask fornphone+brand+os+model no.
"Micromax Unite 2 Android Kitkat 4.4.2 A106 4GB"
If there's an upgraded producHAI



 the storeperson will tell you and guide you perfectly
Keeping in mind YOUR INTREST. NOT THEIRS. THAT'S HOW MOM & POP STORES NEVER SHUT SHOP.
3 You may get a bargain at BigBazaar,
BUT GETTING A BARGAIN AT EMPLOYEE RUN CORPORATE STORES LIKE Mobile Store, Croma, Reliance Digital?
You must be joking!!!
9 times out of 10, you'd get an older out of production model, at a much much higher price.

Important reasons for avoiding Moto E & Lava Iris X1.:-

I bought Unite2 A106 8GB internal memory (Not 4Gb)
Better than Moto E
A) Camera(has flash)
B) Secondary Camera better.
C) More internal memory.
Better than Lava Iris X600
Which the only advantage is BETTER PRIMARY
CAMERA .
8MP DUAL FLASH
Secondary camera is same 2MP

BOTH PHONES ARE COSTLIER
Can make space for lesser apps.
In Moto E & Lava X600 you get 638 Mb only
In Micromax Unite though it has 5 GB left shows 1183 Mb
In comparison between Micromax & Lava
Unite 2 wins hands down.
I bought unite 2 at Rs7200(has 8Gigs internal memory not 4 Gigs as mentioned above)
With screen guard & case Ra1000 have the best phone in the low priced categorycategory smartphones.
Plus you see All phones Samsung Galaxy S5/HTC/Sony do NOT HAVE
KITKAT 4.4.2 Hai !!!
Unless you're a camera nazi this is THE BEST SMARTPHONE AS ON DATE
QUAD PRO SNAPDRAGGON HAI!!!


Now coming to Apps.
Before I tell you about Apps, let me give you a solution to a common problem,
faced by almost all of us Android users, while downloading apps from google play store!!!
"Unknown Error Code 961"
This is the solution.
Kindly PAY ATTENTION, to what AndroidPit tells you about the "paid app"
GET A REFUND ASAP!!!

1.Browser: One of the 1st things that I do whenever I acquire a new phone is,
If the phone does nit have it, download Opera Browser. I know people use Chrome & Firefox, I NEVER USE FIREFOX, Use UC/Chrome when I write my blog post like this, because, because, ever since Google acquired Blogger, it is no longer supported on Opera  For my rest of browsing, Opera Rocks.
Browsers
1 Opera
2 Chrome
3 UC
4 Firefox.

2. Social.
Facebook
G+
Tweetcaster(Great but has lag.Tweets come slowly & late, it has very huge time lag  But you cant tweet & put that on Facebook simultaneously,
Without using #fb )
Twicca(extra light twitter client with loads of great utilities.)For its speed it is better than tweetcaster, has similar utilities too)
3 Photo Social.
Instagram
Twitpic

Video player
MX
Screenshot
UX Screenshot
Radio

Tune-In Radio is the Playstore editors choice.

Sandisk memory manager
Helps manage files, helps upload pictures to cloud storage & Facebook & also tests the internet speed available.
Music Apps
Soundcloud
Gaana
Saavn

Advance Download Manager
ADM

YouTube Downloader Tube Mate
Not available on play store
Download via Google search.


Android Keyboard Swiftkeys

Photo editing apps

PicsArt
Photo effects Pro
PicSay
BeFunky
Pho.to labs (has watermark issue in free app)
Aviary
Photoshop Touch $4.99 if professional photographer its worth it.
Above all
You're on Google
DO NOT FORGET
Snapseed it edits online on Google Plus.

Links to read
1 11 Android photo Apps
2 9 Toolkits for Photographers
3 Best photography Apps on Android 2014
4 Best FREE image editor for Android

Video editing
Sucks on Android
Only one good app & its paid app.

1 androidauthority
2Thenextweb "so you bought an android phone now download these Apps"
3 5 video editors for Android jump to page 2&  read about
4 The best free video editor on playstore is MAGISTO 4.3* rating.
5 35 must have free apps no 1 is PicsArt. :)
6 10 best apps of 2014,you must have
7 25 Best Android Free apps.
8 10 pro apps for university presentations

Will list the must have after a week of using.
But can vouch for Tweetcaster, Whatsapp, Line,
TubeMate, MX player, UX Screenshot, Opera browser,
PicsArt which I've used frequently.



WILL SOME ONE PUHLEEZ MAKE A VIDEO EDITING SPLICING CONVERTING ,
AUDIOINSERTING, WATERMARK INSERTING, SUBTITLE INSERTING APP FOR GODS SAKE?
4 MILLION APPS & NOT ONE PROPER VIDEO EDITOR.
That's why all advertising & filmmaking creatives Love Apple iPhone m
Will add more in a week I promise ok.
Good Night.
Venu


1 comment: