They appear to provide incredibly good spec for the money? Has anybody got any advice, pitfalls etc. Can anyone recommend a half decent one. I am looking for 5.5 inch tablet, with a half decent battery and upgradeable android software if possible around the £150 mark

Hauwei

It's possible to get a good bargain with them, don't expect flagship quality though. Few pieces of advice. 1) Check the 4G bands, 800(20), 1800(3) and 2600(7) are what we use in the UK. 2) Try and find a good review and use a reputable site (I'd recommend this review site, its German version is more up to date so you may want to use that with Translate (http://www.chinahandys.net) or the British version is here (http://www.china-phone.net).

Edit: I'd take a look at the Elephone P8000

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/...037.html?wid=4

Band 20 (800). The primary 4g for voda and o2 is usually missing. Three and EE are less impacted as they have a smaller allocation on this band - however three have rolled out their 4g super voice VoLTE service on this band.

Cheaper phones sold in Europe will have this band, like wileyfox storm, one plus 2 or the Vodafone smart ultra 6.

I wouldn't import a Phone from China as often certain LTE bands are Missing.

But Chinese Brands also sell their phones directly here in Europe (with the right LTE bands).

I've seen a lot of good reviews about the Honor 5X (honor is a sub-brand of Huawei):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Honor-5x-5-5...words=honor+5x
Although it is a little bit above 150£.

I have a cheap Chinese phone that does 4G and everything else I require, just fine.

I keep looking in envy at £400+ phones that I think I want, but they don't do anything more than my current phone and so I always come to the conclusion to save my money and spend £400+ on things I really need.

I have the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro. It doesn't have half decent battery life, it has spectacular battery life and is the only device I have ever owned that has got me through a day and I have owned a lot of phones. The 16gb model is around £150.

It doesn't have band 20 but as I am on Three this isn't a problem.

Three are rolling out some band 20 4G (800mhz) now though.

Decided to go for the CUBOT H1. £99 delivered 5.5 inch screen, huge battery and band 20

If Three release the rumoured Three inTouch app with 800MHz support you might find it is quite a problem.

I think the ZTE made Vodafone Smart Ultra 6 would be right up your street.

£125 from Vodafone, £2 unlock via eBay.

I have one and it's an incredible phone for the price.

Advantages:

Bright, crystal clear 1080p screen
Reasonably quick
Excellent battery life (I achieve 6 hours of screen on time easily - and that's even while it's constantly connected to my Pebble)
Purchased from a UK retailer so no issues with warranty if a fault were to ever arise
Camera is decent in good lighting with images showing a good level of detail
Runs games like Monument Valley with ease
Good GPS unit
Good call quality
Virtually stock Android with a few Vodafone apps preinstalled which can easily be uninstalled or disabled
Lollipop 5.1.1 out of the box

Disadvantages:

Cheap and cheerful design, however it's well built and doesn't creak or bend
Camera is awful in low light. You need to hold it really still in low light conditions otherwise you will have a blurry photo
Average loudspeaker volume
No gyroscope
Marshmallow update may not be seen

Why? I don't have it now so how is a rumoured app going to be a problem?

So few can actually get on and stay on Three's 800mhz service that it really isn't an issue at all. If you are with Three then it's simply not worth bothering with their 800mhz service except in a slight minority of cases.

Mine doesn't do band 20 but I can still get Three's 4G on 1800mhz inside my house. Not that I need it there as my phone is wi-fi'ed to my 73mbs fibre broadband.

If you read back you will see that people are saying that the inTouch app will be able to use 800Mhz, so if you via the inTouch app you would get 800Mhz use (with all the coverage advantages it brings).

Using an old (or cheap Chinese) phone that doesn't have 800 capability means you will be stuck on the smaller 1800 footprint aka being a second class customer.

That will change if the app is updated as rumoured.


Funny how it's the people who still use phones without 800Mhz capability that think 800Mhz is a waste of time .

Why not go on the Three 4G thread and read about those who have managed to get on the 800mhz service by hiding in the basement wrapped in foil.

Yep! It's a wonderful service that no one can get one for more than 30 seconds.

Granted it may get better (not holding my breath here) but I can get 1800mhz inside my house on Three so why do I need to upgrade for a service that is so restricted and a waste of time even if you jump through hoops to get it?

Do you only use your mobile inside your own house? Most people use their mobile when out and about, in other people's houses, shops, offices, malls, basements...

Also, how inTouch and 800Mhz work now, or last week has absolutely no relevance to the proposed new system where it will actually be integrated and having it would make a huge difference.

I suppose it's understandable that you want to be all defensive and try and minimise the advantages just because your phone won't support it.

I think what he was trying to say was that the 800mhz penetrates buildings better (say if your in a shop etc).

I've got 800mhz on my phone at home now when 3G was non existent without my booster box.

Well I'm a second class customer anyway as there is no 4G on Three at all here. And if you think being able to make calls on band 20 via TiT makes you a first class customer... well that is quite funny. When 3 have data on band 20 and I can get it in my area I will be bothered. Until then I couldn't give a s h i t as the network coverage for calls is fine.

It will make no difference at all if you already have good coverage.

Out of interest, what phone are you using?

Watch out for customs charges' and associated collection fees if sourcing from outside the EU. Where possible buy from an EU warehouse, although you may pay slightly more, you are guaranteed no extra charges - whereas getting one from outside the EU is a gamble as to whether you get charged or not.

I honestly am surprised how no-one else has recommended the SU6 like I have in my previous post.

The bang-for-buck is incredible. And no worries with customs!

It is a Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro. It is the only android phone I have ever owned that has enough juice to get me through a day on a single charge (which for me is 5:23 to 22:30). Most phones go through two full charges a day with me.

I have just found an area where Three have some 4G relatively close to my home - well on my commute which is no good as I am driving through it. I did prioritise band 20 support last year and ruled out the Zuk Z1 because of that. However given the painfully slow roll out of Three 4G as a whole I decided that B20 was way way down my pecking order of requirements. We are all different though and I'm sure some of us will find it useful.