I'm an Android guy and need to buy a phone for someone. I don't want to break the bank but want the person to have a solid smart phone.
A bunch of govt agencies have warned against buying phones from Huawei for fear of Chinese govt spying. AT& T and Verizon have dropped their phones too, so the only place to buy them is on Amazon
All reviews indicate that the phones are solid all around especially at their price point. I'm not trying to get political or tin-foily hat, but is there truth to any of this? If you were in my boat would you buy the phone?
(Trying to keep it in the $2-300 range and for the record I have a OnePlus 5 and it's great)
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That said, if I were looking for a 'budget' phone today I would use the Moto G5 Plus. See link:
Best Cheap Android Phones - ( New Window )
I don't trust the Chinese, either. They have been cheating and stealing for decades.
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manufacturing capabilities, but because of the surveillance concerns. They're not made up.
I don't trust the Chinese, either. They have been cheating and stealing for decades.
Let's not fool ourselves; Apple, Google, Instaface, Snapchat, and on and on and on...all have more on each of us than we're aware. If you carry a smartphone your just out there. Chinese, Taiwan, Korean, US it really doesn't matter too much as your information is out there.
There is a reason drug dealers try to find all the Nokia 3310's they can. And pay big dollars for them.
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In comment 13958503 jcn56 said:
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manufacturing capabilities, but because of the surveillance concerns. They're not made up.
I don't trust the Chinese, either. They have been cheating and stealing for decades.
Let's not fool ourselves; Apple, Google, Instaface, Snapchat, and on and on and on...all have more on each of us than we're aware. If you carry a smartphone your just out there. Chinese, Taiwan, Korean, US it really doesn't matter too much as your information is out there.
There is a reason drug dealers try to find all the Nokia 3310's they can. And pay big dollars for them.
Actually you're wrong - we are certainly aware what these companies have access to, there are very long user agreements that go into great detail explaining exactly what you've given up in terms of privacy.
They're all about the money. They'll sell out where you're going, what you're searching, what you're buying, etc. like nobody's business.
What they won't be doing is harvesting your logon credentials for later use. Or mining your e-mail for potential corporate espionage.
The concerns around Huawei did not start with the current administration.
That said...we bought a Honor 7x...and it was underpowered. Quickly sold it and replaced it with an Essential Phone which has been great.
If I did secretive work then I would probably think twice, but some of their new phones are excellent and well worth a look. I generally will not shell out more than $500 for a device that is one bad drop away from the trash can or could easily be lost.
Why get Huawei when there are enough great unlocked options running "stock" android at the $200 price point already on the market?
Cybersecurity is increasingly becoming a military focal point. Nation states have been poking at us, whether at our industrial controls or our financial systems, in an attempt to cause us harm in ways that they could never accomplish using conventional military tactics. Just take a look at the Russians and their sock puppet campaign in the last election.
These threats are growing by the day. One way for the Chinese and Russians to beat us is to have a diverse, firmly entrenched set of compromised clients on our infrastructure. This makes it easier for them to pursue advanced persistent threats because it's more difficult to track if the surface area of the attack is spread out.
We've seen it in IoT devices like webcams, and we've seen compromised network equipment. It only stands to reason they'll go after the clients.
Before anyone says it - obviously, all countries are guilty of this. France used to steal industry secrets for their companies from any engineer that walked across their border holding a company issued laptop (no, Alcatel wasn't that adept at predicting the future). The US has certainly done their fair share. Do I think the US doesn't embed backdoors left and right into software and hardware, with participation from the tech companies? I have no proof, but I don't doubt it.
That said, if I were looking for a 'budget' phone today I would use the Moto G5 Plus. See link: Best Cheap Android Phones - ( New Window )
+1
I was looking at the OnePlus 5T before getting my current G6. I was set on the OnePlus until I read on a couple of different forums that while the phones are fantastic, the company tends to stop all support on the older models once the new model is released.
What is your experience? I really like their phones and would get one for my next purchase but if the support rumor is true. That would be a deal breaker for me.
At this time the only place to find a new 5T is on Swappa, e-bay, or Amazon. They only make a given number of devices for a region, once they're gone, they're gone.
The Oneplus 6 is being announced on 5/16. There will be pop up store/event:
Monday, May 21 at 7 PM - 11 PM
The Flat NYC
23 West 24th, New York, New York 10036
It looks like an amazing device!
Please read through the forum I linked. You'll find a ton of info. on the 5T
OP5T @ Android Central - ( New Window )
Thank you again.