JClishe

OK I have a really stupid question. What's the main reason for dual sim? Does it allow your phone to work on different networks when traveling, or, does it allow you to have separate numbers (for example a work line and personal line)?

paperwastage

well, both: phone works on multiple networks at the same time

multiple use cases:
1) work SIM card, personal SIM card.... can carry one device, work can contact you, friends can contact you... phone numbers are separated

2) (more popular in europe/asian countries, where you might cross countries often)
eg: you keep a USA sim in slot 1, a Mexican sim in slot 2. If you cross border, you just switch settings on your phone. don't have to swap sim cards. people can still call your USA number and you'll receive the call (if you want to pick up)

(less of a hassle now with T-mobile's free roaming, AT&T's free roaming on mexico, Verizon's $2/day roaming in mexico)


there are multiple "levels" of dual sim though... some only allow one SIM on data at a time (aka second sim can only wait for someone else to call you/you to call someone else)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_SIM#Passive

msm2000uk

My S7 turns up next week, and having knocked off the handset price (Ł29.99), I bought a 64GB MicroSd card from Amazon.

Net saving of around Ł13, and I'm quite pleased with that - especially as the phone comes with the VR thing, which I'll likely use once (and then give away!)

gobluetwo

It seems like you know the answer already, but it does not work any any mechanically-triggered card readers, including ATMs and gas pumps. And yes, sometimes the card readers are behind the counter and, of course, most restaurants in the US still take your card, which is why I still carry 2 credit cards with me (corporate and primary personal). However, I do have great flexibility in using the card in the airport, most quick service restaurants, department stores (including big box, electronics, home improvement, etc.), even taxis.

If you're one of those people who uses a different card for everything in order to get this bonus or maximize points earnings, then this is probably not the magic bullet to prevent carrying around half a dozen cards. BUT it does come much closer than Apple Pay and Android Pay.

JClishe

Hmm, this is interesting. I started a new job a few months ago and they offer a company phone option. I haven't ordered one yet because I didn't want to carry 2 phones so I've just been using my personal phone for work. But if and when the S7's show up on our phone ordering page (the S6's are on there now), I suppose maybe I could order one and move my personal sim over to it so I'd have both my work and personal lines on the same device.

Of course, this assumes AT&T will be getting a dual SIM S7 (and that it shows up on my company's phone ordering system).

Here's another question, is there software that can disable call's from one of the sim's at certain hours? The obvious use case here is sending work calls to voicemail after business hours.

When you receive an incoming call, can you tell which line the call is coming in through?

paperwastage

AFAIK, AOSP doesn't really have much dual sim functionality (especially since there's so many versions: dual active, dual passive, etc)
https://code.google.com/p/android/is...etail?id=14799

the manufacturers add their own code for dual sim, so a lot of your questions would likely be device-specific



a lot of T-mobile users already received their devices, need to check if they are dual sim (likely not)




you could always get your own dualsim device....zenfone 2 dual is a cheap option, don't know what type it is though (dual passive/active?, or LTe band su pport?). and you don't get VoLTE/wifi calling on this phone

broadwayblue

While I found the S6 camera to be excellent outdoors, I was not thrilled with its indoor lower light performance. Quite a few photos came out blurry for me. Supposedly this will be much improved with the S7. I hope that's the case.

TOMFORD

Waterproof and microSD storage sounds attractive, but I've never lost a phone to water and never needed to expand beyond 32GB of storage... And what's the VR thing? Something you wear that makes it look like watching TV from up close?

SRQ Guy

VR is an immersive visual experience. VR is 3-dimensional, so it will look as if you're in the middle of whatever you're watching or playing.

TOMFORD

Some examples show a Galaxy phone plastered to the back of the VR. Does the VR need the phone to work? The VR "screen" surely isn't your phone screen, is it?

SRQ Guy

Yes, the VR screen is your phone screen.

The screen is just an inch or two from your face, so it is quite immersive.

You don't even need a fancy VR headset to make it work. You can use Google Cardboard or even fashion one yourself from a scrap piece of cardboard.

IsleOfMan

It's possible to do 100% DIY including fashioning biconvex lenses using a plastic bottle, water, and a syringe. That said, you can get complete Google Cardboard clones for under $5 (under $7 with strap) on eBay, so the DIY doesn't quite seem worth the effort to me. Plastic versions with contoured padding that still work in the same way as Cardboard (without the added hardware features of the GearVR) can be had in the $10 range on eBay.

TOMFORD

That seems dumb... Why not just hold your phone a few inches from your face and wear a black cloth so no external light gets in? Aside from the fact that your arms will get tired after extended holding. Am I missing something here? And how can you see in 3D if the phone screen is the thing you see in VR?

IsleOfMan

The 3D effect comes from Steroscopy and Biconvex Lenses... same general principal as an old Viewmaster. Each eye sees a discrete image, slightly offset, to create a 3D effect. The biconvex lens allows for deeper immersion by filling a larger portion of your field of view.

This is what you would see looking at your phone screen outside of the Cardboard or GearVR:


Your left eye sees the left half of the image, your right eye sees the right half. The optical separation/offset, lenses, and your brain work together to create the 3D effect.

The actual Cardboad & clone headsets are impressive in terms of the immersion you get for such minimal investment, but if you're half-way interested I'd reccomend a $10-$20 rigid padded headset with strap, pupil distance adjustment, and focus adjustment along with a $6-$10 Bluetooth VR controller for basic UI control or a $10-$15 bluetooth gamepad for gaming.

Lens size is the major drawback of the cardboard-based platforms... the GearVR has much larger lenses for added immersion (less of a tunnel vision effect). It also has a touchpad for basic UI interaction, a pass-through that uses the phone's camera to give you a look at the outside world without removing the headset, etc. That said, it only works within the GearVR app and its associated content, though there does seem to be a good chunk of content available.

I don't think I'd buy a GearVR for myself but I'll happily play with it if I get an S7 that includes it.

HawaiiTrvlr

I am almost positive that I am going to upgrade my S5 to the S7. I just haven't decided to get the Edge or the regular S7. The debate is the screen protector (the S7 Edge only has a plastic screen protector).

As for the VR, I tried it out yesterday at Best Buy. The phone connects to the headset and you are totally immersed in what you are seeing. For example, you can be in a movie theater watching a movie (or other content). You move your head to look around and see the entire theater. You can change the setting and it is like you are the moon or Mars. Plus there are games you can play. I played an airplane game (you are shooting at other planes). It has an novelty effect to it. It would be fun for a bit but then it would just lay in a drawer for the rest of the time. The drawback that I could see is that you have to buy content from a separate site vs apps on the Apple Store or Play Store. It is called Oculus. You load the app on your phone, buy content, and it loads to your phone. At Best Buy, if you order the phone, you get the VR headset and a $50 credit at the Oculus store. I think I would rather have a free wireless charger.