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Walmart Galaxy S2 and Wifi and Skype?

A

andmhe

Newbie
Questions:

1. Does the S2 from Walmart using the $30 plan (web and text, 100 minutes voice) support Wifi? (I ask because neither the Walmart site nor the Samsung site mentions Wifi for the T-Mobile version -- though I may have missed it).

2. Can Skype be used to make free calls using Wifi -- or are the minutes deducted from the T-Mobile limit?

3. If Skype can be used to make free calls (or calls to land lines using Skype credit), what is the reason to use T-Mobile's Wifi calling (which seems to use T-Mobile minutes)?
 
i use grooveip or talkatone they only use data while making a call no minutes deducted im pretty sure the s2 has wifi and yes tmo wifi calling uses minutes
 
S2 can certainly do Wifi. Most smart phone do. Not the super cheap or the clamp shell phone.

Skype is free on any data to anyone that is using Skype at the other end.

I dont know the answer to 3.
 
Thanks for all your help on these questions.

Glad to hear the S2 has Wifi -- as I was worried that the low Walmart price meant that some features were missing.
 
lightsleeper23 said:
$300 is a low price? Maybe for a phone with specs like the nexus 4. But for an S2? Not in my opinion.
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t-mobile was still charging full price back in January if you got one through one of there stores. $299 is cheap... But I just checked and t-mo is giving them away free now with the 2 year plan.

1=Yes
2=Yes
3=???
 
dontpanicbobby said:
t-mobile was still charging full price back in January if you got one through one of there stores. $299 is cheap... But I just checked and t-mo is giving them away free now with the 2 year plan.
Click to expand...

Full price in January? What was that? An att store was pushing an S2 on me for $80 last summer like a month before the S3 came out. To me personally $300 for a phone that's like a year and a half old, with specs that today make it a mid range phone, is not cheap. Not outrageous either, but not cheap. But I'm not a Samsung galaxy fanboy either. (Not that you are, I have no idea) I just don't think that phone has a place, for that price. Especially considering what you can get for $300 in the Nexus 4, there's just no way I'd ever consider paying that. But that's just me. I'm not comparing that phone to its own price in the past, I'm comparing it to other phones I can get on the market today.
 
I saved it and fixed it using information I got here! I'll admit I panicked and should have waited for a reply. The link for the whole situation is in my 2nd post in this thread. I ended up giving the old Black S2 to my daughter who was using a My Touch 4G with a cracked screen. I got a white one.
 
andmhe said:
Questions:

....

3. If Skype can be used to make free calls (or calls to land lines using Skype credit), what is the reason to use T-Mobile's Wifi calling (which seems to use T-Mobile minutes)?
Click to expand...

"Skype Out" is a monthly plan that allows for calls to the PSTN, where one can use their cell number as the caller ID. "Skype In" is a separate plan, requiring a unique number, so if you want to receive calls, while on Skype via wi-fi, you'll have to provide that number to your caller(s).

I went this route, $3/mo. for Out, $6/mo. for In, when purchased in advance...for all the trouble, I wound up just going from 500 min. T-Mo plan to the Unlimited.
 
I purposely chose the S2 over the Galaxy Nexus and still prefer it to the 4. I've messed around a little with both and didn't find anything I preferred (bloatware aside, which I've disabled). I even prefer the slightly smaller screen; if I'm going bigger I'm going 5+. :D
 
Hey everyone's entitled to a personal preference, no matter how weird it may seem to other people. Some guys even like to wear a ponytail. If you'd rather pay the same amount for an S2 rather than a Nexus 4 that's totally cool. Whatever floats your boat.
 
Thanks to everyone for your help and suggestions.

I ended up ordering the S2 for $329 ($299 plus the $30 plan for one month) . It was the lowest price I could find for an S2 that would pair with T-Mobile's $30/month plan (unlimited data and text, 100 minutes talk, NO contract).

For me, the $30 plan is important, as it fits my needs (use data, but hardly ever talk) -- and over time, it represents the main cost of owning the phone.

The LG Optimus L9 looked good also, but the 4GB memory limit worried me (probably unnecessarily as I don't use memory intensive applications, at least not yet). It seems a good choice also.
 
Why you get a older model? It has 4 button at the bottom which is older Android OS.

Are you going to root it to get free Wifi? N4 you dont have to do a thing to get this free.
 
Chong67, based on your prior reply (#3), I understood that the S2 comes with Wifi, and that Wifi is free (when connecting to nearby routers).

I'm okay about getting an older model, and I'm okay if the S2 is not a good as some other model. But if Wifi on the S2 is not free (for web access, e-mail, Skype, etc.), then that's a problem.
 
they only thing you will get charged for using wifi is if you use tmobiles wifi calling thats it you lose your minutes thats what you lose
 
Thanks dontpanicbobby.

My expectations with this T-Mobile $30/month (plus taxes) contract and the S2 phone are, per month:

  • unlimited data and text at 4G speeds (over 5GB, at 2G speeds)
  • 100 minutes talk via T-Mobile network (or via T-Mobile "Wifi calling")
  • unlimited Wifi access to nearby routers (even if the plan expires)
  • after the plan expires, all features except T-Mobile access continue to work

If the package doesn't do this, I'll try to return it.
 
lightsleeper23 said:
Full price in January? What was that? An att store was pushing an S2 on me for $80 last summer like a month before the S3 came out. To me personally $300 for a phone that's like a year and a half old, with specs that today make it a mid range phone, is not cheap. Not outrageous either, but not cheap. But I'm not a Samsung galaxy fanboy either. (Not that you are, I have no idea) I just don't think that phone has a place, for that price. Especially considering what you can get for $300 in the Nexus 4, there's just no way I'd ever consider paying that. But that's just me. I'm not comparing that phone to its own price in the past, I'm comparing it to other phones I can get on the market today.
Click to expand...

I think you are confusing the subsidized price with the actual phone price. The $299 for the S2 is to buy the phone outright and use it on a prepaid plan, whereas the $80 price from AT&T you mention is the subsidized price on a two year contract.

Midrange phones, when you buy them outright, do cost $300. Low end phones can cost $150 (or more, depending on how you define low end). New phones cost $600 or more; for example, the Note 2 is $700. It is part of why people think the Nexus 4 is such a great deal -- $350 for a high end phone.
 
No I know the difference. $80 was for a new line. He said he was charged like $500 in january. Which I thought was crazy, even considering it's not a new line.

And I realize $300 is pretty standard for a mid range. The S2 isn't necessarily a mid range...NOW it is specs-wise. But its really just an old flagship. Which is fine, same difference either way. I said $300 isn't terrible. I just wouldn't consider it cheap. High end of standard maybe. The Nexus is cheap. The L9 is cheap. The tmobile walmart S2 is standard to slightly high.
 
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