HoFo Blog

Today two new phones join Google's Pixel family, both supporting North America's nascent 5G networks. Notable specs are as follows:



Pixel 5
6 inch always-on FHD+ OLED display @ 90 Hz
Snapdragon 765G processor
8 GB RAM / 128 GB storage
12.2 MP OIS rear camera + 16 MP ultrawide
8 MP selfie cam
4,000 mAh battery, 18 W fast charging
Just Black, Sorta Sage colourways
$699 USD / $799 CAD
Pre-order now / in stores October 15th



Pixel 4a with 5G
6.24 inch always-on FHD+ OLED display @ 60 Hz
Snapdragon 765G processor
6 GB RAM / 128 GB storage
12.2 MP OIS rear camera + 16 MP ultrawide
8 MP selfie cam
Headphone jack (!)
3,800 mAh battery, 18 W fast charging
Just Black colourway (+ exclusive White colourway for Verizon)
$499 USD ($599 for Verizon) / $679 CAD
Join waiting list now / in stores this November

Sources: Google Canada Store (1) (2) GSM Arena, The Verge

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

The Galaxy S20 FE can be yours for $0 with this Best Buy deal

The new Motorola Razr is what the first one should have been

iPhone 12 64GB Model Said to be Confirmed, Apple Event to Take Place on October 13th

OnePlus could launch five more devices alongside OnePlus 8T

What to expect from Google’s Pixel 5 event

From The Forums:

Is there any way to see your complete plan details including credits?

121 More Cities & Towns Just Got T‑Mobile’s Supercharged 5G

Text messages not going through

Calls go straight to VM until phones rebooted

Netgear Nightawk and unlimited plan

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

The Inside Story of How Signal Became the Private Messaging App for an Age of Fear and Distrust

PSA: No, iOS 14 widgets can’t secretly steal private info with your keyboard

Best Android Apps in 2020

Germany Smartphone Sales Plunge 27% in Q2 2020; Apple, Xiaomi Gain

Huawei CFO to attend hearings in Supreme Court this week

From The Forums:

ATT Prepaid

I’ve HAD IT WITH TRACFONE!

Testing Boost?

Yahoo mobile

MMS problems Sonim XP3

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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It's time for a new thread of the week, our way of recognizing forum members for promoting valuable discussion here.

Every weekday yours truly posts a morning briefing, including the most popular forum threads—that is, the posts with the most replies—for the previous 24 hour period. For reference, here are the briefings for the past seven days:

Your Morning Briefing for Monday, September 21st, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Tuesday, September 22nd, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Wednesday, September 23rd, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Thursday, September 24th, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Friday, September 25th, 2020

Remember that the Monday briefing includes forum posts from the prior Saturday and Sunday, so all weekend posts are similarly eligible.

In each briefing, forum posts are ranked by the number of replies (from highest to lowest). That's subject to change, of course, so I did a quick recount of replies for all forum posts in the briefings above. With 38 replies as of this posting the most popular thread started last week is:

Roaming 311-490 (Sprint): Is it the SIM?

Congrats to DRNewcomb for starting our forty-third thread of the week! As a small token of our appreciation, please enjoy a month of Gold Membership on us!

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

Top 10 trending phones of week 39

Counterpoint: Average selling price of smartphones rises 10% globally in Q2 2020

Galaxy S20 FE deal alert: Samsung's brand-new phone is $100 off at Best Buy and Amazon

Judge Temporarily Blocks US Ban on New TikTok Downloads

COVID tracing app roundup: All of the countries and US states that currently offer exposure notification apps

From The Forums:

SoCal (Los Angeles North/Santa Clarita) 5G review/opinion.

Connected Devices---- VZW cheaper

What unlocked 5g phones work on all 5g networks currently? (at least two out of three)

Does anyone use nPerf or Coverage Map

Possible way to tell if your TF/AT&T line is VoLTE enabled

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

It’s official: the OnePlus 8T will support 65W fast charging

Google Pixel 5 rumoured to cost $799.99 in Canada

Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 3 Review – The Smartwatch Upgrade That Wear OS Needs

iPhones dominate the top 10 smartphones sold in the US during first week of September

Spotify, Epic, Tile, Match, and more are rallying developers against Apple’s App Store policies

From The Forums:

freedompop basic activation

roaming on Tmobile MVNO?

What sim we ill i get, gsm or vzw

Videos sent from desktop PC to phone via Bluetooth don't always show up

New Samsung Link Cell to solve indoor mmWave 5G woes

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

11 new Android 11 features you should know about

A $699 Pixel 5 could be the bargain of the year — if Google gets it right

US carriers announce Samsung Galaxy S20 FE pricing and availability

Telus Named Fastest Network in the World, 5G Expands to More Cities

MWC 2021 delayed from March to June 2021 due to COVID-19 concerns

From The Forums:

Tracfone unlocking

iPhone 8 Plus New Plan

SIMs attached to specific IMEI?

Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G (Free with a new line, $500 off with trade-in)

5g deployment

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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Today Samsung launched their Galaxy S20 FE—and for us lucky North Americans the S20 FE 5G. I didn't really get it either, until I read the byline from the press release: "Fan Favorite Features at an Accessible Price Point". This phone also replaces the Galaxy S10 Lite from earlier this year, so maybe that'll help going forward.

Specs for the 5G-enabled FE are as follows:

6.5 inch flat FHD+ 120 Hz Super AMOLED Infinity-O display
Snapdragon 865 processor
6 GB RAM / 128 GB storage + microSD
12 MP ultra-wide / 12 MP wide / 8 MP telephoto rear cameras
32 MP selfie cam
4,500 mAh battery
Cloud Lavender / Mint / Navy / Orange / Red / White colourways
$950 CAD
$699 USD ($749 for MmWave support on Verizon)

Fans can pre-order their FEs starting today; regular sales start on October 2nd.

Sources: Samsung Mobile Press, Mobile Syrup, XDA

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

Users are Getting Creative with Custom App Icons on iOS 14

Apple iOS 14 review

Is Apple One a bargain? It’s complicated

British Carrier Says 5G iPhone Just 'Days Away' in Internal Video Featuring Apple's Eddy Cue

Report: New 5.4-inch iPhone to be called 'iPhone 12 mini'

From The Forums:

ATT joins Verizon in raising concerns over Magenta’s spectrum cache

Tracfone just erased over 10GB of my data

Will these headphones work for FM radio?

Has anyone purchased a Tracfone 365-day SIM for $49 on eBay and waited almost a year to activate it?

Why doesn’t AT&T buy US Cellular?

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

Android 11—The Ars Technica Review

Early Google Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a (5G) retailer listings confirm two colours and sole 128 GB storage option

Unannounced Samsung Galaxy S20 Fan Edition gets detailed on video

OnePlus 8T tipped to launch on October 14

OnePlus 8T price leaks, you won't like it

From The Forums:

Most Senior Citizen Friendly Tracfone Phone

Mobi.com $9.99 U/L T&T 1GB LTE beta launch, e-sim coming soon

Smartphone plan OK to use on Feature Phone?

Where does AT&T own both sides of the 850 MHZ?

Trouble using Redpocket with new Moto G6 unlocked phone on CDMAV

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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More at CNBC (paywall) and MacRumors

It's time for a new thread of the week, our way of recognizing forum members for promoting valuable discussion here.

Every weekday yours truly posts a morning briefing, including the most popular forum threads—that is, the posts with the most replies—for the previous 24 hour period. For reference, here are the briefings for the past seven days:

Your Morning Briefing for Monday, September 14th, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Tuesday, September 15th, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Wednesday, September 16th, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Thursday, September 17th, 2020
Your Morning Briefing for Friday, September 18th, 2020

Remember that the Monday briefing includes forum posts from the prior Saturday and Sunday, so all weekend posts are similarly eligible.

In each briefing, forum posts are ranked by the number of replies (from highest to lowest). That's subject to change, of course, so I did a quick recount of replies for all forum posts in the briefings above. With 99 replies as of this posting the most popular thread started last week is:

Verizon to buy Tracfone

Congrats to thu1227 for starting our forty-second thread of the week! As a small token of our appreciation, please enjoy a month of Gold Membership on us!

---------
Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
---------

From The Web:

Top 10 trending phones of week 38

U.S. judge halts Trump administration's order to remove WeChat from app stores

TikTok deal with Oracle and Walmart gets Trump’s approval ‘in concept’

It's Impossible for You to Know Which Apps Sell Your Location Data to Trump

Rogers Says Wireless Prices Falling in Canada, Shares 'Facts Nobody is Telling You'

From The Forums:

Is a 5g phone more likely to default to band 71?

Red pocket upgraded there annual plan to 7gb

Changing tower to eliminate "I am roaming" message - tracfone smartphone

Roaming 311-490 (Sprint): Is it the SIM?

T-Mobile in eastern Iowa

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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This morning the U.S. Department of Commerce announced its intention to ban two of China's most popular software titles from Android and iOS app stores. It's unclear if they will remain available to users in markets outside of the USA.

Why is this happening? National security, according to the official release:

Sounds scary... But this Canadian would like to humbly remind you of the CLOUD Act, giving American intelligence services their own means to access the personal data of users around the world. To be clear, I'm no fan of the CCP and use neither of these apps. At the same time, this decision reeks of U.S. protectionism as much as anything else.

I've no strong opinion on TikTok (except that social media is generally a cancer) but the WeChat ban is certainly going to suck for anyone who depends on it to keep up with family and friends worldwide.

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce via XDA

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

Apple Watch Series 6 is a welcome update to the reigning smartwatch champ

Apple Watch SE reviews: The best of the Series 4 and Series 6 with few compromises

watchOS 7 Removes Force Touch Support From Your Apple Watch, Here's Everything That's Changed

Diesel's new smartwatch is either garishly ugly or strikingly beautiful

Google fixes odd bug that made some Pixel Buds audio cut out at 1:50 intervals

From The Forums:

Rebranding possible of iphone locked to Total Wireless ?

How/Why Does Total Wireless Want Customers To Get A New SIM Card When You Switch Phones?

Credit bureaus

T-Mobile is advising customers to use newer SIM card to access standalone 5G

Switched to US Mobile.... problems...

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

How to download and install iOS 14 and iPadOS 14

How Long Does Apple Support Older iPhone Models?

OnePlus Nord N10 5G coming to the U.S. with Snapdragon 690, 90Hz display for under $400

Google Pixel 5: Pricing, specs, release date, images, and everything else we know

AT&T thinks you'll put up with ads in exchange for a cheaper phone bill

From The Forums:

Just signed up for the free Hot Spot Trial - questions

“Line on us,” starts again: 9/18

T-Mobile pre-paid eSIM (after 50GB used, LTE no longer available)

T-Mobile's Support Forum: It pays to watch.

Give me this NOW

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

Apple’s ‘Time Flies’ event: the 9 biggest announcements

Apple One: Release date, price, and everything else

Apple One Plans Will Save You Up to $32/month in Canada

Spotify says Apple One bundle is a 'threat to collective freedom'

I did my entire job from the Galaxy Z Fold2 for a day

From The Forums:

Boost iphone 6 plus on VZW?

i need help: im 2 days past return date but i had covid those 14 days

Can’t change plan

Does Sim Card Gold side need to face down?

Dish’s new 600 MHz lease to T-Mobile could trigger C-band moves

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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From The Web:

What to Expect from Apple’s September Special Event: Apple Watch, iPad, No iPhones

Google to launch Pixel 5, new Chromecast, and smart speaker on September 30th

LG Wing goes official with swiveling design, Snapdragon 765G

Here’s what the new OnePlus 8T will look like

US Customs doubles down on OnePlus Buds seizure, says they violate Apple trademark

From The Forums:

Verizon to buy Tracfone

Verizon Buys Tracfone

Verizon now owns Tracfone

Sale of TracFone to Verizon

tracfone/verizon

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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Discuss the news on the Tracfone forum here, or the Verizon forum here.

Source: Verizon Press Release via The Verge

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Andrew Currie has been blogging about mobile phones since 2001, smartphones (depending on how you define them) since 2002 and smartwatches since 2014.
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