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My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2018 3:16 am
by Kasey Chang
Last Wednesday, I managed to crack the screen on my Galaxy S6.

After studying various options, I went ahead and use a local shop to replace the front glass on Saturday. It was done within an hour. It was working great. I used it Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, with no issues other than the two capacitive buttons (back and recent) no longer light up, but it's not a big deal.

I used the phone most of today, keeping the phone charged with my battery pack. I finished all but 12 boxes. I decided to take a break, found the local Safeway supermarket, locked the car, went into use the restroom. Came back out. Put the phone back on the holder. Press home to turn on the screen...

Nothing.

Okay, hold the power button down for a second.

Nothing.

WTF? Hold the power button for 15 seconds.

Still Nothing.

By this time, I started to panic. I'm somewhere in San Jose / Milpitas. All of my assignments are in the phone. I don't even know what number to call for help without my phone's contact list. And it turns out there is no tech store in the shopping center I'm in, except Staples, and they don't sell cell phones. I went in any way, they told me to try to find McCarthy Ranch. Except I managed to miss it, and got disoriented, and got lost. A full hour later, (it was already dark here) I found someone willing to let me Google on her phone, and waded through traffic and eventually found my way to McCarthy Ranch and Best Buy, and I am now the proud owner of a Moto X4, bought outright, no payment plan, but I know I overpaid. (sigh)

However, Google's security means I can't get back into my accounts without some other verification, and I was unable to download any apps, so I can't do my boxes. I have no choice but to drive back with 12 undelivered boxes. Took me another 30 minutes to undo my security (the phone was also authenticator) so I can get back into my Google account, then install the Lyft app so I can go home.

I've been spending the last 3 hours trying to reconfigure my phone back to the way it was. And now the phone's usable. Sorta.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2018 3:36 am
by Kasey Chang
As it turns out, Best Buy stocks the Moto X4, but none of the accessories.

Fortunately, my cellphone larnyard is in, so I will have to just hang the phone around my neck to make sure the phone stays on me, until the case I order rush on Amazon gets here.

Frankly, this is unacceptable. I am ALSO going to order a used Galaxy S6 on Swappa. When that gets here, I'll decide whether I should return the X4 to BB for a refund (minus 35 restocking fee), or just go with two phones (I can use a different number, existing one is getting 2-4 spam calls a day)

Basically, I've wasted the 194 I spent on repairing the S6. ARGH. :roll:

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2018 5:14 am
by Daehawk
Good God Kasey everything I read from you lately screams that you are spending a lot more money to try and make money. All the stuff you've ordered and now phones phones phones. I feel like you're trying to earn $100 by spending $1000 on all you need to make that $100. Am I alone guys?

Why not take the broken phone back to the repair place and make them repair it free as it was fine other than the screen before their work. Surely they have a policy for repairs.

For some reason in my head I thought you were low on cash yet all I see you post is stuff you buy..some of it very expensive. I dont know what you're doing actually or how you're doing it man :) Maybe Im fully off base as I feel like I am in my daily life these days.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2018 10:35 am
by Isgrimnur
Time to screenshot your authenticator recovery keys and put the screenshots in a Dropbox account.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2018 10:52 am
by Kasey Chang
With this job, my financial situation was much better than before. I had whittled my credit card debt down to under $1000, but this week suddenly added another $500 debt to it. (I keep about $1000 in my bank account for reserve) I had hoped to clear all debt by December, which I can still do, but it's still a PITA.

I don't have TIME to take it back to the repair shop until Friday (which I do have "off"). I still need a WORKING phone in the meanwhile. I am already in a **** place for leaving 12 boxes undelivered yesterday.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2018 11:21 am
by gilraen
Since the phone is essential to your job, maybe you should reconsider getting used phones from random sources on Swappa and just keep the brand-new phone that you just got. Especially since with your luck, whatever you might save on a used phone you'll end up spending on repairs or on a warranty repair plan that you then don't end up using because the deductible is too high.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2018 11:15 pm
by Kasey Chang
And that's exactly what I did. :) I said I ordered a GS6 off Swappa, didn't I? :-D

I think I'm keeping the Moto X4. It actually managed to survive the whole day without recharging, despite using GPS all the time. And my investment in a premium Anker charger paid off: the charger was able to put 6% charge in 6 minutes (between one of the deliveries), and that's pretty remarkable. Though it's not a true "Power Delivery USB-C" charger.

Managed to survive today in the rain. The X4 is actually IP65 and IP67 water resistant (1.5M submersion) so rain didn't hurt it at all. And the tether worked, not that I'd ever drop the phone. Still, it was a nervous day as the phone's currently naked (no case) except for the tether.

(I on the other hand didn't fare too well. My rain pants worked, but my packable jacket turned out to be NOT waterproof as I thought it was. Nor were my shoes. So I spent half of my shift wet. Just ordered "Frog Togz" rain suit on Amazon. )

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 12:49 am
by Rumpy
Kasey Chang wrote: Wed Nov 21, 2018 3:16 am
However, Google's security means I can't get back into my accounts without some other verification


This is one thing I really hate about everything wanting to live on your phone. You lose it and you effectively lose your lifeline. I had my phone and tablet stolen about 2 years ago, and it was quite scary. Even if I had had two-factor enabled, I doubt it would have helped much given who would have control at the other end. That's what really scares me about all this and the more and more I think about it, the more it makes me want to limit my digital footprint.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 2:06 am
by Daehawk
Why must I keep reading this title as "My lunch ran out" ??

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sat Nov 24, 2018 5:52 pm
by Kasey Chang
This is weird as f***...

I was on my way to drop off the phone at the repair shop when I decided to try it one more time. And it just came back to life. It was able to boot and everything. It only had a few percent of power (having sat on the shelf all week) so I'm recharging it now and waiting.

Now I am torn. Do I sell it / give it away to a friend, and use the used phone I have coming from Swappa, keep using the Moto X4, or both?

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:52 pm
by hitbyambulance
Kasey Chang wrote: Sat Nov 24, 2018 5:52 pm Now I am torn. Do I sell it / give it away to a friend, and use the used phone I have coming from Swappa, keep using the Moto X4, or both?
... why do you need two phones? i think that would be a decision you'd come to quickly regret. return the new phone to Best Buy. you said you overpaid for it anyways, right? seems like a no-brainer to me.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2018 3:31 am
by Rumpy
Could it be that it simply was too low to even function and show you any life? I know that if it's under a certain percentage it will be too low to power up the screen to show anything, even battery status. Kind of sounds like it's what was happening.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2018 12:46 pm
by Kasey Chang
Rumpy wrote: Sun Nov 25, 2018 3:31 am Could it be that it simply was too low to even function and show you any life? I know that if it's under a certain percentage it will be too low to power up the screen to show anything, even battery status. Kind of sounds like it's what was happening.
The phone was at 70% power and inside a battery charging case when it died. The only thing that made sense was it somehow "overheated", but it didn't feel warm at the time... Weird.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2018 1:04 pm
by Kasey Chang
hitbyambulance wrote: Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:52 pm ... why do you need two phones? i think that would be a decision you'd come to quickly regret. return the new phone to Best Buy. you said you overpaid for it anyways, right? seems like a no-brainer to me.
So I have a backup? :)

With that said, the new phone is much more responsive and has as good battery life, WITHOUT the battery case. And I just figured out a way to hang the lanyard on it, so it cannot be dropped.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2018 2:29 pm
by Rumpy
Kasey Chang wrote: Sun Nov 25, 2018 12:46 pm
Rumpy wrote: Sun Nov 25, 2018 3:31 am Could it be that it simply was too low to even function and show you any life? I know that if it's under a certain percentage it will be too low to power up the screen to show anything, even battery status. Kind of sounds like it's what was happening.
The phone was at 70% power and inside a battery charging case when it died. The only thing that made sense was it somehow "overheated", but it didn't feel warm at the time... Weird.

In my experience, that could be a sign of a dying battery. Sometimes they misreport percentage when they're about to go and have trouble holding a charge.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2018 3:28 pm
by Kasey Chang
Another reason not to return the X4.

Speaking of which, I think my Swappa-sourced S6 has also arrived. :) Time to make a backup of my phone and restore on the new phone, and hopefully it'll be smooth.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2018 4:13 pm
by hitbyambulance
Kasey Chang wrote: Sun Nov 25, 2018 1:04 pm
hitbyambulance wrote: Sat Nov 24, 2018 11:52 pm ... why do you need two phones? i think that would be a decision you'd come to quickly regret. return the new phone to Best Buy. you said you overpaid for it anyways, right? seems like a no-brainer to me.
So I have a backup? :)
you said earlier in this thread you were entertaining the idea of getting two active lines. why would you do that.
Kasey Chang wrote: Wed Nov 21, 2018 3:36 am
Frankly, this is unacceptable. I am ALSO going to order a used Galaxy S6 on Swappa. When that gets here, I'll decide whether I should return the X4 to BB for a refund (minus 35 restocking fee), or just go with two phones (I can use a different number, existing one is getting 2-4 spam calls a day)


and in the other thread:
Kasey Chang wrote: Thu Nov 22, 2018 2:40 am Eventually managed to locate a BB and bought a Moto X4... And obviously, well overpaid. Paid $300 + tax. Similar model is on Amazon now for $179. :-P But beggers can't be choosers.
at the very least, you could return the overpriced device to Best Buy and get it from Amazon (*if* you're really set on that phone model - it sounds to me like you bought it out of duress and not because you researched what you actually wanted) and reclaim ~$120.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2018 4:39 pm
by Kasey Chang
The one on Amazon is a slightly different model. It is powered by Alexa instead of Google.

As for two lines, I kinda want to lose my present line. Too many spam calls. Up to 3-4 a day. I once had it listed as my business number. What a mistake.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2018 1:10 pm
by Kasey Chang
After living with the X4 for a week, I like the X4 MUCH better.

Fantastic battery life (without a powerbank case like in my S6) can probably use it most of the day without recharging, and the Turbocharger, as mentioned before, can put in more than 1% charge per minute. I saw the charge go up from 40% to 90% in 30 minutes. That's even faster than the QuickCharge 3 charger I got. And it's virtually the same size as my S6. And MUCH more responsive overall. Only complaint is the sensitivity in the upper left corner is not as good as the rest of the screen, but it could be due to the way I positioned the tempered glass screen protector (it's slightly crooked).

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2018 2:11 pm
by stessier
Well, it is 2 years newer than the S6, so it kind of makes sense. :)

Glad it's working for you and you like it!

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2018 2:18 pm
by Isgrimnur
My wife's S6 Active was circling the drain. She didn't see the need to lay out $800-$1000 for a new phone, so she did some research for some ruggedized devices and would up getting the Ulephone Armor 2. IP68 rated against dust and water with an 8-core processor. Aside from losing her face buttons, she likes it.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2018 2:24 pm
by Kasey Chang
Isgrimnur wrote: Fri Nov 30, 2018 2:18 pm My wife's S6 Active was circling the drain. She didn't see the need to lay out $800-$1000 for a new phone, so she did some research for some ruggedized devices and would up getting the Ulephone Armor 2. IP68 rated against dust and water with an 8-core processor. Aside from losing her face buttons, she likes it.
Very nice specs. And 6GB of RAM, very rare on a budget phone. The only concern is when is it getting Android PIE? Updates from Asian manufacturers typically had been even slower than American vendors/carriers.

FWIW, my Moto X4 is IP68 water resistant, but not dust resistant.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2018 3:30 pm
by Isgrimnur
The 6 is the dust resistance rating.

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2018 1:44 pm
by jztemple2
Isgrimnur wrote: Sun Dec 02, 2018 3:30 pm The 6 is the dust resistance rating.
Wow, you learn something new every day. Very cool and thanks for the link :wub:

Re: My luck in tech seems to have ran out...

Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2018 1:45 pm
by Isgrimnur
jztemple2 wrote: Tue Dec 04, 2018 1:44 pm
Isgrimnur wrote: Sun Dec 02, 2018 3:30 pm The 6 is the dust resistance rating.
Wow, you learn something new every day. Very cool and thanks for the link :wub:
Glad to be of assistance.