Ok. So I bought the T-mobile Rapport/huawei u8180/u80160/8150/Orange Stockholm/etc etc etc….It cost me £40 from here.
This is the cheapest way to get a modern, functional, android phone.
It has GPS, 3G, Wifi, Tethering, so on and so on. It's good, but a bit slow once loaded with apps. But I can make it faster!
It did everything I wanted it to....Play Doodle Jump.
-It came with a 2gb micro SD card too.
-Unfortunately I couldn't get the T-mobile 6months free internet without topping up, so I passed on that.
-Also the so called £20 of free apps is not available anymore.
- I use GiffGaff simcard.
This is how you make it lighter, and faster:
I rooted the phone using 'SuperOneClick'
-first: plug the phone via usb, and let windows install the drivers
-set the phone to 'debugging' mode - how to
- turn off the phone, remove the battery, count to five, replace the battery.
- press and hold the silver button at the bottom of the screen, and also the 'volume down' button on the right side of the phone. While holding these press and also hold the 'power on' button.
-the phone should appear to get 'stuck' on the t-mobile startup screen. if the phone loads into android - retry.
-once 'stuck', again plug in the phone via usb cable.
- let windows install more drivers
- run superoneclick, and press 'root' button.
- a popup message should/will appear asking you if you want to force install adm drivers. click yes.
- for me, another similar popup came next for another pci-based device. I clicked 'no' for this because I don't need android drivers on my soundcard lol.
- wait, wait, wait...And eventually, a popup message appears saying it has been successful.
- To check success - restart your phone - look in the app menu and there should be an app called 'superuser'
- Win! You have just rooted your phone.
Then you need to do this:
Installing ROM Manager & ClockworkMod
Find ROM Manager from the App Market and install it.
Open the ROM Manager application. Choose the option Flash ClockworkMod Recovery, and confirm the phone model as Huawei U8160.
After downloading the recovery image, a Superuser prompt will ask you for permission for the application to have root access. You should Allow this action.
ClockworkMod should now be flashed to your phone and ROM Manager should be fully functional. Enjoy!
Then you need to do this to install a fantastic new version of Android on your phone:
-Installation:
-Open the ROM Manager application.
-Ensure that you have the latest ClockworkMod build by checking the version information in the Flash ClockworkMod Recovery section, and updating if necessary.
-Select Download ROM -> psyke83.
-Select the ROM version that you wish to download, and press the Download button.
-You will see a popup: ROM Addons. Place a checkmark beside the entry for the latest Hotfix (if one exists) and for the Google Apps (even if you already installed the package on your current ROM). If there are other ROM Addons available, choose them at your own discretion.
-When the download completes, you'll see a ROM Pre-Installation dialogue. Here are the options with an explanation of what to select:
-Backup Existing ROM - this will make a full backup of your current ROM and user settings before proceeding to install the ROM. This is entirely optional.
-Wipe Data and Cache - this will wipe all user data. If you're upgrading from Froyo or any other custom ROM, you must select this option (and a backup is also recommended, since your apps and data will be wiped). Otherwise, don't select this.
-Wipe Dalvik Cache - this will ensure that the ROM upgrade works smoothly by forcing all applications to rewrite their dalvik cache (.dex files). This is a non-destructive option that should be used by everyone.
-Press OK to allow ROM Manager to reboot into ClockworkMod Recovery and perform the installation.
-When installation finishes, the phone will automatically reboot.
-Note: if you chose any of the "wipe" options, the first boot of the new ROM will take 5 minutes or longer (depending on how many applications you have installed) in order to regenerate the dalvik cache.
You now have A faster phone, with:
-more free RAM,
-Android version 2.3,
-an app to overclock your processor to 600mhz+ (I use 633mhz safely),
-an opportunity to install an app called 'ad free' which will remove all adverts in browser and apps
-no FBI monitoring app called 'carrier IQ'
-other stuff that's better.
I recommend these apps:
-ad free
-barcode scanner
-compass
-xe currency
-dropbox (you can use this to send downloaded apps from your pc to your phone)
-doodle jump
-endomondo
-gps status
-guardian lite
-mm tracker (to use downloaded os maps)
-natural alarm
-pixlr-o-matic
-opera mini
-wireless tether
-tunein radio
-voipstunt
Wish I could have an iplayer app, as the official one won't work because the phone doesn't support Adobe Flash (like a lot of android phones and iphones don't) - beebplayer does not work for me. I only really want to listen to bbc 6 music. fml. *update: I found an app called Tune in pro that plays 6 music.
Now you can also 'unlock' your phone to any network:
-the cheapest way is ebay (about £7 average price)
-using 'dc unlocker' requires '10 credits' for the phone code which costs 10euro. However, if you wait until 2013, after the big financial meltdown, this should not be a problem as we should all be using the honour system by then.
-I am working on unlock codes for £2. Bear with me.
