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iPhone and a Android phone?
- Thread starter max2
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Can I still use most of the features of a Android phone if it has no sim or esim or been activated ? Like I mean with Wifi. That way I don't have to pay for a cell provider twice or for 2 devices.
Make sure that you get an android phone that uses the same Sim card type and just swap between the two.
Most stuff works. You can even make calls and SMS with services which use VOIP and don't require you to have an active number. Such as Hushed.
Although it might take some digging. You can see if your phone provider has a cheap basic phone second line. I've got an old T-Mobile plan where the secondary lines are non-data for $5 a month each. They actually include unlimited Edge data and 200MB high speed. Which I have for my parents to use as they don't need much. They probably use 50MB at most a month.
Not sure if you could find that now. This is a prepaid plan. You have to really dig for stuff not designed for smartphones now.
I have both mainly to stay familiar with both. Making me faster at setting things up. If a customer needs me to address some IT issue on their phone while I'm on site working on something else. They are also useful as a point of reference if they have a question over the phone.
Other than that. Sometimes it's refreshing to switch. As either becomes too humdrum after a while. Also at night if I want to fiddle with the phone while watching TV. I like to use whichever is not attached to a sim. As I don't take calls or texts in the evening.
I have my iPhone and S21 on me all the time. It might be uncommon in some countries to have more than one phone with an active line, but it is extremely common in Indonesia. That's also why most Android phones sold here have dual SIM. Even old Nokia dumbphones were dual SIM. Most people have at least two numbers.
The advantage of having both?
I think it's more of having multiple carriers for extra coverage. In my country, coverage of each carriers can be spotty, even if you are in the capital city. Also, each carrier charges you more money if you call/text to a user of a different carrier. In my case, I can have three carriers at once, one on my iPhone, two on my S21. Yes, it sounds silly, but sometimes carrier A just have bad signal in an area, and carrier B or C works better. Also, there are times you cannot even make a call despite the full bars. Thus having a backup carrier can be useful.
And no, I'm not paying postpaid. All of my plans are prepaid, and they're quite inexpensive. My main data SIM is about $2 for 30days of 3GB of data. My voice SIM is about 75cents for 30days of 5000minutes calls to same carrier and discounted rate to other carriers. My 3rd SIM is about $1 for 1GB data that is valid as long as the SIM card is valid.
It's unfortunate that the newer iPhones in my country don't have physical dual SIM slot, but they use eSIM instead. The top 3 largest carriers in my country don't support eSIM.
The advantage of having both?
I think it's more of having multiple carriers for extra coverage. In my country, coverage of each carriers can be spotty, even if you are in the capital city. Also, each carrier charges you more money if you call/text to a user of a different carrier. In my case, I can have three carriers at once, one on my iPhone, two on my S21. Yes, it sounds silly, but sometimes carrier A just have bad signal in an area, and carrier B or C works better. Also, there are times you cannot even make a call despite the full bars. Thus having a backup carrier can be useful.
And no, I'm not paying postpaid. All of my plans are prepaid, and they're quite inexpensive. My main data SIM is about $2 for 30days of 3GB of data. My voice SIM is about 75cents for 30days of 5000minutes calls to same carrier and discounted rate to other carriers. My 3rd SIM is about $1 for 1GB data that is valid as long as the SIM card is valid.
It's unfortunate that the newer iPhones in my country don't have physical dual SIM slot, but they use eSIM instead. The top 3 largest carriers in my country don't support eSIM.
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In the US, some have a personal cell phone, and another as their work phone.
I use a Fold 2 and a iPhone 11 Pro Max. Basically I need a solid second line that's not, dependent on my main line or data. I tried using the iPhone with my main line (sim card) and second line (e-sim). But iOS is still too restrictive for me to use long term as my main device. So I just use the iPhone for my second line.
Same here. My primary phone, and the preferred OS, is a Pixel 4XL on an unlimited plan with T-Mo. It's used 90% of the time. I also have an iPhone 11 used for particular apps and for certain business-related communications. That one is on the least expensive Google Fi plan using the eSim. I'm rarely somewhere without a trusted wi-fi network so there's minimal data delivered over cell, maybe a GB or two in a month.
Here in Brazil it used to happen more often. The main reason was to have two numbers and two WhatsApps. Now, with the possibility of using WhatsApp for Business, then many people manage to have just one. I had two phones, but now I use only one.
Well, I take a different approach and use my Android phone with an iPad.
In essence... I get mostly the same iPhone perks using an iPad, it's a cellular iPad. That way I get iMessage and everything included with Apple ecosystem on the go. The only negative is that I don't get the Apple Watch.
In essence... I get mostly the same iPhone perks using an iPad, it's a cellular iPad. That way I get iMessage and everything included with Apple ecosystem on the go. The only negative is that I don't get the Apple Watch.
I used both. My work device is a Android Note 20 and my personal iPhone 12 Pro Max. Best of both worlds.
Same here ... almost
iPhone 12 ProMax is my work device
OnePlus 9 Pro is my personal device
Yes, best of both worlds.
iPhone 12 ProMax is my work device
OnePlus 9 Pro is my personal device
Yes, best of both worlds.
If someone sends an iMessage to the phone number of your Android phone, does it show up on both your Android phone and your iPad?
Unless it's changed recently, no. iMessage is iOS only. Any regular text sent to my iPhone also shows on my Mac though, not just iMessages.
As @michael9891 mention… iMessage is only for Apple devices and Apple hasn’t officially supported it for Android. There’s a couple work arounds, which I tried… but decided it wasn’t good enough. But majority of my family/friends use iMessage to contact me and that’s associated with my email.
When someone sends me a message me via the phone number it goes to Android, which is really only one person in my circle. Which works for me… best of both worlds, I‘m able to get Android and the customization/multitasking that goes with it. And with the iPad.. I’m in the Apple ecosystem.
I used to use my 6S as my primary phone and kept both a cellular enabled tablet for cases where my home internet drops, and an older smartphone as a backup.
Prepaid is so cheap today that currently my S20 FE is my main phone, my Galaxy S4 Mini acts as a cordless home phone/remote control, and a Samsung Galaxy S Relay 4G is my texting device for when I am too lazy or sick to get out of bed. Yeah, I got a Samsung addiction!
All of those active for little more than $50 per month. No forced upgrades, or issues, and many with removable batteries. In the rare case of my S20 FE getting broken or stolen, I have immediate backups. My contacts have all three phone numbers. The tablet only exists for data so no point in anyone having that phone number (although my Galaxy Note 10.1 does do phone calls and texts, oddly.)
I'm one of those older farts who has a drawer full of spare phones that if none of the backups decide to work or they all get broken from a disaster, their SIMs can be popped into a number of backups. I decided years ago to buy redundant devices, tools, etc so I always have a backup. I have more than one vehicle as well. All paid for, no monthly payments. I'm rolling in more $$$ than I can spend each year.
When I popped the SIM from my 6S to my S20 FE, I didn't have the major texting bug that everyone seems to have due to iMessage 'capturing' your phone number. I don't understand why so many do.
Prepaid is so cheap today that currently my S20 FE is my main phone, my Galaxy S4 Mini acts as a cordless home phone/remote control, and a Samsung Galaxy S Relay 4G is my texting device for when I am too lazy or sick to get out of bed. Yeah, I got a Samsung addiction!
All of those active for little more than $50 per month. No forced upgrades, or issues, and many with removable batteries. In the rare case of my S20 FE getting broken or stolen, I have immediate backups. My contacts have all three phone numbers. The tablet only exists for data so no point in anyone having that phone number (although my Galaxy Note 10.1 does do phone calls and texts, oddly.)
I'm one of those older farts who has a drawer full of spare phones that if none of the backups decide to work or they all get broken from a disaster, their SIMs can be popped into a number of backups. I decided years ago to buy redundant devices, tools, etc so I always have a backup. I have more than one vehicle as well. All paid for, no monthly payments. I'm rolling in more $$$ than I can spend each year.
When I popped the SIM from my 6S to my S20 FE, I didn't have the major texting bug that everyone seems to have due to iMessage 'capturing' your phone number. I don't understand why so many do.
Fascinating. Sad to say I kind of have the same situation in the US. I live in a semi-rural area and just driving around different neighborhoods in my one county, I can lose AT&T entirely, but friends with other carriers still have signals. And then we go to a different area or even in certain buildings and some of us will lose signals but others keep them.I have my iPhone and S21 on me all the time. It might be uncommon in some countries to have more than one phone with an active line, but it is extremely common in Indonesia. That's also why most Android phones sold here have dual SIM. Even old Nokia dumbphones were dual SIM. Most people have at least two numbers.
The advantage of having both?
I think it's more of having multiple carriers for extra coverage. In my country, coverage of each carriers can be spotty, even if you are in the capital city. Also, each carrier charges you more money if you call/text to a user of a different carrier. In my case, I can have three carriers at once, one on my iPhone, two on my S21. Yes, it sounds silly, but sometimes carrier A just have bad signal in an area, and carrier B or C works better. Also, there are times you cannot even make a call despite the full bars. Thus having a backup carrier can be useful.
And no, I'm not paying postpaid. All of my plans are prepaid, and they're quite inexpensive. My main data SIM is about $2 for 30days of 3GB of data. My voice SIM is about 75cents for 30days of 5000minutes calls to same carrier and discounted rate to other carriers. My 3rd SIM is about $1 for 1GB data that is valid as long as the SIM card is valid.
It's unfortunate that the newer iPhones in my country don't have physical dual SIM slot, but they use eSIM instead. The top 3 largest carriers in my country don't support eSIM.
When I travel across several states for vacation, I really see how sorry the state of affairs is with coverage. My kid is starting to drive and I warned her don’t expect your cell phone is going to get you out of every jam so be careful where you drive. Avoid the dead zones.
But even though I have two sims, they are both with AT&T. My husband won’t let me try other carriers because we have a good family deal with AT&T and he doesn’t want to pay just to experiment with other carriers.
It annoys me to no end that you can’t tether an Apple Watch to a cellular iPad. I guess if I go Android phone at some point, I can get a sim for the AW and keep my old iPhone 7 Plus around for AW setup duties. The AW sim won’t work when I travel though
Have phones just up and stopped being capable of 'roaming' today? If I lose the main carrier signal to one of my phones, say a Verizon phone, it shows just bars, no data, and nothing works, not even phone calls. I'm guessing it's roaming but it neither shows it nor does anything work. Not even basic carrier stuff such as SMS or phone calls. Shows network type as simply 'unknown'
I used to remember Verizon being able to roam and showed 'extended network' but that hasn't been a thing since 2014 here. If my T-Mobile S Relay loses T-Mobile it simply shows 'no service' and my AT&T-based tablet the same. Actually, in an industrial park near work, they still got a short range employee-used AMPS tower up (similar to low-power analog TV being exempted) and my S-Relay has actually found the signal, but can't use it obviously. Probably the strongest signal it picks up (I am still miffed the FCC banned analog, was the best signal strength and used everywhere.)
I used to remember Verizon being able to roam and showed 'extended network' but that hasn't been a thing since 2014 here. If my T-Mobile S Relay loses T-Mobile it simply shows 'no service' and my AT&T-based tablet the same. Actually, in an industrial park near work, they still got a short range employee-used AMPS tower up (similar to low-power analog TV being exempted) and my S-Relay has actually found the signal, but can't use it obviously. Probably the strongest signal it picks up (I am still miffed the FCC banned analog, was the best signal strength and used everywhere.)
If I wasn't mistaken, most Android phones in the US are not dual Sim capable, thus making it harder to do what I'm doing here in my country. On recent iPhone, you can convert your primary line to eSIM and then use a secondary carrier as a physical Sim. Then it's just a matter of finding cheap plans for the backup Sim.