OT: Android tablet forum or usenet group?

[Dave Liquorice]

Possibly, my tablet doesn't have a SIM slot so anything related to "phone" functions doesn't exist in the supplied OS/apps. I get the impression that the same tablet with a SIM slot does have phone functions. One would need a SIM and phone network that allowed "voice" calls.

With a data only SIM the other possibilty is a proper VOIP client/app on your tablet and a VOIP service from a 3rd party. This may be tricky to set up depending on your data connection provider, they may block the required port(s).

[bod]

Hmm, it'd be interesting to let us know result.

[bod]

[Dave Liquorice]

Mine doesn't. Only the ones with a SIM slot and the relevant radio parts work as phones. Well, natively that is. I guess if I was in suitable WiFi range I could use a VOIP service...

[Tim Watts]

On Friday 12 April 2013 11:02 bod wrote in uk.d-i-y:

Three do not block VoIP. At least to SipGate which I use.

[Dave Liquorice]

For a data/voice SIM I'd agree but for data only? Surely they want you to use as much data as possible?

[Tim Watts]

On Friday 12 April 2013 10:14 bod wrote in uk.d-i-y:

It's not a problem - at least not data wise.

It's quite normal to leave a Skype client running all the time - otherwise people could not call you (for voice, type-chat or video). They do not charge for an idle connection and they be bloody fools to start.

The idle connection uses very little data so it does not affect your 3G limit significantly either.

The main promblem is the ensuing battery drain by having the 3G connection held up and having an app wibbling, albeit quiety, in the background.

This was a problem I found using Bria for VoIP. More recent versions of Android have native SIP support so the problem goes away - well, is considerably reduced anyway. Although the 3G (or WIFI) needs to be held up to receive calls the SIP client is buried within Android and seems very efficient.

[cl]

Yes, sorry, a Samsung Tab 2 3G is what you need if you want it to make phone calls. If it has 3G then it also has the ability to make 'ordinary' phone calls. However this isn't necessarily true of any tablet, I think quite a few which have 3G built in aren't capable of making ordinary phone calls.

[Martin Brown]

I know what you mean. Usually the printed manual says "do not eat", "do not dispose of in fire" and a few other random phrases that must be lawyer boilerplate defence against Americans with single digit IQ.

I have just bought a multizone CH controller and the manual is woeful. The only way I will be able to figure out how to use it on my system is put it into a circuit with test loads and see exactly what switches and when. The documentation specifies which terminals are NO and NC but nothing at all about the transition rules or which clock timers control each of the various outputs (or even what the display looks like!).

There is at least some documentation available though.

[John Williamson]

It depends on the charging model. Voice calls are charged by time, and Skype by data amount, and they may make less profit on the data for a Skype call than the time element of a real phone call. It would also undermine their voice service sales if they allow VoIP.

[Sam Plusnet]

you can/can?t do with them.

make it difficult for them to use the keypad or read the screen on a conventional mobile phone.

messages are incomprehensible.

use a larger keypad on the tablet to send texts and dial numbers.

They?re a bit of a techno-phobe, so it must be simple to operate. I don?t want to spend loads on a top-of-range must-have gadget that may never be used.

Has anyone mentioned that size _is_ important?

A 5 inch phone/tablet will fit in a trouser pocket which means it's pretty easy to carry with you anywhere.

A 7 inch tablet might fit in a jacket pocket, if you have the right kind of jacket, but is less easy to carry around. But the extra screen size makes it easier to view web-sites etc.

A 10 inch... you get the picture.

Handle one or two tablets in a shop & decide what size will meet your needs first, & then start looking at different makes & models.

[David.WE.Roberts]

The issue for me with tablets or PCs is the availability of a dialler.

Without the interface giving you a keypad and dial/hang up buttons you will struggle to use any device as a telephone.

A while back I was looking for an interface to allow me to use my Samsung Galaxy S3 via the PC (much as you would use the Skype user interface combined with a headset to make Skype calls) and I couldn't find one.

The convenience of a large form factor coupled with a modern smart mobile phone should give you a very usable system.

Unfortunately no such luck.

Cheers

Dave R

[bod]

[cl]

The Galaxy Tab is just a big Galaxy s3, you get a big on screen display when you dial, just the same as the s3 but bigger.

[polygonum]

Or the Samsung 6.3in Galaxy Mega smartphone...

[John Rumm]

Indeed. However I tried moving my SIM from my phone to the tablet, and could make normal voice calls on it with no problem.

[John Rumm]

Well these days with skype in and skype out you can have a POTS phone at either end of the call.

(and there are other VoIP services in addition to skype that integrate more naturally on some phones)

[John Rumm]

You can often make emergency calls on a phone even without a sim...

[polygonum]

I have heard so.But not, I fear, if it is a tablet with a data-only SIM. Though I would appreciate confirmation?

[Bob Martin]

So, strictly speaking, it's a phone and not a tablet. The difference is the radio/modem hardware required to make calls. What model is it? A Nexus 7 won't make calls.