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  • 2 weeks later...
On 5/22/2019 at 2:42 PM, Danger said:

Looking to get a new phone. Can't decide Google Pixel 3a or Moto G7.

For the price, the 3a might be the best phone you can buy. Just don't expect perfection all the way through. If a camera is important to you, doubt you'll find one that's better

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  • 3 weeks later...

Question regarding burning of CD's.

I have a pretty big collection of music CD's and saved most of them onto the hard drive of my computer a long time ago.  At the time, hard drives didn't have anywhere near the capacity of what we have today, so I saved them with a bit rate of 128 Kbps.  What I'm wondering is whether it would make much of a difference in sound quality if I went through and deleted the files I currently have and then save them again at a higher bit rate?  Also, when I did it back in the day, I saved them as .wmp files.  Would it help the sound quality at all if I saved them as MP3's instead?  Thanks for any advice you may have.

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On 5/17/2019 at 8:20 PM, PatriotsWin! said:

I got a Pixel 3a this week. Really nice phone (and camera) for the price but I'm almost afraid to say this... 'pure' Android is overrated. Much prefer Samsung's S9's One UI over it.

I have a pixel 2 and I just used my mom's 3 for the first time.. they F'd up the OS on that phone. They tried to copy the iPhone too much. I don't want to have to scroll up everytime I want to do anything.

Pixel 2 >>>>>

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On 6/19/2019 at 7:19 PM, Uncle Buck said:

Question regarding burning of CD's.

I have a pretty big collection of music CD's and saved most of them onto the hard drive of my computer a long time ago.  At the time, hard drives didn't have anywhere near the capacity of what we have today, so I saved them with a bit rate of 128 Kbps.  What I'm wondering is whether it would make much of a difference in sound quality if I went through and deleted the files I currently have and then save them again at a higher bit rate?  Also, when I did it back in the day, I saved them as .wmp files.  Would it help the sound quality at all if I saved them as MP3's instead?  Thanks for any advice you may have.

To actually answer your question - yes, it does make a difference in sound quality, and can be noticeably different. If your concern is having the best quality music that only an audiophile would notice any issues with, ripping to 320mp3 or 256AAC (if you use iTunes and iDevices) is your best bet. If you want perfect quality, ripping to FLAC or Apple Lossless is the only answer, but the overwhelming majority of people have no need for going that high in quality.

But it’s not quite that simple if you want to know if it will make a difference to you, as not everyone can notice the difference. Differences in your hearing ability, using lower quality headphones, or just your personal preference can impact whether or not you notice a difference.

Play an instrument heavy song on your device with your best headphones, speakers or whatever. Do it for a number of different genres to get an idea of what different types of songs sound like. Play it with the WAV you have, then the CD. See if you see any difference; is the sound more muddled on the WAV, does the CD let you hear notes you can’t discern on the WAV, or does it just sound better on the CD? If you notice a difference, it may be worth it to update them. If you can’t tell, it’s really up to you.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 6/4/2019 at 4:44 PM, JTagg7754 said:

For the price, the 3a might be the best phone you can buy. Just don't expect perfection all the way through. If a camera is important to you, doubt you'll find one that's better

https://slickdeals.net/f/13190314-pixel-3a-unlocked-with-sprint-activation-new-line-only-199-99-at-best-buy-sprint-charges?page=10#commentsBox

With some finagling, you can get the Unlocked version for $200-260 right now (seems like mileage may be varying).

Basically you buy it through Best Buy and activate a new Sprint Kickstarter plan.  Then get the phone and cancel the Sprint plan, take it whatever plan you have currently.  Some people are reporting they aren't being charged anything for canceling the Sprint, some are reporting a $60 charge.

 

I have a Galaxy S7 currently, and am pretty meh about it.  I could sell it for basically $125, so a $75-$135 upgrade.  Doesn't sound bad to me.

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Was looking at phones earlier. That Oneplus 7 Pro is the go to for value ($700) flagship right now. But Asus ZenPhone 6 is going to be $500 and is a game changer at that price. The only down side is they arent waterproof (even though the OP 7pro pretty much is). 

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1 hour ago, CWood21 said:

Looking for a reasonable priced sound bar.  Any suggestions?

"Reasonable priced" is subjective. I can't say I'm well versed in tons of sound bars, but from those I have heard, the best bang for your buck might be the Bose Solo 5. If that's too expensive my coworker has a Yamaha that he swears by that was under $150. Not sure about the model but could find out if you're that curious. 

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1 hour ago, JTagg7754 said:

"Reasonable priced" is subjective. I can't say I'm well versed in tons of sound bars, but from those I have heard, the best bang for your buck might be the Bose Solo 5. If that's too expensive my coworker has a Yamaha that he swears by that was under $150. Not sure about the model but could find out if you're that curious. 

That was one I was looking at.  Seemed to have good reviews.

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On 6/20/2019 at 6:17 PM, N4L said:

I have a pixel 2 and I just used my mom's 3 for the first time.. they F'd up the OS on that phone. They tried to copy the iPhone too much. I don't want to have to scroll up everytime I want to do anything.

Pixel 2 >>>>>

I have an iPhone and Pixel 3a.  I don't see the similarities at all.  Swipe up on iPhone brings up the menu to change quick settings.  Swipe up on Pixel 3a brings up recent apps or the app drawer.  Swipe down is the same as every other Android (notifications and quick change menu).  I think it's fine.

(grave digging post i know)

Really came in to say i got the Pixel 3a.  Upgraded from the Samsung GS7.  I like the gestures feature.  The camera is as good as advertised, and the phone is very snappy.  No doubt due to the light UI.  Only issue i'm running into is that i unlocked the bootloader, which is preventing me from downloading some apps on the Play Store.  It's obnoxious, but not unworkable. 

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Yeah, gestures isn't really copying anyone regardless. They've been available on launchers for half a decade (and probably longer). One thing Google is rumored to be doing for the 4 is adding air gestures. That will be something to keep an eye on but they will be to do better with internals bc the 3 is lacking in that department. This is a camera with a phone. They need to develop a camera and a phone.

Edited by JTagg7754
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