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Huawei Mate SE - 5.93" 18:9, 4gb/64gb - 229.99 USD

  • Last Updated:
  • Apr 16th, 2018 9:28 pm
Sr. Member
Sep 20, 2003
669 posts
280 upvotes
Burnaby
remember reading something about russia using ppls data to sign social media for spamming, msging companies & govn't for/against various issues and and petition signing. So i guess even superficial data has uses these days.
Deal Addict
Jul 5, 2004
1417 posts
902 upvotes
Montreal
A very big negative for me: This has no quick charge. After living with my QC 3.0 Axon 7 for past two years I don't think I could go back to life in the slow charging lane.
Newbie
Oct 28, 2009
38 posts
7 upvotes
Calgary
vivibaby wrote: Why does everyone want USB c and 5ghz?
USB C is mostly desirable for me because of the convenience, you can plug it in either way.
5GHz is a newer wi-fi standard with faster speeds, less interference and congestion. Makes quite a difference sometimes. Not sure why it is not present in this model, shouldn't be very expensive to implement it.
Deal Guru
Mar 5, 2007
10205 posts
11263 upvotes
kwokming.kwong wrote: absolutely NO, do not like personal data fed to china government bodies
Hehe, the FUD is strong with this one...

My recommendation? Do some of your own research instead of blankly believing whatever FB post you saw.

As I've said before, it's extremely likely that you phone is connecting to Huawei hardware (most cell phone sites in Canada use Huawei, at least to a partial extent), so the cat is out of the bag on that one.

As for your specific assertion, it is 100% true that in China phones often have pieces of software installed that give data to the Chinese government. Stuff often shared is apps installed (to make sure you're not installing something naughty) and messages sent (to make sure you're not saying something naughty), and other stuff I'm sure.

That software is NOT installed on international versions of the phones, if in doubt you can check the phone yourself.

Here's another tidbit of info: where exactly do you think your phone was made? Answer? China.
Deal Guru
Mar 5, 2007
10205 posts
11263 upvotes
kwokming.kwong wrote: do you have any factual proof that Huawei devices NOT do this?
And that there is the crux of the misinformed argument: how exactly WOULD you PROVE that something isn't being done?

Proving something is being done can be relatively straightforward, PROVING something isn't being done? Often impossible.
Deal Guru
Mar 5, 2007
10205 posts
11263 upvotes
eugene188 wrote: With a post like this, I assume you never use Google Maps, or Facebook, or Snapchat, Insta, Twitter or any other social network where your info is shared. Also you are using the stock keyboard that comes with your phone.
With a post like that I'd assume that person doesn't power on a single piece of technology, and lives in a home with no electricity far away from anything technological. That would be the ONLY way to ensure no leakage of personal information.

Heck even driving your car can leak personal info.
Deal Guru
Mar 5, 2007
10205 posts
11263 upvotes
vivibaby wrote: Why does everyone want USB c and 5ghz?
  • USB C is the future, and the fact that the cable goes in both ways makes plugging in a cable less of a horror show then with micro USB where I always feel like I'm going to break something.
  • 2.4GHz Wifi sucks. While most public hotspots still use 2.4GHz exclusively, most private and corporate networks rely on 5GHz for coverage and performance. There is so much congestion on 2.4GHz in my neighbourhood that speed tests often peak at 10Mbps on 2.4GHz, but hit 90Mbps on 5GHz. It's night and day.
That said, there are cons with USB C. The biggest being it's still relatively hard to find cables. Go into any store and there will be walls full with accessories and cables that support iPhone connectors and microUSB, but you'll find just a few that support USB C. Same can be said for charging stations, rarely do they support USB C. Also, most people have TONS of micro USB cables/adapters lying around, but zero USB C, so charging can be hard if you forget your cable at how.

The market will shift, but after having a USB C capable phone for over a year now I still see very little of that shift having happened.
Deal Fanatic
Sep 13, 2004
6016 posts
3612 upvotes
Toronto
EasyCompany251 wrote: I highly doubt they care about your personal information unless you're a dissident or have valuable information regarding trade secrets/intelligence. That being said I take reasonable measures regarding data security. To be honest there are many other ways to steal data...mostly the path that your data takes through data centers and internal/external hacks on corporations.
To analyze this, you need a bunch of threat models. Ordinary citizens don't have enough information to build detailed and safe models.

In the old days, when data analysis was by humans, "too much work to follow little old me" was kind of true. It is not true these days with computers and deep neural nets. Just look at what China is doing to surveil and reshape individually the mass of Uyghurs.

All phones are made in the Peoples Republic of China, I think. Maybe Samsung phones are made in Korea? So all phones are suspect to roughly the same degree. If your threat model is that China is your adversary. But perhaps many other actors should be considered too.

Traffic analysis is an underrated tool for surveillance. That's pretty hard to evade. TOR?

It's little things too. Tokens vs Presto Card on TTC, for example (but face recognition on security cameras may render this moot). OTA TV vs Analog CATV vs Digital TV. Do you carry your mobile phone on or off? Cash or credit card? And so on.

Good security hygiene is difficult and inconvenient. It may even make you a target! Each decision could be made as a conscious trade-off.
Sr. Member
Jun 3, 2007
982 posts
513 upvotes
Toronto
Hugh wrote: To analyze this, you need a bunch of threat models. Ordinary citizens don't have enough information to build detailed and safe models.

In the old days, when data analysis was by humans, "too much work to follow little old me" was kind of true. It is not true these days with computers and deep neural nets. Just look at what China is doing to surveil and reshape individually the mass of Uyghurs.

All phones are made in the Peoples Republic of China, I think. Maybe Samsung phones are made in Korea? So all phones are suspect to roughly the same degree. If your threat model is that China is your adversary. But perhaps many other actors should be considered too.

Traffic analysis is an underrated tool for surveillance. That's pretty hard to evade. TOR?

It's little things too. Tokens vs Presto Card on TTC, for example (but face recognition on security cameras may render this moot). OTA TV vs Analog CATV vs Digital TV. Do you carry your mobile phone on or off? Cash or credit card? And so on.

Good security hygiene is difficult and inconvenient. It may even make you a target! Each decision could be made as a conscious trade-off.
However, ordinary citizens provide information in the context of marketing...

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/m ... s-election

Individually, our information might not be worth much to these corporations, but collectively it allows them to shape advertising and design programs tailored to their users. As a few people here have said, you would almost have to live off the grid to avoid having your activities absorbed and analyzed.
Deal Fanatic
User avatar
Mar 17, 2003
7813 posts
852 upvotes
Vancouver
G77 wrote: I would say the essential destroys this spec wise, but this costs less and essentials long term future is suspect..... Huawei certainly aren't going anywhere!
Right now and since the 8.1 final to the Essential, the phone rocks. They will also support it for 3 yrs, that's the word at least as long as they stick around, which I suspect they will.
How can I be broke when I am saving so much?
Deal Fanatic
Sep 13, 2004
6016 posts
3612 upvotes
Toronto
denhammer wrote: However, ordinary citizens provide information in the context of marketing...
And not just marketing. That's what I meant by "other actors".
Thanks for that link. Last night I clicked on the video in the article, but through youtube. It disappeared in some way before I could see it (but not before I had to watch the ad that Youtube played before it). I was too lazy to hunt it down on the Guardian.

Scary. That's one reason I don't use Facebook and have never had a Facebook account. I understand that I might still be there in the form of tags on pictures, for example.

Individually, our information might not be worth much to these corporations, but collectively it allows them to shape advertising and design programs tailored to their users. As a few people here have said, you would almost have to live off the grid to avoid having your activities absorbed and analyzed.
We can only guess at what it is worth and what it is used for. And it is changing constantly.

Did this stuff change the result of the US election? Or is it an excuse by sore losers? We don't know.

I had a long chat with a researcher who made a convincing case that the robocalls from the Conservative Party of Canada did affect the last federal election that Harper won. Yet most people just assumed there could be no effect.

After each national election, pundits have said that the information systems of the winners were decisive. But the next war is usually different from the previous war.
Member
Aug 16, 2010
423 posts
216 upvotes
G77 wrote: This looks "reallytempting"..... How does it compare to something like Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro which just came out?
The Redmi Note 5 Pro does not support North American LTE bands with the exception of Band 7. I love my Xiaomi Mi Max but the pack on LTE bands is making it feel slow. There are new 700 Mhz LTE networks where I live and I'm stuck with slows hsdpa connections.
Member
Aug 16, 2010
423 posts
216 upvotes
G77 wrote: Thanks, think I'll wait for the RN5P
And no LTE NA bands for the RN5P except band 7.
Deal Fanatic
User avatar
Dec 16, 2015
5405 posts
5751 upvotes
Distance: 50 Metres
Regor78 wrote: Yup - this is wife approved. Wife wanted an unlocked phone under $400, android, and not so big. She was hesitant on the size of the phone but I compared it to her last phone (samsung s5) and it's not that much bigger... it just looks bigger because there's higher screen to body ratio.

Like most people said.. no wifi 5 ghz, no usb-c, decent but not the best camera. Also, accessories are scarce because of how new and unknown it is. Just fyi, I tried ordering a screen protector through Amazon and chose a Honor 7x version and it's definitely not compatible with the Mate SE.

The brightest spot (pun intended) is the great screen, colors, and responsiveness. Definitely a great buy for a budget conscience purchase. Works great!
Whipped
To the moon
Deal Addict
Dec 30, 2008
4059 posts
812 upvotes
Windsor
tweebs2 wrote: And no LTE NA bands for the RN5P except band 7.
Is that confirmed for the Global version? Normally that has more bands...
Sr. Member
Aug 22, 2007
550 posts
447 upvotes
1tallaznguy wrote: Had this phone for a few days now, got it from Newegg's ebay.com store and had mine ship to a friend in the states for a total price of $240 CDN, let me tell you coming from a flagship note 4 from back in the day, this phone is a serious beast, like the other member mentioned on here anything I throw at it, it could handle, the only con I have is juts not having the 5ghz wifi, I'm OK with not having USB type c because I have a ton of spare micro USB cables that I can still use. Over all steal of a phone and beast of a phone. I think I will stick with budget phones moving forward as I can save a lot going this route.
+1. Its crazy how good these budget phones are getting. I agree dropping close to a grand on a flagship is getting harder and harder to do.
Last edited by reallytempting on Mar 18th, 2018 4:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Deal Addict
May 14, 2005
1005 posts
744 upvotes
Ontario
G77 wrote: Is that confirmed for the Global version? Normally that has more bands...
The global version isn't out yet, I suspect it will have NA bands once its released.

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