Hi Carl,

1) Yes, but you'll need to download (and quite possibly buy) a GPS solution from someone else other than Google. Have a look HERE as a few options are mentioned. You will need a fair amount of internal storage to hold the maps. Micro SD cards are cheap but so are data plans from MVNOs like Vaya or Amaysim. If I was you I'd just get a no contract data plan for the months leading up to you swapping your normal plan over. The Google maps/navigation program is very good! And it's worth having a data connection as it will give you the best route for the traffic conditions at that given time.

2) Only very few android based telephones DON'T have removable batteries so you should be fine there. From what I understand it's only really the tablets that don't often have removable batteries. If the phone you choose does have a removable battery (it probably will) you'll be able to find 1001 different replacements on the internet. If you're looking for a stock battery just get an OEM one as there are many low quality cheap and nasty batteries out there. On the other hand if you're looking for more juice there are usually high capacity options from reputable companies like Mugen power etc.

3) Yes you can easily use an external keyboard with the device. Have a look on ebay if you want a smallish keyboard.. I think you can even get them embedded into cases! They just then plug into the USB port on the device. Remember you may need an adapter if the male and female USB plugs are not the same type.

Cheers,

On Wed, Jul 31, 2013 at 6:05 PM, Carl Turney <carl@boms.com.au> wrote:

Hi All,

Three dumb questions, possibly:

I've never had a smart phone, and probably need to get one soon. For
the time being, I'd rather use it just as a GPS... and as an Android
learning tool, when near our home wifi. (Moving up to a voice/data plan
some months from now.)

So:

1) Could I run it as a GPS to help me navigate on the road, even though
it would not have a SIM card in it? (i.e. Load some detailed Melbourne
roadmap and a GPS application into it at home via the wifi, and then
rely solely on the GPS to help me navigate from spot to spot as I do my
part-time casual driving job.)

2) Do (m)any Android smartphones have removable and readily
available/affordable after-market batteries? (I tend to hang on to
things for a long time, and it's always the batteries that die [over
time] on such devices for me. Manufacturer's replacement batteries tend
to cost as much as an entire device.)

3) Can one reasonably connect a REAL keyboard to a smartphone? (I hate
the absurd tiny touch-keyboards on small devices, and the quasi-Morse
Code of using a phone number pad.)

Thanks a lot.

Carl Turney
Bayswater

p.s. Anyone living/working east of the CBD got a second-hand Android
smart-phone with GPS to sell? Contact me directly, off list. Ta.
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