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Home » Mobile & GPS » Mobile Phone » Orange San Francisco (ZTE Blade) » Deals

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The Orange San Francisco is a staggeringly well featured handset which simply has no peer when it comes to value for money. Orange has done its very best to make a mess of the user experience by riddling the phone with bloatware, but it is nothing some enthusiastic uninstalling can't fix. If you have been reluctant to spend the money to join the smartphone revolution, you'd be dummer than your dumb phone to miss out on this. Read full review

Overall

9/10

User Rating

8/10

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By Gordon Kelly
Reviewed 26 January 2011
Updated 03 November 2011

Price as reviewed

£99.00

Review
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Specs
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Awards

Orange San Francisco (ZTE Blade) details

Design: 8/10
Features: 10/10
Performance: 8/10
Value: 10/10
Overall: 9/10

Pros & Cons

Pros

Brilliant screen
Feature packed
Incredible price

Cons

Orange Bloatware
Poor Camera

Price as reviewed

£99.00

Manufacturer

Orange

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Stelph

7:10 AM on 26 January, 2011

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One comment, this originally came with an AMOLED screen however last time I checked ZTE had switched to LED due to shortages of screens, that saying most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference

Glad you've been able to get a reviewunti, it really is amazing what ZTE has managed to cram into this phone at this pricepoint! Detonator gives you moment to pause when most smartphones seem to be at 400+!

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Sleeper

7:33 AM on 26 January, 2011

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I just bought a second hand unlocked and debranded one on eBay. Looking forward to getting and playing around with Android again.

I don't think it'll replace the N8 but it'll be a hell of a nice back up!

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rav

8:40 AM on 26 January, 2011

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This is why Android doesn't and shouldn't have a minimum spec. I'd still prefer a high end handset but for the money it's just amazing.

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Trevor Totten

8:59 AM on 26 January, 2011

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Yeah, they're all TFT screens now, but I've seen both and they're both very good. Have the AMOLED version myself. Unlocked for free, and flashed with Android 2.2, with all the Orange bloatware removed, and a nice Android 2.3 Gingerbread theme. I was an Android noob myself, and I can't tell you how easy it is to do, so no one should be intimidated by it. Go to blade.modaco.com and you'll find all you need there, even step-by-step video tutorials. And given the limited onboard storage (150MB), Android 2.2 is a must as you can move apps to the SD card. Camera is rubbish, but if you want a good camera, then go buy one. Also, be aware that flash is not supported on this CPU. Anyone thinking of moving to Android but has been put of by the price of smartphones, shouldn't even think twice about this one. No better phone anywhere for the money. Would be bargain at twice the price!

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Xamph

9:50 AM on 26 January, 2011

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Don't bother wasting time uninstalling the Orange cruft. Just wipe and install a 2.2 Froyo ROM from the guys at Modaco!

How to unlock your San Francisco so any SIM will work (completely free):

http://android.modaco.com/content/zte-blade-blade-modaco-com/322848/free-sim-unlock-codes-for-orange-san-francisco-and-zte-blade/

How to install a Custom ROM on the San Francisco (aka the "ZTE Blade"):

http://android.modaco.com/content/zte-blade-roms-rom-customisation/329864/25-jan-guide-how-to-install-a-custom-rom-on-the-zte-blade/

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gredawarha

10:17 AM on 26 January, 2011

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Got one of these on PAYG a couple of weeks ago as when my contract with vodafone runs out in May I will be mobing to Giffgaff. The Orange crud is easily removed, I am now running standard rooted Android 2.1. Have not bothered with a custom ROM as happy as is. Great phone, really pleased.

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GeekinTraining

10:19 AM on 26 January, 2011

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The contract on my HTC Hero runs out soon. I was going to keep it as back up for when I upgrade to, most likely, the new Desire - assuming it won't be a monstrosity like the Desire HD.

However, it looks like I'd be better off selling the Hero and getting this for just a few quid more. Has anyone used both? Would they agree?

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simonm

10:27 AM on 26 January, 2011

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Excellent review of an extraordinary phone.

This spec level at £99 makes all the other smartphone prices seem to belong to a parallel reality. And the network unlock codes are available for free, so if you are so inclined this is also the unofficial SIM-free price.

As other comments have noted, the screens are no longer AMOLED, which is a shame.

I echo the review comments on build quality. I found mine to be very well built - slim, comfortable in the hand, and surprisingly solid. One or two reviews were negative about the build quality. Either there is variation in the samples, or their perceptions were conditioned by expecting the build quality to be poor rather than the objective reality. (Or they were grade-A morons and hadn't replaced the cover properly after installing the battery, which will make for a flimsy fit and creaking.)

Would love to think ZTE/Orange have a follow-up in mind (Tegra 2 at £99, please ;), although hopefully next time resisting the temptation to 'improve' stock Android.

My slight fear is that the customizations were key to making the low price-point viable for Orange (£5/month for push e-mail, expensive app store, paid maps), but I find it hard to believe a worthwhile percentage of users were taken in by these.

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darkspark88

10:39 AM on 26 January, 2011

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I notice that the focus always seems to be on features. This may be more feature rich than the Wildfire, but for build quality, just pick both up and there is no comparison.

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Ed

10:44 AM on 26 January, 2011

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@darkspark88: A fair point but you have to remember that this phone is also less than half the price.

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