Recently I attended an event in Birmingham called ‘March of the Droids‘ . It’s where Android enthusiasts are invited along to get to know each other in person instead of just online.
The day is full of different discussions, from independent sites to large manufacturers, and there are stands selling different items too.
This year we had David Stevenson who creates custom Android collectables. The NFC Ring is a great product using NFC technology. You can use it to unlock doors, your phone and transfer information. We also had stands from Asus, HTC and Honor.
This is my second March of the Droids event and it gets bigger and better each time and is a great chance to see some new tech and meet new people.
This year I was lucky enough, with thanks to Vodafone, to have been sent a Samsung Galaxy Note Edge. Not only could I show if off to interested attendees (it is rather unique with edge display), but also I was able to use Vodafone 4G to share photos and access social media on the go.
Due to the fact Vodafone offer 4G on the 800mhz band this is great for indoor coverage, and this was something I found whether indoors in the hotel or in the middle of the University hall where the event was held.
I did have another network SIM with me with my own contract and struggled to get 2 to 3 bars with speeds over 2Mbps on 3G whereas Vodafone had a strong signal with speeds around 19Mbps on 4G.
Samsung seem to have really good cameras in their recent phones, and low light images can be especially tricky to capture. I was really impressed with the results though and could easily rely on the Edge for my mobile photography.
Whilst attending I was able to get hands on a few different devices with the HTC M9 and Honor 6+ being the two main ones of interest.
I was especially impressed with what Honor had managed to do with the 6+ considering they are a new brand.
But this event is not just about the gadgets, it’s about the people, and I was really happy to catch up with old and new friends, especially after missing Mobile World Congress.
We started the night before with drinks in the hotel bar before heading downstairs to the bowling alley, several more drinks, a game of bowling and some pool. We all got to know each other better and share some laughs.
The event itself was great in a superb location with plenty of space, plenty of people and lots to do.
Another bit of great news was this year the event managed to collect £350 from raffle tickets which went to Cancer Research.
Walking around Birmingham and shopping in the Bullring and again I had a strong signal, both indoors and out with speeds hitting the 50Mbps mark – plenty for a phone.
Not only was I able to share photos on the move, but was able to watch some YouTube in the hotel and stream Spotify on the train journey with no problems.
As a Spotify user I love listening to music anywhere I go and Vodafone offer Spotify free as part of their entertainment package.
I was really impressed with the Note Edge, it was great to show off a unique phone such as this to a big crowd of Android fans, but also to have signal everywhere I went and at a good speed to be productive.
Big thanks to Vodafone for the loan of the Note Edge as well as access to 4G with the supplied SIM.
Anyone interested in the event can check out the official March of the Droids website and look out for next year’s venue, it really is a great event to attend if you can.
And if the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge sounds like your ideal phone then check out the offers from Vodafone here who have it as an exclusive.