cross-posted from: https://lemy.lol/post/1519899
EDITED: As I am not in a rush, I’ve decided that my budget is now $500.
I am picky about the features I look for in a smartphone. Hopefully this post can be a good resource for myself and others who have similar preferences. For reference, I am using a Oneplus 7 Pro with a non-functional camera and flashlight.
Very important features
Battery life
It should handle a day’s worth of general usage before charging. Heat kills batteries, so decent heat dissipation is important too.
Durability or repairability
I recently bought a Google Pixel 5a, a phone I greatly enjoyed before I dropped it 5 feet and the display decided its work was done. My top priority is to have a useable device for ~5 years before needing an upgrade.
Storage
I like storing my music collection (30 GB and growing) and expandable storage would save me from having to carry a DAP (mp3 player). Without expandable storage it should have 256 GB storage.
Price
Electronics aren’t meant to last a long time; I’d prefer devices costing ~300 USD, but I would gladly pay a little more for reliability.
Microphone
Please let me be intelligible on phone calls. Please? Pretty please?
Software updates or custom ROM support
OS updates for 3+ years or resources on XDA for flashing a custom ROM. Ideally LineageOS.
Would be nice
Root capability
It’s a bit dated nowadays, but I really do appreciate having that extra bit of control. This also ties into custom ROM support.
Fingerprint Sensor
I loved the dedicated fingerprint sensor on my Pixel 5a. Power button fingerprints are worse, but better than nothing. Typing in my passcode every time is a bit of a pain.
Speakers
Preferably dual front facing stereo speakers. Having some decent output for videos when I don’t have anything else with me would be nice.
OLED/AMOLED display
Makes stuff WAY easier to see when the sun’s all sunny.
Processing power
I don’t play phone games. I watch a lot of media and I message people. Must be capable of simultaneously running muliple apps and background services.
IPA ratings
It’d be pretty sick if I could bring it with me in the shower without worrying about water damage.
Fast charging
Won’t always use it, but it’d be great to have.
Cutting corners
Screen resolution
I don’t need a 4K display. Hell, I don’t need a 1080p display. If it cuts costs, 720p is just fine so long as it looks okay.
Size
It can be big or small, thick or thin. Not picky.
Other features I don’t need
Headphone jack, NFC, 5G, wireless charging
The phones I am looking at right now are as follows
- Sony Xperia 10 V - No custom ROM support, long term durability is unclear.
- Fairphone 4 - Slightly out of price range.
- Samsung Galaxy XCover6 Pro - Way out of price range. I would appreciate any input or questions.
I haven’t looked up phones in the ~300$ with these very important features in mind but I did look up phones in the 300-350$ price range with other very important features in mind (camera, screen, and battery) a couple of days ago, might wanna check them out:
- Oppo Realme 11 Pro+ (370$ in my country for the 512GB/12GB model) 2+3 update policy
- Xiaomi Poco F5 (345$ for the 256/12) same update policy
- Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 pro+ (320$ 256/8 don’t know about the update policy of this one)
Also please use a screen protector and a case regardless of how durable the phone is, replacing a damaged case or screen protector is much cheaper and easier than a broken screen or phone
My previous phone I dropped I was using a phone case that was not slim and a screen protector, but it still broke from a short fall. That is what I mean by durability. Maybe build quality or quality control is what it really is, but whatever it is I would prefer to be able to make cheaper mistakes in the future.
I intentionally stayed away from those brands because I appreciate privacy, and from the little bit I heard about those brands I got the idea that they do not respect user data. It is also why I refuse to use iOS. Pixels are okay because I can install Graphene or something on them though. I will look into those phones regardless, so thank you for the input.
I guess accidents happen no matter what.
I believe you can opt out of these privacy-invasive options/apps in the settings and if you are willing to go the extra mile you can disable/remove all the bloat and tracking using tools like the Universal Android Debloater GUI, root, and AdAway and if we are lucky they might get custom ROM support from the devs at XDA forums (that will be influenced by how popular these phone will get)
I’ve personally really been enjoying my S23 Ultra. Its battery is rock solid (I don’t even feel a need to take it out of the mode that limits charging to 85% to improve longevity) and it has pretty much everything I would ever need. I can easily see this one taking me through a good number of years before feeling like a replacement.
I shower with my phone regularly (as I did with my S21 Ultra). I also rinse it under the tap with no issues. It’s pricey but if you can jump onto a Samsung promo, it can be pretty worthwhile.
What were your feeling about your s21u after few months of the ownership? I mean, did you also feel that it is solid to serve you for several years or you have found some significant issues?
No issues. The periscope camera was pretty useless though due to the poor quality. I only ended up switching because of killer promos on the S23U and the LG G7 I had handed down to my mom was becoming rather sluggish. She ended up with my S21U.
The s23 looks appealing due to the integration of a pull tab for the battery as opposed to glue. I will look into this. Thank you.
Do report back when you’ve come to a decision. I’m interested to hear where you land on this! By the way, I love how thorough your post is. This is the way to seek recommendations, IMO!
