this post was submitted on 11 Jun 2023
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Android

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So, I thought I'd kick things off here with some community building.

Quote this post with answers to the below!

What phone are you using?

Are you happy with it? What are its best and worst qualities?

Which phones have you had previously? Which were the best and worst of the lot?

How often do you upgrade to a new phone?

What other Android ecosystem devices do you have? Watches, headphones/earbuds, etc.

Do you also use any Apple products, or are you Android all the way? (And/or Windows, Linux, ChromeOS, etc.)

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 years ago

Pixel 7 Pro.

I'm generally happy with it, but the battery has been rather bad in that I have issues getting a full day out of it. I've also finding overheating issues when in 80+ degree F weather.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago

I'm on an S22U right now. The device is excellently built and the S Pen is really handy, but I do miss my OnePlus 6T's notification system. It did a much better job with conversations, categories and grouping. I had a Nexus 5 before, which was nice, but the 16GB of storage was pretty limiting.

I also have the Buds Live (the beans!) and those are awesome. They're the only earbuds I've found that stay in my ears, even when running or shaking my head around. I used to have a LEMFO watch (the huge one), but the digitizer flaked out on me.

I used to have a Lenovo Yoga C940 (which had all sorts of problems), but I've since switched to a Mac

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

I'm currently running the Pixel 6 Pro with Graphine OS.

Worst thing about this phone is the curved display. Everything else is good enough for me, which is saying a lot. I've had many phones over years and only a few have really been awesome.

In no particular order:

  • HTC EVO Shift, EVO 4G LTE, EVO 3D
  • Some ZTE Phone with android 2.2
  • Oneplus One, 3T, 6T
  • Pixel 4, Pixel 6 Pro
  • Nexus 4, 5, 5x, 7
  • iPhone 4, SE, 7, 12

Edit: format and a device

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Samsung galaxy S21. I really enjoy it and has worked perfectly. I like Samsung rendition of Android, I feel like it gives me a larger overview of settings and so forth. I've had an iphone 6 and Huawei Mate 20 lite. My problem with the iphone was that i didn't really understand it, and the app library was limited. The Huawei became slow fast, but that might just be because of it being the lite edition. In edition to the Samsung S21 i also own a Samsung galaxy watch 5 and a pair Samsung buds 2. Both these works great, and i really enjoy Samsungs health app wich is how the watch connects to the phone. The buds are even compatible with my windows computer :)

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

@MrCenny the mate 20 life's processor just hasn't held up particularly well, my smol huawei tablet has a similar setup and modern apps just make it choke. It can do one thing at a time okay, but multi tasking is a no go.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

Yeah, it just got slower and slower by the years. At some point i couldnt even load up my emails, and that was when I had to switch phones. BUT it did actually last 3 years!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

What phone are you using? Pixel 7

Are you happy with it? What are its best and worst qualities? Love it. Works really well and great camera. No issues I've had so far after a year. Would've been nice to have a headphone jack, but not a big issue.

Which phones have you had previously? Which were the best and worst of the lot? Moto Max, pixel, pixel 3a, lots of others

How often do you upgrade to a new phone? Every few years recently

What other Android ecosystem devices do you have? Watches, headphones/earbuds, etc. Shield TV, Fitbit, pixel buds pro, fire tablet

Do you also use any Apple products, or are you Android all the way? (And/or Windows, Linux, ChromeOS, etc.) My kid has an iPad for speaking but that's it. Everything else is android and the PC is Windows 11pro

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

Samsung S21+ 5G

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

I use the Pixel 7 Pro

I love it. The cameras are unparalleled, the software is excellent, and the experience is pure. Battery life isn't nearly as bad as people say, but it could be better.

Last few phones: iPhone 5c, Galaxy S5, Nexus 6P, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel 5, Pixel 6 Pro

Worst was the 6P, because it bricked itself (though I got a few hundred dollars back in the class action lawsuit), but it was excellent aside from that. iPhone got a dead pixel within a month, but they replaced it, Galaxy was sturdy but software was awful. Best was Pixel 2 XL, I still use it as a backup sometimes.

I get a new phone every year if the trade-in deals are good.

I have the Pixel Watch and Pixel Buds. I mainly use the Sony XMs though for headphones.

I have a 14" MacBook Pro M1 Pro. Got it for the insane battery life, but I'm mostly a Windows/Linux user still.I have an iPad, it isn't bad, but I miss the affordable Android tablets of old (Nexus 7 rocked). I don't have any desire to move to iOS.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

@mikestevens I currently main a Sony Xperia 1 iii, but for work reasons I have an iphone 12 Pro Max and a pixel 6a kicking about too. Both solid devices, just a different experience.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

Pixel 7 Pro

My main PC is on Pop!_OS, Ubuntu based distro based on rolling kernel releases

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

What phone are you using? Huawei P50 Pro

Are you happy with it? What are its best and worst qualities? Absolutely love the phone, I'm not big on voice assistants or ecosystems so I don't need Google to be connected across all devices and have everything linked together.

As a phone it started out rough, loss of connection very frequently, dropping calls every day. After a few months these issues resolved on there own, which may have been a carrier issue and not the phone itself. Browsing and interacting with it is seamless, games run fast, apps rarely shutdown. The Camera is spectacular, the only rival is my gfs Iphone 13 but both are amazing. The only limiting factor is small amount of unavailable apps due to the lack G.P.S. but I'm not effected I just go to the mobile site instead.

Which phones have you had previously? Which were the best and worst of the lot? Huawei Nexus 6P Huawei P20 Pro

How often do you upgrade to a new phone? Every 3 - 4 years

What other Android ecosystem devices do you have? Watches, headphones/earbuds, etc. Not sure if they count but I have a TicWatch Pro 3 and EVA Earbuds

Do you also use any Apple products, or are you Android all the way? (And/or Windows, Linux, ChromeOS, etc.) Nope, no apple for me, Windows 10.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

S20 Fe 5g, with SD865, 8GB RAM and 256GB Storage

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

Currently, I'm using a Motorola moto g100 and I'm happy with it. Good battery life, nice big screen, much improved performance compared to my last phone. Best phone I've ever owned. The main inconvenience is the location of the fingerprint sensor: I'd have preferred if it was on the front of the device somehow (definitely not on the back -- I often have it lying flat on the table).

I also dislike the fact it can only remember five fingerprints while I have 10 fingers. Who thought that was a good idea? :þ

Previously I had a Moto G5+ and a Moto G. I guess you could say I enjoyed the quality and relative lack of bloatware of these Motorola phones, while being more affordable than some of the alternatives I was considering at the time I bought them.

Going further back, I had a HTC Desire Z (with a slide-out physical keyboard). I picked it as my first smartphone because I was hesitant to get rid of physical keys, but as it turned out I hardly ever used them. Looking back, this one was clearly the worst value for the money.

Since I switched to smart phones I've been upgrading every 3 or 4 years.

Before the smart phone era, I had an Alcatel device (can't remember the exact model). I used that tiny near-indestructable thing for over a decade, only charging it about once a week. It was mostly an "in case of emergency" though, not nearly as heavily used as later phones, because it wasn't really usable as a miniature pocket-computer (like smart phones are). Still, I was pretty happy with it at the time: the only reason I got rid of it was because the '0' button broke, and in my country all phone numbers start with 0.

I also have an LG G Watch (Wear OS). A relative worked at Google when these were handed out to employees but didn't actually want it, so I got it as a gift. It's pretty old now: I've replaced the bands a few times and it won't charge past 70%, but it still mostly works and the battery still lasts all day. I'm not sure if I'll get another smart watch if and when this one finally breaks, though.

No Apple products, and my laptop runs Linux Mint. These days, I only use Windows at work or when helping relatives with tech problems (sigh).

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

OnePlus 7T

I love this phone. I thought it'd take longer than it actually did to get used to not having a home button anymore, but I adapted in less than an hour. Love how OxygenOS is very close to stock Android. The glass on the back is super slick. Everything is super slick to me. My hands are chronically dry. So I hate all these glass-backed phones.

I've previously used a OnePlus 3, OnePlus One, Samsung Galaxy S4, Motorola Photon 4G, and a Motorola RAZR ve20. I loved my Galaxy. It was my first OLED experience. My OnePlus One felt like kind of a downgrade, but it also allowed me to stop having to sign contracts to get an affordable phone in 2015. Plus, back then, it felt like being a part of something new and exciting. Man I miss Cyanogenmod.

I upgrade basically whenever I need to. The phone I have now is ~3½ years old. The back glass is busted and the battery is starting to lose its life. They will repair it and so I'm thinking of sending it in. I can picture myself using this phone on another 3-4 years barring some kind of carrier stupidity.

No other Android devices. I'm an otherwise Windows/Ubuntu person. Started trying Mint recently. I do have a Fitbit.

I used to have a 4th gen iPod Touch circa 2011 before I got my Photon 4G. iOS 6 ran like crap on it and I was around the corner from building my first PC. I had started using my Android phone for my games and music and such so I just didn't have a use for it anymore. Sold it off and I haven't owned an Apple product since.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Repair it for how much? Why not buy a newer but not so new OnePlus instead? e.g. OnePlus 9

I had a 6T, used it for almost 4 years, and then it became laggy with bad battery life, so I recently upgraded to a 9

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

The 8, 9, and 10 just aren't exciting phones to me. A battery is some $11 and the back is $31 for parts. I figure once labor goes in, we're probably sitting at 125-150. Maybe 200. I don't know how their repair program works exactly, but I've been curious to give it a spin.

Besides, replacing the battery will make it feel like new again. If I buy a used phone, I'm getting a used battery. And once the parts are replaced, I'm getting the same device back. No migrating libraries or reinstalling apps. Just back it up and mail it off. I have a spare phone I can use for a few weeks in the meantime.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

I've got the Galaxy S22 standard and I like it quite a bit. I've used the Galaxy series primarily since 2012 and my most recent was the S20. It was definitely an upgrade in terms of camera quality, which is one of the main reason I got it. I can take so many more pictures now, but never do. So that says a lot about me :)

I usually go 2-5 years between phones, so this one was quicker than some I've held onto. I don't have any other Android devices and have only once before owned a Macbook Pro (2015 Core 2 Duo, I believe).

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Asus ZenFone 8.

I love it, it's a nice bit of kit, and the few gimmicks it has are useful: scheduled charging for better battery life, digital well being stuff to stop me being glued to my phone.

Battery would be a problem for a super power user, but lasts me all day with commuting, reading the web etc. Camera is not on a par with flagships but I rarely take pictures.

Prior to this I had a Huawei until the battery died on me. I upgrade when I have to, I hate consumer upgrade cycles.

I have zero android ecosystem products.

I'm Android/Linux all the way unless work force me to use a Mac, which happens periodically, as part of the great cycle of life.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (3 children)

Sony Xperia 1 III. I updated every 2 years until last year when I bought this one at a severe discount. Got fed up with Chinese phones and their severe lackluster software. Also into cameras so this one was a right fit. Has many issues but I like it. Been doing this since my iPhone 4 and I don't miss Apple at all. I love the openness of android and the ability to tinker.

Also have the Sony earbuds which I much prefer over the Galaxy Buds Live I used to own (came for free when I bought the S21 for the missus). Apart from that, only an android tablet (S7+).

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I'm so with you in every respect. I even got the 1iii at a discount myself. It's such a solid phone. And it's the first time in a while I chose a phone for performance over features and I have no regrets. I had the MotoZ 2 and 4 and I was really bummed they let the line die (though I was honestly surprised they released a 4).

As for iPhones, I had 1 and 3 and my sense of the UI has not been updated since. It's always entertaining when I have to help my wife with something on her phone.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Funny that you say that about the UI as I'm the same...though mine as an Android, but all the execs where I work have all the ProMax iPhones and can't figure out how to send a picture on their phone via email! lol

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Nothing Phone 1.

For a mid-range phone, it's fantastic. Really would recommend it.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

OnePlus 6T

It's been around for a while now but it's still got decently strong specs for a phone even by today's standards. Normally replace phones every 3 years but I've had my 6T for 4 so far and it's still a brilliant phone, easily the best I've owned. Only thing I dislike about it is the lack of a micro SD slot

Not really a fan of iPhones tbh I think they're very overpriced for what they offer in comparison to Android. I do use an iPad pro, but that's about it for my iOS usage. I run Windows on PC plus Windows and Ubuntu on my work laptop

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Fairphone 4, running CalyxOS

Very happy with it, easy to take apart and repair. worst is the camera - possibly a flaw in calyxos and not the hardware tho

iphones were the best sony were the worst, it fell apart

i upgrade every two years, on average, with a fairphone I expect to keep my phone for longer because of the reparability

no other android devices

have a macbook and ipad

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)
  • I'm using the Pixel 7.

  • I'm happy with it. Best qualities are the camera and the worst is charge time.

  • I've been using Xiaomi devices, main label as well as Pocophone and Redmi labels. Worst was their data hoarding which I blocked with a pi-hole and vpn always on. Best is their hardware and price. Was great fully charing a 5000+ mAh battery within 30 minutes.

  • When it breaks or when there's a good deal and I have the current phone for over a year.

  • I still have a huami watch but don't use it anymore. Nothing else.

  • No apple golden cage shit for me hehe. Windows 11 on my desktop and have a home server with unRAID on it. So both windows and Linux I guess.

Thanks for this initiative.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago
[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Oneplus 7 Pro

Overall I like it, had it for about 2 years now and bought it used. I usually buy 1-2 year old flagship phones since they get so cheap.

Plusses:

  • It was cheap
  • Battery easily lasts me a day
  • Feels nice to hold
  • Screen is huge
  • It's still very fast/responsive
  • Charges fast

Negatives:

  • The curved edges on the screen can make it hard to hold, and cause random touches sometimes
  • Fast charging is their stupid proprietary VOOC thing, finding any chargers that support it is hard
  • Screen washes out contrast when in 90hz mode and looks bad
  • Camera often looks really over sharpened and artificial, while having way too much noise reduction applied, video is pretty poor with the same issues. Just normal smartphone camera things.

Other phones I've had were an Essential PH-1, LG V10, Samsung Galaxy S3, and HTC Dream. By far the worst was the Samsung, their OS has improved since but back then it was absolutely awful. Favorite was the LG V10, that was such a great phone and felt like you could chuck it at a wall without any damage.

I tried an iPad once but their OS is really frustrating, trying to do any normal stuff like just have access to a filesystem to store/sync items is impossible.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

What phone are you using?

OnePlus 9 Pro 5G, I've got a fold coming in 2 weeks though.

Are you happy with it? What are its best and worst qualities?

Yeah I like it, no drawbacks I can think of.

Which phones have you had previously? Which were the best and worst of the lot?

OnePlus One was the best phone I've ever had. Mainly for the dev environment.

How often do you upgrade to a new phone?

Every 2-3 years

What other Android ecosystem devices do you have? Watches, headphones/earbuds, etc.

Android TV and a Mobvoi TicWatch 5. This watch has crazy battery life for a full android wear 3 watch.

Do you also use any Apple products, or are you Android all the way? (And/or Windows, Linux, ChromeOS, etc.)

Nah I only have phones and watches, but I do like the new MacBooks.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Motorola Edge 30 Pro (aka Motorola Edge+ 2022 for the North Americans here), which I got back in early November last year. I did research for a while before buying it (and got it with a huge discount) and I'm mostly happy with my purchase, it's a nice phone with a clean near-stock Android experience (although I've since changed launcher to Kvæsitso) and it's extremely fast, although I must say I'm not a heavy smartphone user.

Worst things are that the Android 13 update took nearly three months long than planned to come (and here in Italy apparently we were among the first to get the update) and Motorola is not that fast with security updates; while the only really annoying thing is that sometimes it stops the internet connection usually after giving the command to download/update apps, whether from the Play Store or from F-Droid; the connection somehow is still there as it's enough to cancel and tell do download/update again and everything works.

This is my first Android phone: my first smartphone was a Nokia X6 running Symbian which I got in 2011 and then I used iPhones for a decade (while having been a Mac user all the time), first an iPhone 5C in 2013 and then an 8 Plus which I got in 2018. Clearly the newest was the best of the bunch as it was a quite major upgrade from the 5C, which in turn came when Symbian was an abandoned OS; the last two phones both lasted me just short of five years, and I changed back in November mainly because I could hand it down (refurbished) to my mom, otherwise I would have waited perhaps another year.

This time I decided to leave iOS for good as I was increasingly unsatisfied and worried with Apple's walled garden ecosystem - for the same reason I had already left macOS for Linux back in 2020 (never had any other Apple products nor subscriptions except for a few iPods over the years) - and even after the novelty has worn off I vastly prefer Android. Right now I have this Android phone and my laptop I'm writing from, which only runs Linux, specifically EndeavourOS, although my old 2009 iMac still works - thanks to a SSD swap back in '17, although it hasn't gotten newer updates since High Sierra - and I tinker with it from time to time. At work I use Windows 10... but that's not my choice.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I'm using a Sony Xperia 10iii which I got at the end of December to replace my aging LG V30. Got the white one because black was sold out. Which is ok as I actually quite like white.

Likes: Compact, tall, slender, beautiful design, great cameras, fast/responsive UI, headphone jack, SD card slot, 21:9 OLED screen, 2 day battery life

Dislikes: cases and accessories not available in my country. Have to import them.

I've had numerous phones starting with a Siemens, then Nokia 3310, then a Panasonic flip phone, then an iMate SP3 Windows phone, various Windows phones, Symbian phones, HTC window phone. Then got the iPhone 3G, HTC Wildfire, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5C. Then jumped to Android and got Sony Xperia Z2 which is my favourite of all time. That was a brilliant phone at the time and I even took photos underwater in the pool!

Then I had OnePlus X, Moto G, iPhone 7(terrible phone, got replaced twice), LG V30 and now Xperia 10iii.

I'm Android and Linux all the way (my Mac Mini runs Ubuntu) but I used to be a massive Apple fan. However after Steve died the company took a turn to the dark side and it's all about greed now.

I buy my phones outright when possible because I don't like debt and contracts. This means I often have to sell my old phone to subsidize the new one, but that's ok. It also means I never have a premium phone unless I get it used, or in the case of the V30, the Carrier still has old stock they want to get rid of. My Mobile carrier still had one V30 on the shelf from 2 years ago and they sold it for EUR240 just to get rid of it, so I bought it. Sold the iPhone 7 for EUR200 and just added 40 on top :-)

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

I currently use a Pixel 6. It's my first Pixel phone (previous was on a Galaxy S10e and before that, OnePlus 5T).

The software has been not bad and I like the lack of bloatware. However, the Pixel 6 is too wide and very heavy, which means my wrist gets tired from holding the phone while I'm reading.

I hear the Pixel 8 will be more compact (and hopefully lighter as well), so I will consider that, a Pixel 7a, or perhaps an iPhone later in the year.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Currently using a Samung S21 FE

Was a die-hard Google phone user for many years from the Nexus phones and up. This S21-FE came up cheap and I loved it. I've removed most the Samsung crap with adb, and bought my daughter the identical phone.

To be honest these days most phones are just .. the same? We've reached critical mass with features. Its fast, it works, has a nice screen, responsive fingerprint reader, great camera.. but then so do all flagship phones of the last few years.

I have no inclination to upgrade. The times of new phones every 12 months is over. I've had this over 12 months and can easily see myself with it in another 12.

I have a Pixel Watch which I think is a good first offering direct from the big G. Thats a space I will want to upgrade when the time comes.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

I've had my oneplus 8t for the last couple years and am very happy with it

Only interest I have in switch off of it would be for a folding phone, but those are just way too expensive atm

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Fairphone 4. It's very good.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Pixel 6a. I really like the pixels but when they are rooted.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Using a Samsung Galaxy A12 Works perfect for my needs and was super cheap 🤷 My favorite phone ever was my Nexus 5 These days I just replace a phone when I stop getting security updates 😀

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I have an S20 FE. Literally my perfect phone, and I have no plans to change it any time soon!

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Another S20FE here. I've had new phone fever recently, but I keep having to ask myself....what exactly am I going to gain from spending almost a grand on a new S23.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago
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