Hi all,
I've cleverly managed to damage the screen of my beloved Samsung S7 edge and am now in the market for a new phone. I'm capable of researching, and have done so, but I wanted to also appeal to the collective knowledge base here for further opinions.
My criteria:
- For simple phone use, the various apps involved in running a household as well as some slightly more intensive apps for work (medical anatomy etc)
- I use my phone most heavily for scrolling newsfeeds/reddit/facebook, alongside a reasonably heavy component of watching videos.
- The occasional photo for family reasons, though I'm no budding photographer.
Therefore what I think matters to me is most of all that nothing is -bad- with the phone's day to day function. Things like ads on the firmware, slower than standard operating speed, poorer than average camera etc. I don't expect extremes in performance (I don't notice much difference with ultra/high res), but I am fearful of trying new phones/brands because of the chance of having some aspect of the phone drive me mad because it is subpar.
Secondary to simply 'not being bad at anything', the things that are of interest to me in terms of adding value include a better than average screen, better than average battery life and decent storage options. None of these are deal breakers (as above, I'm pretty happy with average), but they may be deal makers. A headphone jack would be appreciated but not demanded.
I have no fixed budget. It would be most accurate for me to say that I want good value for money, and I'm attracted to the sense of a bargain. I would be willing to spend $1000 for a phone if I felt I was getting $1500 worth and it met my criteria well. Likewise I'd be delighted to pay $400 if I felt I was getting $800 worth in terms of comparative quality.
My (and partner's) previous phones have included iPhone 3 ( really struggled with apple's OS but might be willing to try again if it was the right option), Moto G5 (loved it for a month because of the sense of value, but it quickly slowed down and the battery life faded, thus making me slightly suspicious of cheaper phones), a Google pixel 3 (which I'll never get again after a variety of concerns) and a S7 Edge (lasted 4 years until I intervened, was loved the entire time).
Some options my research has caught my attention:
- Oneplus 6T/7T
- Xiaomi Mi 9T
- Huawei P30
- Samsung S10e/S9
I've found refurb model pricing obviously enticing, but am wary of going down that road. Would be delighted to get any strong opinions about refurbs as well.
Thanks for your time and expertise!
TLDR:
Want new phone that represents value for money without compromising at least mediocrity across the board. Any opinions about what is bad/good in the current market and why?
Having bought a Xiaomi Mi 9T, and having sold it again shortly afterwards, I would take a S10e over the Xiaomi, simply because of the more refined software. I found bugs and glitches far more frustrating to deal with than bare speed alone.