What phone you use as your daily driver? And, a discussion of them.

[AusWolf]

Dude.. there are different iPhones, the ones with the exotic aluminum are the midrange ones. I do not buy those ones, I buy their flagship stuff. Everyone has flagship stuff that costs as much as iPhones. And why would you expect a better answer from me when you say something like oh I had this model and it looked like every other phone.

Because I would think that there's more to a flagship phone than its looks, even if I'm not a phone guru enough to notice it. If there isn't, that's very sad.

 

[ahujet]

I'm still using OnePlus 8 Pro with LineageOS 20 and see no reason to upgrade to a newer phone.

 

[trparky]

Maybe try resetting your phone?

My argument here is that if the vendor had done the upgrade right in the first place, one should never have to reset the phone. The user should not have to be responsible for an upgrade that went wrong.

People complain up one side and down the other whenever Microsoft screws up an update yet whenever it happens on Android, the usual response is, as you said... "Maybe try resetting your phone?"

I'm not going to say that Apple iOS is all rainbows, puppies, and kittens but damn, I don't have nearly as much software problems that usually plague Androids. Again, it just plain works.

 

[P4-630]

I'm not going to say that Apple iOS is all rainbows, puppies, and kittens but damn, I don't have nearly as much software problems that usually plague Androids. Again, it just plain works.

Great that you are happy with yours, I'm happy with my S23 Android, it just works! At least for me.

Also iirc I have mentioned before in this thread, I don't use many apps.

 

[Tahagomizer]

Galaxy Note 10 plus, rooted, custom ROM'd, debloated, degoogled. It has the idiotic bent screen but I see no reason to get anything newer. New phones seem to be sold only on software gimmicks and being chock full of corporate spyware, activity and ad trackers. Nah, thanks.

 

[RUSerious]

iPhone 15 Plus. I like the larger 6.7" screen. I actually use it for browsing, which was a PITA even on my previous 6.1" screen. Kind of surprised by the difference.

 

[Night]

Galaxy S25 series will be all-Exynos everywhere, new rumor claims

On the other hand, next year's foldables will be all-in on Snapdragon. A new rumor today from a leakster over on X (formerly Twitter) has some bad news for...

www.gsmarena.com

If this turns out to be true, I'll be keeping S23+ for a few more extra years. I really doubt that Samsung's SoC will be on par with a newer iteration of Snapdragon, at least for now it hasn't. I really do hate different SoCs for different markets, kind of a same story with Iphone and the non-pro models getting previous SoCs...

 

[WhitetailAni]

I really do hate different SoCs for different markets, kind of a same story with Iphone and the non-pro models getting previous SoCs...

At least with iPhones you get a choice about the SoC you get (albeit for a price). Exynos vs Snapdragon is just "where do you live".

 

[dgianstefani]

At least with iPhones you get a choice about the SoC you get (albeit for a price). Exynos vs Snapdragon is just "where do you live".

I just bought the Hong Kong variant (snapdragon, unlocked) when I bought my phone, although I live in the UK. Parts are compatible anyway so it makes no difference.

 

[P4-630]

Galaxy S25 series will be all-Exynos everywhere, new rumor claims

On the other hand, next year's foldables will be all-in on Snapdragon. A new rumor today from a leakster over on X (formerly Twitter) has some bad news for...

www.gsmarena.com

If this turns out to be true, I'll be keeping S23+ for a few more extra years. I really doubt that Samsung's SoC will be on par with a newer iteration of Snapdragon, at least for now it hasn't. I really do hate different SoCs for different markets, kind of a same story with Iphone and the non-pro models getting previous SoCs...

I don't need a new phone when the S25 comes out anyway......
2028/2029 I will look for something else.

 

[FoulOnWhite]

I'm still using a iphone 8 plus. It takes calls and sends messages, i can access chrome and my online bank, and it has the best music player in a phone. What more do you need.

 

[trparky]

I'm still using a iphone 8 plus. It takes calls and sends messages, i can access chrome and my online bank, and it has the best music player in a phone. What more do you need.

Other than eventually the carriers will re-farm frequency bands that your phone still uses to be used for 5G that your phone doesn't support.

 

[AusWolf]

Other than eventually the carriers will re-farm frequency bands that your phone still uses to be used for 5G that your phone doesn't support.

I don't think 4G is going away anytime soon. We still have brand new phones for sale that don't have 5G in them. I just bought one 2 months ago.

 

[trparky]

I don't think 4G is going away anytime soon. We still have brand new phones for sale that don't have 5G in them.

Wow, I'd have never thought that.

But what about 3G bands? A lot of those are being re-farmed to be 5G bands.

 

[AusWolf]

Wow, I'd have never thought that.

But what about 3G bands? A lot of those are being re-farmed to be 5G bands.

3G is still a good fallback option in far away rural areas where even 4G coverage is spotty. As far as I know, most networks are only in the process of phasing out 2G which really (almost) no one uses anymore.

We might be an enthusiast community, but the world doesn't revolve around the latest and greatest. We're actually quite privileged in that regard.

 

[Todestrieb]

iPhone 13 mini (w/ Razer Arctech Pro case) here. My first iPhone (5C) is awesome for single-hand use. SE1 is about the same. To the point my next iPhone (XR) is too big for my fat oily fingers to comfortably use. Sadly, time has moved on, and the display on SEs are garbage by 2023 standard.
Yes, I got questioned by the sales for "You want mini? That's a bit rare...". And my mother doesn't approve my grown-ass adult decision to go small with my phones because "it is bad for your eyes". I know this is by far the most comfortable phone I can buy in 2022~2023 for me other than iPhoneSE2. And I got too annoyed that I snapped and threw the phone with intent of harm, proving its sturdiness. Of course I missed, and things got calmed down shortly after. I was too much of a weirdo back then...

The wacky gamery case is that my phone was constantly overheating under heavy use in a summer vacation in Japan (it doesn't help that air temperature is >35C very often, but somehow it is much worse than in my local areas). I was shopping for another case anyway, and I saw that case in a Don Quijote store with some very Razer marketing. I don't know if it would have helped, as I bought the case after leaving Japan.

When the sad last days of my phone inevitably come, the next phone is more likely to be iPhone-whatever-number with no suffix, although I will have another cold hard look on the Android side of phone market. I'm not that happy with the lack of multitasking power on my iPhone for gamery reasons anyway.

 

[theouto]

iPhone 13 Pro Max. I could (and probably will) stick to this phone for many years, as I only use it as a text and call machine, usually it sits under my pc.
I sometimes don't even charge it at night.

 

[AusWolf]

iPhone 13 mini (w/ Razer Arctech Pro case) here. My first iPhone (5C) is awesome for single-hand use. SE1 is about the same. To the point my next iPhone (XR) is too big for my fat oily fingers to comfortably use. Sadly, time has moved on, and the display on SEs are garbage by 2023 standard.
Yes, I got questioned by the sales for "You want mini? That's a bit rare...". And my mother doesn't approve my grown-ass adult decision to go small with my phones because "it is bad for your eyes". I know this is by far the most comfortable phone I can buy in 2022~2023 for me other than iPhoneSE2. And I got too annoyed that I snapped and threw the phone with intent of harm, proving its sturdiness. Of course I missed, and things got calmed down shortly after. I was too much of a weirdo back then...

The wacky gamery case is that my phone was constantly overheating under heavy use in a summer vacation in Japan (it doesn't help that air temperature is >35C very often, but somehow it is much worse than in my local areas). I was shopping for another case anyway, and I saw that case in a Don Quijote store with some very Razer marketing. I don't know if it would have helped, as I bought the case after leaving Japan.

When the sad last days of my phone inevitably come, the next phone is more likely to be iPhone-whatever-number with no suffix, although I will have another cold hard look on the Android side of phone market. I'm not that happy with the lack of multitasking power on my iPhone for gamery reasons anyway.

That's exactly why I just bought a 4.3-inch Blackview N6000. I don't need high-end performance, and I absolutely loathe big phones.

 

[faye]

So the Pixel 8 got here, and the main thing it has me wishing is that I could have paid the difference and got the Pro, as I immediately miss the extra .5" coming from the 7 Pro.

Otherwise it appears to be a better phone all around, though not vastly so. Very typical incremental improvement. The flat screen is lovely, I've always felt the curved side display trend was stupid, battery life seems to be noticably improved, though not as much as I'd like. Cameras are comparable or better.

The telephoto went largely unused on the 7 Pro, so I doubt I'd miss it. The main shooter on the 8 gives slightly better more realistic photos without edits, and its macro performance is night and day better. This alone may be what pushes me to make the switch - I have a tremor, it's very minor, but having to hold the phone perfectly still to get a clear close to up with the 7 Pro has been difficult.

I'll probably just list both phones somewhere and keep whichever doesn't sell first, and if I were paying for a new phone (this was from a promo) I would never consider anything but the 8 Pro, but for most people, and certainly people who don't mind the smaller size, the 8 is probably the way to go.

 

[Chrispy_]

The flat screen is lovely, I've always felt the curved side display trend was stupid

I assigned myself the first curved edge on the market, I think - A Galaxy Edge S7 and all of my expectations of the stupidity were correct.

• It did make them more fragile.
• Phone cases couldn't protect the edge because the design required the edge to be exposed.
• The palm/grip rejection was far from perfect. So much unintentional input. If it was 100x better it would still be flawed enough to matter.
• The curved screen was GUARANTEED to pick up reflection highlights from above. No angle of screen tilt could ever eliminate it.
• Added cost for a nuisance feature that nobody asked for, nobody wanted, and was NEVER a good idea.

When it was inevitably knocked off a low-level coffee table onto a tiled floor (fall of just 15") it landed on the edge that couldn't be covered and cracked the screen. The screen replacement costs were basically the same as a new phone so I ditched that turd - also relieved to get back to a stock Android experience instead of the pointless, bloated re-skin of Android with inferior duplicate apps that Samsung liked to use. Thankfully they've seen the light and toned down their customisations these days....

 

[AusWolf]

I assigned myself the first curved edge on the market, I think - A Galaxy Edge S7 and all of my expectations of the stupidity were correct.

• It did make them more fragile.
• Phone cases couldn't protect the edge because the design required the edge to be exposed.
• The palm/grip rejection was far from perfect. So much unintentional input. If it was 100x better it would still be flawed enough to matter.
• The curved screen was GUARANTEED to pick up reflection highlights from above. No angle of screen tilt could ever eliminate it.
• Added cost for a nuisance feature that nobody asked for, nobody wanted, and was NEVER a good idea.

When it was inevitably knocked off a low-level coffee table onto a tiled floor (fall of just 15") it landed on the edge that couldn't be covered and cracked the screen. The screen replacement costs were basically the same as a new phone so I ditched that turd - also relieved to get back to a stock Android experience instead of the pointless, bloated re-skin of Android with inferior duplicate apps that Samsung liked to use. Thankfully they've seen the light and toned down their customisations these days....

Yeah, curved screens are stupid. I also don't understand some people's obsession with screen-to-phone ratios. I mean, if the whole device is a literal touchscreen, then how are you supposed to hold it and actually use it?

 

[faye]

I assigned myself the first curved edge on the market, I think - A Galaxy Edge S7 and all of my expectations of the stupidity were correct.

• It did make them more fragile.
• Phone cases couldn't protect the edge because the design required the edge to be exposed.
• The palm/grip rejection was far from perfect. So much unintentional input. If it was 100x better it would still be flawed enough to matter.
• The curved screen was GUARANTEED to pick up reflection highlights from above. No angle of screen tilt could ever eliminate it.
• Added cost for a nuisance feature that nobody asked for, nobody wanted, and was NEVER a good idea.

When it was inevitably knocked off a low-level coffee table onto a tiled floor (fall of just 15") it landed on the edge that couldn't be covered and cracked the screen. The screen replacement costs were basically the same as a new phone so I ditched that turd - also relieved to get back to a stock Android experience instead of the pointless, bloated re-skin of Android with inferior duplicate apps that Samsung liked to use. Thankfully they've seen the light and toned down their customisations these days....

Oh yes, the S7 Edge was garbage. I had one, the display / digitizer failed like 6 months in (thin pink lines top to bottom near one curved side) and Samsung/Verizon claimed it was accidental damage despite it being a commonly reported fault at the time. I never dropped or otherwise abused it, and that was my last Samsung phone. I had every Galaxy S since the S2 before that, so they lost a previously loyal customer. Has doubtless cost them hundreds of millions since, as I doubt I'm the only person with a very similar story.

Yeah, curved screens are stupid. I also don't understand some people's obsession with screen-to-phone ratios. I mean, if the whole device is a literal touchscreen, then how are you supposed to hold it and actually use it?

As far as I'm concerned the entire front should be display - I hold the edges and I want a battery big enough that those edges will naturally have to be thick enough.

 

[P4-630]

Samsung phones I've had:

Samsung S8000 Jet (2010) Horrible touch screen...
Samsung Galaxy S2 plus (2013) A bit better...
Samsung Galaxy S7 (2016)
Samsung Galaxy S23 (2023)

 

[freeagent]

I had an S3 with a junk battery lol. I got a 4400mah battery and back cover from Anker. That combo was pretty solid. Till you dropped it and it exploded

 

[de.das.dude]

I had an S3 with a junk battery lol. I got a 4400mah battery and back cover from Anker. That combo was pretty solid. Till you dropped it and it exploded

elaborate ?