General What phone should I buy next? -- Not sure what device to buy? Ask here!

KidCarter93 · Aug 21, 2012

Hi everyone,

This thread is a continuation of this thread.

This is here so you can discuss what your next phone/tablet should be, if you're not sure what to pick.

Also, if you need advice as to which device is better than another, then feel free to ask those questions in here aswell.

This is an attempt to clear out all the similar threads being created around these forums.

*NOTE* I will be requesting thread maintenance as and when it is needed, to remove any SPAM comments

350Rocket · Oct 23, 2018

mena99 said:
No 8ne is really active in this post anymore

I asked 5 days ago , no reply except 2 other questions

I think the popularity of tablets is fairly low on these forums compared to smartphones. I know a lot of things about different current smartphones if someone was to ask me for advice on a new purchase, but I know nothing about any of the different tablets available. I think a lot of people on here are the same so you might have to wait a bit for a reply or try watching some reviews on YouTube or something.

xacobecm · Oct 23, 2018

Trunksleo said:
Which smartphone do you recommend me under 300 dolars??? I want a good camera, battery and small size.

I just bought Huawei Nova 3i, great camera, very good battery, and it has 6.3" screen but size is small because it has a nice screen percentage. Also it's a gorgeous phone if you care about that.

cometbike · Oct 25, 2018

Personally I'm looking for a cheap tracphone type smart phone that can interface with my DJI drone. However I need to be able to root it easily-- there isn't enough support yet for a SAMSUNG GALAXY J7 CROWN but that's the one I'm leaning toward. -- Any suggestions?

BSKVL · Oct 26, 2018

help in Finding a Phone for my budget

Im gonna buy a new phone, i currently use Samsung Galaxy j5 2015.
i have a budget of 200 USD.
Im mainly interested in camera quality(macro ,and nature photo, i like doing photography as far as i can with phone, camera should be better than j5)
Battery life being more than a day with normal usage.

Im not going after a brand or a type.
I'll be glad if you could help me with selecting a phone. please provide me with reasons and suggestions.

Thanks in Advance

donnertrud · Oct 28, 2018

Hey guys,

I am looking for a phone which has ~7 inches. The reason for that is, that my hands are very big and I just like the size and screen quality more than the performance of a phone. I have been happy with the Mi Mix 1 for a very long time now, but I really want to go one size bigger in terms of display. So far, the only phone I was coming across was the Mi Max 3, however, since I also like custom ROM's, the support for custom roms for the mi max 3 does not seem as big as it has been for the mi max 3. Any suggestions ? Is there a phablet coming next year or is it not worth waiting ?

thepcmedicinia · Oct 29, 2018

Seeking Advice on Replacement Smartphone

Greetings to all,

My current/previous smartphone is/was a refurbished, unlockedLG G5 H830 purchased from a seller on E-Bay. In attempting to gain root access, a problem was encountered and now the smartphone is bricked, saying it is trying to update the firmware. While I am continuing to try and breathe life back into it, I feel I am in a losing fight, so I am looking at replacing it. Advice on selecting a replacement is the purpose of my post.

My provider (Tracfone) has the following smartphone that are within my price range: Samsung Galaxy J7 Sky Pro (S727VL); Samsung Galaxy J3 Luna Pro (S327VL); LG Stylo 3 (L84VL); LG TREASURE LTE (L52VL); LG REBEL 3 LTE (L158VL). Aside from differences in price, technologically the smartphone are all similar. What I am wanting to know is: Among the choices I have, which of these smartphones are best (read easiest, although the process of gaining root access seems to be anything BUT easy) in terms of gaining root access?

I thank those responding to my post and sharing their wisdom in advance!

YayJohn · Oct 31, 2018

thepcmedicinia said:
Greetings to all,

My current/previous smartphone is/was a refurbished, unlockedLG G5 H830 purchased from a seller on E-Bay. In attempting to gain root access, a problem was encountered and now the smartphone is bricked, saying it is trying to update the firmware. While I am continuing to try and breathe life back into it, I feel I am in a losing fight, so I am looking at replacing it. Advice on selecting a replacement is the purpose of my post.

My provider (Tracfone) has the following smartphone that are within my price range: Samsung Galaxy J7 Sky Pro (S727VL); Samsung Galaxy J3 Luna Pro (S327VL); LG Stylo 3 (L84VL); LG TREASURE LTE (L52VL); LG REBEL 3 LTE (L158VL). Aside from differences in price, technologically the smartphone are all similar. What I am wanting to know is: Among the choices I have, which of these smartphones are best (read easiest, although the process of gaining root access seems to be anything BUT easy) in terms of gaining root access?

I thank those responding to my post and sharing their wisdom in advance!

U have twrp installed?

thepcmedicinia · Oct 31, 2018

YayJohn said:
U have twrp installed?

No. I did noit have TWRP installed on my G5. When I attempted to do so, TWRP informed me I needed root access to install it. Is it possible that there is more than one version of TWRP available in the Google Play store OR perhaps I should have downloaded it from an alternate source. In any case I don't think the G5 is recoverable. If I am wrong (and as limited as my knowledge is this could esily be true) please let me know!

But going forward, one of the first apps that I shall install on a new smartphone will be TWRP.

YayJohn · Oct 31, 2018

thepcmedicinia said:
No. I did noit have TWRP installed on my G5. When I attempted to do so, TWRP informed me I needed root access to install it. Is it possible that there is more than one version of TWRP available in the Google Play store OR perhaps I should have downloaded it from an alternate source. In any case I don't think the G5 is recoverable. If I am wrong (and as limited as my knowledge is this could esily be true) please let me know!

But going forward, one of the first apps that I shall install on a new smartphone will be TWRP.

you need to install twrp through bootloader, can u access it? (hold power button and volume down) also can u unlock it? (if u don't know how to unlock it it's ok)
if you can access bootloader I might be able to unbrick your phone.
how did you brick it in the first place?

Kantilo · Nov 1, 2018

Hello, I do not know what to take as a phone, I spotted the One Plus 6 / 6T but there is no official LOS release to date and I do not know if there is any, if not someone would have a phone to advise me? I spotted the Redmi Note 5

Bidiminished · Nov 1, 2018

My OnePlus 3 is dying, I'm looking for a phone with the following features:

1. Strong dev community (custom ROMs).
2. Headphone jack
3. Great camera
4. Prefer OLED display (I use always on display), no notch

The best options I've found are:
OnePlus 6: Honestly the main thing I have against it is that it's ugly as hell: notch, useless secondary camera, awkward fingerprint scanner and I'm tired of OnePlus's marketing PR nonsense. In terms of sheer specs it seems like the best option though
OnePlus 5T: Seems to have everything apart from a good camera. But the SoC is kind of old and it isn't that much cheaper than the 6
Pocophone F1: I'm not sure how well always on display will work with the LCD screen. Also not sure of the camera quality or where else they cut corners to keep the price low

Any other phones I should take a look at? Or any insights into the three I researched?

madmrt · Nov 6, 2018

Ok so I need help with finding a phone that is around $200 USD here are my requirements for the phone I want it to play games like pubg and games like that with lag don't care if I have to play on lowest settings just want to be able to play and I don't want the battery to die quick or have the phone heat up don't care what company makes the phone as long as it works on the metro by tmobile gsm network plus I don't want an outdated phone unless it has Oreo or better if it can I want it to have a headphone jack

beto.oranek · Nov 7, 2018

thx

madmrt said:
Ok so I need help with finding a phone that is around $200 USD here are my requirements for the phone I want it to play games like pubg and games like that with lag don't care if I have to play on lowest settings just want to be able to play and I don't want the battery to die quick or have the phone heat up don't care what company makes the phone as long as it works on the metro by tmobile gsm network plus I don't want an outdated phone unless it has Oreo or better if it can I want it to have a headphone jack

Thanks for idea lol

sneak · Nov 10, 2018

I've had the Nexus 5 since the year it released and I've loved the phone. The power button has been broken for quite some time now (causes boot loops because it gets stuck), I've not been satisfied with the 16GB advertised space and even if I change the partitioning I can't use any Oreo ROMs. The battery life could be better and the case is also falling apart but I don't want to buy a case for it. I'm considering an upgrade because someone I know picked up a Mate SE for $250 and it seems good.

I don't obsess over the camera like many people for some odd reason do. These phones have several functions, not just a camera. If I want professional photos I'll buy a real camera. I want to make sure it doesn't have CarrierIQ or anything similar. I want the phone to perform well and I want one that isn't loaded by default with bloatware or locked to a specific carrier. Speaking of that I want to be able to use it on AT&T currently. It must be at least as good as the Nexus 5 and I'm thinking of a budget around $300, maybe $350. I want the battery life to not be a disaster and I always prefer phones which aren't setup to try to obstruct the user's wishes at every corner. That means I don't want phones that are excessively irritating to root or flash things onto. I want to be able to do what I want with the device I payed for with my money. By the way, when I say I want it to perform well I don't mean "cheating on benchmarks by removing thermal throttling from the CPU when a benchmark app is open" but actual performance. I would love to have native Qi charging support since I primarily use that to charge my Nexus 5. Headphone jack and NFC is always a plus. I don't think I care about the notch everyone is fighting over... I don't see why it would be the big deal people make it out to be. Expandable storage would be nice, after suffering through only having the 16GB (-partitioned out space and OS) the Nexus 5 had. A pure Android stock ROM would be nice, like the Nexus 5 had but isn't mandatory (I've heard good things about EMUI too).

Any idea if it's generally shady people selling phones on eBay? This is an LG G6 for $314, which seems like a good deal compared to the price it normally goes for but I haven't don't know much about buying phones off eBay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-FACTOR...P-Dual-lens-Black-Platinum-white/332846276805. I'm just asking if in general it's a bad idea to buy off eBay or if it's an option I should consider when making a choice on a phone.

I'm located in the US and intend to stay with AT&T or use Verizon. T-Mobile is unacceptable and Sprint is frowned upon.

BrotherMark456 · Nov 11, 2018

Hello everyone!

Can someone give me a suggestion on a high end quality phone that is easy to root?

---------- Post added at 10:41 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:31 AM ----------

Hello!

Which of the Samsung S5 model is the EASIEST to root?

Thank you!

maujavier91 · Nov 11, 2018

What do you think about the Nokia 6.1 plus or the redmi note 6 pro, i like the small design of nokia but the redmi has the better battery, also what do you think about the potential community strenght of each, which one do you believe will have steady supply of roms in the future.

olliewills · Nov 12, 2018

Galaxy Note 8, OnePlus 6T, Xiaomi Mi Mix 3.......

Evening all,

So, as expected, this is a thread to ask the community what phone I should buy for my next upgrade! (SHOCK!)

I've see a lot of these threads where people ask really open-ended questions with very little detail about their personal circumstances, making it impossible for anyone to make a meaningful suggestion. As a result, I'm going to go the other direction and drop in as much detail as I can about myself and what I'm looking for, so people have something to work with.

Here goes....

I'm currently rocking an HTC One (M7) from, what, late 2013ish? I know, super old, hence needing to upgrade.

About Me:
- I live in the UK
- I'm a web UX designer and graphic artist
- I'm a geek
- I'm into staying healthy (mostly running, some gym and a healthy diet)
- I'm not afraid to root a phone and install a custom rom down the line if the phone needs it
- I spend a lot of time reading stuff on the internet

My phone needs/behaviours (or lack of):
- Sim-free, unlocked, off contract
- As fast and reliable a chipset as possible
- 6+ Gb of RAM
- A good camera is essential. I have a two-year-old and my phone is usually the first camera I have to hand to capture all the crazy stuff he does!
- A battery that can get me 2 days of light-medium use is fine
- I don't upgrade frequently so need something that will last for at least 2-3 years before becoming too slow to use
- I don't care about a front-facing camera. I take maybe 2 selfies a year and I can't remember the last time a made a video call via a phone
- No notch is preferable but I'm not as worked up over it as some people seem to be, so it's not a deal-breaker
- I already use BT headphones so lack of 3.5mm jack doesn't really bother me. It's a nice-to-have, but again, not a deal-breaker
- I've never dropped a phone in the bath and I have no intention of taking one swimming, so an official IP rating is not needed
- Whatever phone I get will almost certainly get covered in a protective case so pretty looks aren't really an issue
- I'd like a big screen, 6 inches or more, with a ppi above 400
- I don't do any gaming on my phone
- I don't use Facebook, Twitter or Instagram
- I value well-optimised, well-designed software
- I'm not bothered about the weight of the phone. The 30g-ish difference between a light phone and a heavy phone is imperceptible to most people in real-world use. Most of the time my phone is carried in a Molle pouch on my daysack and not in a pocket.

My top 10 most used apps are:
1. Chrome
2. Spotify
3. Google Photos
4. WhatsApp
5. Gmail
6. Tapatalk
7. Amazon
8. Endomondo
9. MyFitnessPal
10. Google Maps

Budget:
I've got £500-550 to spend at most

Phones I've considered:
- Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus
- Samsung Galaxy Note 8
- Huawei Mate 10 Pro (Almost bought this before I realised that Huawei now lock their bootloaders)
- Oneplus 6T
- Xiaomi Mi Mix 3

Think that's about it. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Ollie

CamoGeko · Nov 12, 2018

olliewills said:
Evening all,

So, as expected, this is a thread to ask the community what phone I should buy for my next upgrade! (SHOCK!)

I've see a lot of these threads where people ask really open-ended questions with very little detail about their personal circumstances, making it impossible for anyone to make a meaningful suggestion. As a result, I'm going to go the other direction and drop in as much detail as I can about myself and what I'm looking for, so people have something to work with.

Here goes....

I'm currently rocking an HTC One (M7) from, what, late 2013ish? I know, super old, hence needing to upgrade.

About Me:
- I live in the UK
- I'm a web UX designer and graphic artist
- I'm a geek
- I'm into staying healthy (mostly running, some gym and a healthy diet)
- I'm not afraid to root a phone and install a custom rom down the line if the phone needs it
- I spend a lot of time reading stuff on the internet

My phone needs/behaviours (or lack of):
- Sim-free, unlocked, off contract
- As fast and reliable a chipset as possible
- 6+ Gb of RAM
- A good camera is essential. I have a two-year-old and my phone is usually the first camera I have to hand to capture all the crazy stuff he does!
- A battery that can get me 2 days of light-medium use is fine
- I don't upgrade frequently so need something that will last for at least 2-3 years before becoming too slow to use
- I don't care about a front-facing camera. I take maybe 2 selfies a year and I can't remember the last time a made a video call via a phone
- No notch is preferable but I'm not as worked up over it as some people seem to be, so it's not a deal-breaker
- I already use BT headphones so lack of 3.5mm jack doesn't really bother me. It's a nice-to-have, but again, not a deal-breaker
- I've never dropped a phone in the bath and I have no intention of taking one swimming, so an official IP rating is not needed
- Whatever phone I get will almost certainly get covered in a protective case so pretty looks aren't really an issue
- I'd like a big screen, 6 inches or more, with a ppi above 400
- I don't do any gaming on my phone
- I don't use Facebook, Twitter or Instagram
- I value well-optimised, well-designed software
- I'm not bothered about the weight of the phone. The 30g-ish difference between a light phone and a heavy phone is imperceptible to most people in real-world use. Most of the time my phone is carried in a Molle pouch on my daysack and not in a pocket.

My top 10 most used apps are:
1. Chrome
2. Spotify
3. Google Photos
4. WhatsApp
5. Gmail
6. Tapatalk
7. Amazon
8. Endomondo
9. MyFitnessPal
10. Google Maps

Budget:
I've got £500-550 to spend at most

Phones I've considered:
- Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus
- Samsung Galaxy Note 8
- Huawei Mate 10 Pro (Almost bought this before I realised that Huawei now lock their bootloaders)
- Oneplus 6T
- Xiaomi Mi Mix 3

Think that's about it. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Ollie

Good evening mate, and welcome to XDA.

That's a great description of what you're looking for, and honestly from the list that you specified I would have to recommend the OnePlus 6T. It pretty much has what you're looking for, latest SoC, more than enough RAM, good build quality as with pretty much all OnePlus devices and clean software with updates streaming in regularly. Oh and let's not forget the in-screen fingerprint scanner!

I love the fact that you still use the HTC M7, that's one of my all time favourite devices.

PS. If you don't mind waiting till next year for the new smaller and more efficient 7nm SoC then the OP7 would be my recommendation. If you want a new phone now get the 6T!

Sent from my PH-1 using XDA Labs

350Rocket · Nov 13, 2018

If it was me I'd get the OnePlus 6 because I use my headphone jack every day, but since you don't care I'd recommend OnePlus 6t like the previous reply. I bought the OnePlus 5 15 months ago and plan to use it for another few years hopefully. I still have an HTC one m8 for a tv remote, car speedometer, flashlight (dual flashes are way better than the OnePlus 5 for a flashlight) among other things.

olliewills · Nov 13, 2018

CamoGeko said:
I love the fact that you still use the HTC M7, that's one of my all time favourite devices.

PS. If you don't mind waiting till next year for the new smaller and more efficient 7nm SoC then the OP6T is my recommendation.

My M7 has been a perfectly good phone all these years. I've put a couple of different ROMs on it over hat time to try and keep it going but at this point apps are simply getting too heavy for it to run smoothly and it's missing out on the latest versions of Android. It's also developed the purple haze on the camera making photos virtually unusable except if taken in perfect lighting conditions.

I had thought about waiting for the OnePlus 7 but that's still another 6 months away and my phone is already getting seriously painful to use. That kind of waiting game is also one that easily mean you never find the right time to upgrade as there's always something new 'just around the corner'. Obviously waiting for the OP7 would mean getting 2nd gen UD fingerprint sensors, more efficient chip and maybe 5G support.

I think my plan currently is to wait and see what crops up on black friday deals and go from there. The OP6T is the strong contender right now, though I'm not completely un-sold on a Note 8, even if the chip is a bit older now.

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