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

guthrien · Nov 26, 2012

If I had to buy an android tablet, I'd go only Nexus. They are well spec'd for the price and the latest updates matters more compared to phones. Plus the tech moves a little slower.

Though it pains me to say it (I'd never buy another iPhone) I'd also buy an iPad instead. Especially for gamers. The software is absurdly better (I own both). Don't waste time or money with deals on no name tablets. You will regret it.

R.H. · Nov 26, 2012

Sprint: GSIII or GN2

Just like my title says, I'm currently torn between the GSIII and GNII. I'm overdue for an upgrade by 3 months now. I've played with both in store and I'm still torn between the two... I'm just wondering which will provide me more usability over it's lifetime, without getting caught up in the novelty features of each device. I'm an orthopedic surgeon that has a passion for picture taking and I rarely use my phone for anything other than being a phone....

lukeja · Nov 26, 2012

WP8

R.H. said:
Just like my title says, I'm currently torn between the GSIII and GNII. I'm overdue for an upgrade by 3 months now. I've played with both in store and I'm still torn between the two... I'm just wondering which will provide me more usability over it's lifetime, without getting caught up in the novelty features of each device. I'm an orthopedic surgeon that has a passion for picture taking and I rarely use my phone for anything other than being a phone....

HTC 8X is a great choice, blows your two options out of the water but I would go with the GSIII out of your choices!

frog1982 · Nov 26, 2012

Is there a good site that anybody has experience with for buying used phones

question_air · Nov 26, 2012

gagdude said:
What is your budget?

Sent from my DROID2 using xda premium

My budget is up to £130, £140 at a stretch. I'm ok buying used phones also, so that means I can aim for higher spec phones.
(£130 - £140 = $210 - $225)

XThe_GManX · Nov 26, 2012

My budget is up to £130, £140 at a stretch. I'm ok buying used phones also, so that means I can aim for higher spec phones.
(£130 - £140 = $210 - $225)

I think the Samsung Galaxy Ace is quite cheap these days, I've used it for an year and a half and it's a great low-mid range device!

stevecrox · Nov 26, 2012

Cyanogenmod

I currently own a Sony Xperia Play but it is somewhat crippled by low Ram and 348mb of free storage space. I love the gamepad but can't see anything else on the market, so I'm looking for a new phone at the moment I am thinking either the Sony Xperia T or a Motorola i Razr Maxx.

My wishlist is:
Camera taking button
3.5" - 4.5" screen
1GB RAM (possibly more if recommended for future proofing)
2GB internal application storage (possibly more if recommended for future proofing)
CyanogenMod support (CM10, with good chance of getting CM11)

gagdude · Nov 26, 2012

XThe_GManX said:
I think the Samsung Galaxy Ace is quite cheap these days, I've used it for an year and a half and it's a great low-mid range device!

Sorry man but DO NOT GET THE ACE. It's specs were severely dated when ARMv7 became the standard.

For $210-$225, you can definitely get a used Galaxy S which is better than the Ace. But let's aim higher.
Some of the Tegra 2 phones can be bought at that price (Atrix, G2X, etc.) but we can go even higher.
I think I might be stretching it but you might be able to buy a used Galaxy S2, and even a used Galaxy Nexus for that price. You definitely want to check eBay or Amazon, but if you save a little more ($250-$280) they are definitely in that price range

Sent from my DROID2 using xda premium

inincognito · Nov 27, 2012

i'm getting a new smartphone but I'm wondering what kind of hardware would I need to do everyday stuff like calendar, youtube videos, gmail, browsing, calls, sms, tethering, couple of random apps like workout logs or something, etc and maybe a game or two?

dual core vs single core
512mb ram vs 768mb ram vs 1gb ram

sirlinux03 · Nov 27, 2012

I have the option to stay with sprint and get the Galaxy Nexus "free" + a $199 nexus 7 or switch to T-Mobile and wait until the "$199" nexus 4 is available + no nexus 7

dontsurf · Nov 27, 2012

XThe_GManX said:
I think the Samsung Galaxy Ace is quite cheap these days, I've used it for an year and a half and it's a great low-mid range device!

My missus has one, but she's had it for over 18 months now, and you can get much better at that price point now if you shop smart.

Pritt0 · Nov 27, 2012

Hi folks,

I've got a SGS, and now I've the chance to choose a GNote or a SGS3.
Which one do you suggest? Why?

Thanks a lot!

egps2 · Nov 27, 2012

Pritt0 said:
Hi folks,

I've got a SGS, and now I've the chance to choose a GNote or a SGS3.
Which one do you suggest? Why?

Thanks a lot!

I would suggest a GS3 if 4.8 inches is big enough or the GNote if you like an even bigger phone! I think S3 will be enough but the GNote 2 is a performance and feature filled beast but I imagine it might be cheaper to get an S3 if you shop around! So for me: S3 but for you? Think about size and cost

Pritt0 · Nov 27, 2012

egps2 said:
I would suggest a GS3 if 4.8 inches is big enough or the GNote if you like an even bigger phone! I think S3 will be enough but the GNote 2 is a performance and feature filled beast but I imagine it might be cheaper to get an S3 if you shop around! So for me: S3 but for you? Think about size and cost

Actually I think I'll go for GNote, the reason is quite simple: now I own an SGS, thus an SGS3 would be an upgrade while a GNote a new user experience, thanks to very big display and pen. And I'm not talking only about GNote2, but also for GNote, which is nowadays far cheaper. From a technical point of view SGS3 and GNote (the first GNote) have quite the same hardware. Same camera, RAM, GPU. With aftermarket ROMs we now can achieve from GNote an user experience quite similar to the one provided by GNote2, but with more little expense. As matter stands, my impression is that GNote is the best choice between SGS3 and GNote. (Obviously if I could spend more, then I'll buy a GNote2 for sure).

Am I *out of the road* with this analysis or not?

egps2 · Nov 27, 2012

Pritt0 said:
Actually I think I'll go for GNote, the reason is quite simple: now I own an SGS, thus an SGS3 would be an upgrade while a GNote a new user experience, thanks to very big display and pen. And I'm not talking only about GNote2, but also for GNote, which is nowadays far cheaper. From a technical point of view SGS3 and GNote (the first GNote) have quite the same hardware. Same camera, RAM, GPU. With aftermarket ROMs we now can achieve from GNote an user experience quite similar to the one provided by GNote2, but with more little expense. As matter stands, my impression is that GNote is the best choice between SGS3 and GNote. (Obviously if I could spend more, then I'll buy a GNote2 for sure).

Am I *out of the road* with this analysis or not?

I think a GNote would be amazing but you have to be sure you are comfortable with the big screen! If you don't think it's too big then go for it! But please make sure you pick up a real one at the shops or see a friend's GNote just to be sure you like the size! It's obviously a personal matter but I'm sure you will be happy with it! Just check out some extra reviews on youtube and online to be sure of it

linedpaper · Nov 27, 2012

I'm looking to switch to an Android phone, coming from an iPhone 4. I'm currently on AT&T, but I am open to changing carriers. I'm between two phones at the moment and looking for insight and/suggestions. The HTC One X+ is on the list. It has a better camera and quad core over my other option the Maxx HD which has a better battery and carrier. Any suggestions? My must have list is:

At least 32gb storage
Good Camera
Decent/good battery life
Fast
4g

Is there anything else I should be looking at other than these two? I'm having trouble weighing what is more important. I'm concerned about the battery life and carrier (AT&T) on the HTC One X+, but for the Maxx HD I'm concerned about the camera and the dual core instead of quad core processor. I'm not looking for super nice photos, but I do use the camera quite a bit to take quick pictures of my 7 month old, so I want them to look good.

Thanks,
Tim

dontsurf · Nov 27, 2012

linedpaper said:
I'm looking to switch to an Android phone, coming from an iPhone 4. I'm currently on AT&T, but I am open to changing carriers. I'm between two phones at the moment and looking for insight and/suggestions. The HTC One X+ is on the list. It has a better camera and quad core over my other option the Maxx HD which has a better battery and carrier. Any suggestions? My must have list is:

At least 32gb storage
Good Camera
Decent/good battery life
Fast
4g

Is there anything else I should be looking at other than these two? I'm having trouble weighing what is more important. I'm concerned about the battery life and carrier (AT&T) on the HTC One X+, but for the Maxx HD I'm concerned about the camera and the dual core instead of quad core processor. I'm not looking for super nice photos, but I do use the camera quite a bit to take quick pictures of my 7 month old, so I want them to look good.

Thanks,
Tim

Buy outright, leave the contract for the birds would be my advice. Unless you have no money for an outright purchase (or parallel imported) then you'll save a fortune in the long run by buying outright. If you then throw a custom ROM on there - after a suitable period, and because it'll likely have an unlockable bootloader - you're likely to get much better battery life and user experience out of it.

Having said that, have you looked at the LG Optimus G? 13mp camera on that.

linedpaper · Nov 27, 2012

dontsurf said:
Buy outright, leave the contract for the birds would be my advice. Unless you have no money for an outright purchase (or parallel imported) then you'll save a fortune in the long run by buying outright. If you then throw a custom ROM on there - after a suitable period, and because it'll likely have an unlockable bootloader - you're likely to get much better battery life and user experience out of it.

Having said that, have you looked at the LG Optimus G? 13mp camera on that.

I'm probably going to go with a contract due to the upfront cost, I understand my limitations there. I have briefly looked at the Optimus G, but haven't read good things. I also read that LG is notoriously bad for updates.

dontsurf · Nov 27, 2012

linedpaper said:
I'm probably going to go with a contract due to the upfront cost, I understand my limitations there. I have briefly looked at the Optimus G, but haven't read good things. I also read that LG is notoriously bad for updates.

I've only read good things.

Make sure you're checking out the reviews for the 13mp model, not the 8mp.

I don't know about LG's updates, but most manufacturers are pretty poor with their stock updates, and it probably gets worse when you're carrier locked. As a former HTC owner, I'd say that if you're concerned about updates then you should probably stay away from HTC. They take a long time to update SenseUI for all the phones.

P6raf · Nov 28, 2012

Sorry to ask but I need some advice

I know this question is asked by a million users but I need some advice on a suitable tablet.

I've spent literally hours looking through forums (trying to find someone with the same needs) and looked at all of the different brands on the market but still non the wiser.

OK here's the deal...
Main purpose will be as an in car sat nav system (hope to connect audio with the cars stereo maybe)
secondly it will double as a wifi based web browser for my wife.

The features I'm looking for are;

GPS,
USB port/ports
Bluetooth (connect with my bluetooth obd)
Wifi
HDMI
Android based (preferably easily upgraded as and when needed)
and a 7 inch screen
I don't want a sim based tab as I have no need for it.

The Galaxy tab 2 ticks all the boxes but I've read the satnav function is not very good, true ?
Vexia navlet looks good but can't find anyone selling them or any owners reviews.
I've also found a few chinese brands I've never heard of which are shipped from China (seems a little unsafe to me)

Surely someone here who's their stuff and can point me in the right direction. Please

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

Retired Forum Moderator

Senior Member

Member

Member

Senior Member

Member

Member

Member

Senior Member

Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

Senior Member

New member

Similar threads

Top Liked Posts

Phones whose latest versions are supported by atleast 3+ official custom roms:​

The 7 device series - that will surely provide 3+ official rom support in future:​

Detailed analysis of these 7 devices with their present state of custom ROM development, attached as a pdf​

Poco X6 Pro 512 / 12 GB vs Galaxy S23 FE 256 / 8 GB - which one should I buy?​

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

Phones whose latest versions are supported by atleast 3+ official custom roms:

The 7 device series - that will surely provide 3+ official rom support in future:

Detailed analysis of these 7 devices with their present state of custom ROM development, attached as a pdf

Poco X6 Pro 512 / 12 GB vs Galaxy S23 FE 256 / 8 GB - which one should I buy?