OT: smartphone research

[Graduatedayear2early]

Sorry for the long post.....not a heavy phone user....have a 2016 pixel 1. Works great, but with google not supporting it anymore, I'm slowly researching. I keep seeing the Pixel 4 on slickdeals (current $699 with $200 amazon gift card). Anybody have this phone? Is the battery that bad? I love my pixel 1 and it still holds up great, battery great, etc...but I know the it wont last forever.

I'm also tempted by the oneplus 7t or 7 pro and also have looked in the iphone 11. I've had google since nexus 5, can't imagine switching OS, but familiar with macs.
(google drive/music/photos/home/maps)

Is there any way to customize/make folders for apps on the iphone? I know the ios limits the user, but the support seems to last 5-6 years instead of 3.

thanks for any advice.

 

[kcg88]

Get the Pixel 3a. Same guts mostly as the 3 just with a plastic shell instead of metal.

 

[theRU]

Wait... A 2016 phone is no longer supported? Isn't that a bit early?

Fwiw the Samsung note 10plus 5g is awesome. I've noticed the signal does penetrate much deeper.

 

[Graduatedayear2early]

i'm not expecting google to support it forever, just a sign to think about moving on and whether to switch to ios

 

[Graduatedayear2early]

prices are ridiculous...remember when i'd get a free phone with 2yr old upgrade.

 

[Terry_2426]

The phone prices are ridiculous but with the way the phone plans have changed it's basically the same cost all-in. $35/month phone plan + $40/month phone loan is virtually the same as paying $200 for the phone and having a $70/month phone plan but it feels a lot worse now lol

 

[Rufaninga]

Sorry for the long post.....not a heavy phone user....have a 2016 pixel 1. Works great, but with google not supporting it anymore, I'm slowly researching. I keep seeing the Pixel 4 on slickdeals (current $699 with $200 amazon gift card). Anybody have this phone? Is the battery that bad? I love my pixel 1 and it still holds up great, battery great, etc...but I know the it wont last forever.

I'm also tempted by the oneplus 7t or 7 pro and also have looked in the iphone 11. I've had google since nexus 5, can't imagine switching OS, but familiar with macs.
(google drive/music/photos/home/maps)

Is there any way to customize/make folders for apps on the iphone? I know the ios limits the user, but the support seems to last 5-6 years instead of 3.

thanks for any advice.

I have one,bought when Zenfone AR died.

Battery is good on mine.
Typical day:
Chari phone overnight
Start at 6
Use Google maps on way to work 1 hr.
Use throughout day check email, use phone few calls 10-15 mins per.
Use on way home Google maps 1 hr 45mins
Stream youtubeTV few hours at home
Surf web message board
Check Reddit at night 30 mins winding down

Phone stays charged until I plugin at night

Phone only few months old. Performance is good, pictures a really good. No issues or crapware loaded from mfg.

I like it. Not sure what so many negative reviews on it.

Ali, u use custom folders for storing related apps too.

 

[RUinPAC10land]

The new Samsung Galaxy S11 is supposed to be released on 2/11.

https://www.t3.com/us/features/samsung-galaxy-s11-news-leaks-rumours-release-date-price-specs

 

[mildone]

Bad battery life is a PITA I won't deal with. I have a Galaxy Note 10+ and the battery life is wonderful. I charge it every 3-4 days. With my last phone, LG-V20, I was charging it twice a day after a couple months of owning it. Hated that phone and only laziness prevented me from getting rid of it sooner.

Had one of the explosive Notes before Samsung made me give it back. That was a great phone (other than exploding in people's faces, I guess). Great battery life.

Had a Galaxy Note (2, I think) before the explosive one. Also had great battery life for it's entire very long life. I might still have that one except I took it swimming for a half hour in the ocean after waaaay too many Mai-Tais. Oops. :WideSmile:

 

[BigWill]

I get the cast offs of whatever my Children/Grandkids no longer feel comfortable using and they get shunned for having an "old" cell.

IF I can use if for a cell/text a couple of times a day and an hour or two to delete facebook information of where my ''friends'' are eating lunch, I am happy.

Generally I already know where I am going...

 

[ashokan]

Slickdeals reviews of the Pixel 4 are brutal. I trust those forum reviews more than others because there are a lot of precision shoppers there. Just never go by the first two pages lol.

If you dont need the latest/greatest there are a lot of good unlocked phoned you can use on Tracfone, Ting, Mint etc. Contract deals are a rip. You can run a Tracfone with 1200 minutes for $50 year.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tracfone-P...n-SIM-1200-Min-1200-Txt-3GB-Data/283448464240

 

[CERU00]

The phone prices are ridiculous but with the way the phone plans have changed it's basically the same cost all-in. $35/month phone plan + $40/month phone loan is virtually the same as paying $200 for the phone and having a $70/month phone plan but it feels a lot worse now lol

Phone loan? Never paid that. Phones were too good of a source of income to keep giving away. It was nice while it lasted.

 

[hoochie302]

I am one of the rare folk that have a Oneplus 7t. It hauls ass. Plenty of storage. Freezes every once in a while,but it hauls ass so I can live with it. Screen needs a protector. Charging is amazing. $599 is a solid price for the speed and specs IMO.

 

[Graduatedayear2early]

One plus 7t have decent camera? I saw the details of that one and was impressed....how's oxygen is? Dont want a bunch of bloatware on the phone.

 

[fg7321]

Just because the phone is not supported does not mean it wont work. The device may not be optimized to use some part of the spectrum that a carrier has newly deployed. This is a ploy by the manufacturer to get you to buy a new device.

Also by this point the bugs for the device has been figured out so the device and security holes have all been patched but you may not get google's latest OS pushed to your device.

Also the comment above about getting a free phone every two years that is all well and good but those were flip phones and cost the carrier $200. Modern smartphones cost the carrier over $600 for the flagship phones. A pixel is well past $600.

 

[RUScrew85]

Wait... A 2016 phone is no longer supported? Isn't that a bit early?

Fwiw the Samsung note 10plus 5g is awesome. I've noticed the signal does penetrate much deeper.

I have the 4G model. Loves my stylus.

 

[RUScrew85]

Bad battery life is a PITA I won't deal with. I have a Galaxy Note 10+ and the battery life is wonderful. I charge it every 3-4 days. With my last phone, LG-V20, I was charging it twice a day after a couple months of owning it. Hated that phone and only laziness prevented me from getting rid of it sooner.

Had one of the explosive Notes before Samsung made me give it back. That was a great phone (other than exploding in people's faces, I guess). Great battery life.

Had a Galaxy Note (2, I think) before the explosive one. Also had great battery life for it's entire very long life. I might still have that one except I took it swimming for a half hour in the ocean after waaaay too many Mai-Tais. Oops. :WideSmile:

I use wireless chargers both bedside, in the truck and at work. Never have battery stress because it's always charged. $15 for a decent wireless charger.

My Phone Bro!

 

[RUfinal4]

if you like your Pixel then get the new one. All the phones nowadays have similar features. I have the new LG which I like. One of the advantages is that it actually has a headphones jack where many phones have gotten rid of it.

 

[miklosru]

People are wasting money for the latest gadgets that in couple of years look obsolete. Consider the Motorola G7, the best budget phone by Cnet. I paid $180 at Best Buy. Also, do yourself a favor and save 50% on Verizon service. Total Wireless (available at Best Buys) is using Veizon network and offers plans as little as for $25/line four four lines, or $35/line for a single line only. You would save couple of grands, if you follow my recommendation.

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

Unless you smartphone is being use as your main device (for example, as your computer/laptop/tablet) then you may not need the latest and the greatest expensive phone.

I stop buying expensive phones and long time ago and just get the best budget phone.

 

[RUaMoose]

I'm in the market for a new iPhone to replace my iPhone 6 SE which I've had for going on 4 years now. Thinking an iPhone 8 will do me just fine. I am on ATT prepaid so I plan on just buying the phone myself and bring it to ATT to activate, sync from old phone, etc. Where's the best place to buy an iPhone online ? Didn't see much on Amazon

 

[BigWill]

Usually the most important cell phone use I get is a call "Hey Dad, I'm tied up with an arrest on OT, can you drop/pickup/deliver ….(fill in Grandkids name)…..to.....(fill in sports practice/dance/birthday party/misc event)….

Maps ? Usually I know where I'm going.
Photos ? I have lots of cameras.
Music ? I have Serius (sp) in both cars.
Computer ? I can barely use this one (Dell laptop).
Books ? I have a library card and now somebody gave me a little thing that is connected to the library on line system. (It went down the other day and I was stuck.)

 

[mildone]

I use wireless chargers both bedside, in the truck and at work. Never have battery stress because it's always charged. $15 for a decent wireless charger.

My Phone Bro!

I was doing something similar with always charging the LGV20. Especially in the car where I’m always listening to Spotify and using Waze. But it seems always charging the batteries that way can hasten the point at which the battery doesn’t hold a charge well.

 

[RUScrew85]

I was doing something similar with always charging the LGV20. Especially in the car where I’m always listening to Spotify and using Waze. But it seems always charging the batteries that way can hasten the point at which the battery doesn’t hold a charge well.

Well then I'm in big trouble. I'm almost never below 90%

 

[RUScrew85]

Usually the most important cell phone use I get is a call "Hey Dad, I'm tied up with an arrest on OT, can you drop/pickup/deliver ….(fill in Grandkids name)…..to.....(fill in sports practice/dance/birthday party/misc event)….

Maps ? Usually I know where I'm going.
Photos ? I have lots of cameras.
Music ? I have Serius (sp) in both cars.
Computer ? I can barely use this one (Dell laptop).
Books ? I have a library card and now somebody gave me a little thing that is connected to the library on line system. (It went down the other day and I was stuck.)

Your kid got arrested in Orange County?

 

[mildone]

Well then I'm in big trouble. I'm almost never below 90%

Nah, won't be big trouble. :)

Just means that your phone's battery will reach a point where it won't hold a charge sooner than someone who habitually lets their battery run all the way down before recharging. For people who typically get a new phone every 2-3 years, and whose battery is of reasonable quality, it probably doesn't matter much.

Only would matter if you like to keep the phone longer and also like to make long phone calls when away from a charger (and charging bricks solve that problem, if you don't mind carrying one around all the time).

On a separate, but related note - I can't believe we consumers have let cell phone manufactures get away with the whole non-replaceable battery scam the way we have. The hardware in the flagship phones is so powerful that the $1200 phone should last 5-7 years easily. But the batteries die out and you're stuck getting a new phone. WTF?

Cue the Joe Pesci rant about how they screw us. LOL

 

[mildone]

Usually the most important cell phone use I get is a call "Hey Dad, I'm tied up with an arrest on OT, can you drop/pickup/deliver ….(fill in Grandkids name)…..to.....(fill in sports practice/dance/birthday party/misc event)….

Maps ? Usually I know where I'm going.
Photos ? I have lots of cameras.
Music ? I have Serius (sp) in both cars.
Computer ? I can barely use this one (Dell laptop).
Books ? I have a library card and now somebody gave me a little thing that is connected to the library on line system. (It went down the other day and I was stuck.)

Maps: I'm a slave to GPS now and would be screwed if my phone died because I never pay attention. Thus I've lost the art of tracking how I got where I'm going so I can reverse the path to get back home. This is a bad thing.

Photos. I have a DSLR and good quality longish lens, which is still useful for long-distance photography. But my current phone takes way, way better photos for anything nearby. And the phone fits in my pocket, the DSLR, with gear bag full of lenses, is large, heavy and tiresome to carry around.

Music. If one uses Spotify, then it's useful to just walk around with your phone in your pocket so Spotify just automatically plays on the speaker system of whatever car or house I'm in at the moment. Also, I can use my AVR's android app to control my AVR from wherever I happen to be standing. So when I have parties, for example, I can change the song, volume, mode, playlist, etc. all from whatever room I'm in, without having to locate and use a remote or, gasp, walk up to the sound-system to make adjustments). This is actually very convenient.

 

[theRU]

I have the 4G model. Loves my stylus.

Does yours also have the ultra fast or whatever its called charging too? I love it- hands down my favorite feature, about 45 minutes and fully charged. Which then allows me to avoid charging overnight (which apparently is a huge batter no-no)

 

[RUScrew85]

Nah, won't be big trouble. :)

Just means that your phone's battery will reach a point where it won't hold a charge sooner than someone who habitually lets their battery run all the way down before recharging. For people who typically get a new phone every 2-3 years, and whose battery is of reasonable quality, it probably doesn't matter much.

Only would matter if you like to keep the phone longer and also like to make long phone calls when away from a charger (and charging bricks solve that problem, if you don't mind carrying one around all the time).

On a separate, but related note - I can't believe we consumers have let cell phone manufactures get away with the whole non-replaceable battery scam the way we have. The hardware in the flagship phones is so powerful that the $1200 phone should last 5-7 years easily. But the batteries die out and you're stuck getting a new phone. WTF?

Cue the Joe Pesci rant about how they screw us. LOL

I've see battery replacements. I have a guy who can do it.

 

[RUScrew85]

Does yours also have the ultra fast or whatever its called charging too? I love it- hands down my favorite feature, about 45 minutes and fully charged. Which then allows me to avoid charging overnight (which apparently is a huge batter no-no)

Yep quick charge but it stays on the charger overnight. It should be smart enough to not damage the battery I hope.

 

[theRU]

Yep quick charge but it stays on the charger overnight. It should be smart enough to not damage the battery I hope.

Apparently its not, i've read in many places that once you reach 100% its bad to keep it plugged in. Who knows? Tesla recommends charging their car batter to 80-85% i believe to extend battery life. They all use Li-ion batteries- you would think the same principles apply? If it is bad to max charge and keep it plugged in, i dont understand why samsung couldn't program a limit to charge to the way tesla does for cars despite it remaining plugged in ( and which you can change at will)

 

[BigWill]

When I was a Key Grip in the film industry the Gaffers used to say that the big batteries would get an internal "memory" and not fully discharge or charge back up 100 %.

Has technology evolved to not get the batteries to outsmart us ?

 

[BigWill]

Your kid got arrested in Orange County?

The arrest procedures in the NYPD are so convoluted that you are almost always forced to do overtime as a result of arresting a miscreant.

 

[RUScrew85]

The arrest procedures in the NYPD are so convoluted that you are almost always forced to do overtime as a result of arresting a miscreant.

It was a bad joke.

And they are released before the arrest paperwork is done?

 

[theRU]

I've read that as well, yet every night mine sits on a charger once hitting full charge.

Was the same with my S8plus and i did see significant degradation of the battery over time.

The difference for me was that the "fast Charge" ( words lifted off the power supply) on the s8 took about 1.5 hours to full, but on the note10 "ultra fast Charge ( again lifted from the power supply) that time is cut in half which really allows me to charge more frequently in shorter spurts throughout the day.

Seems like samsung has a new level of fast charge capability which to me is a huge deal. So now I'm able to leave this thing unplugged overnight which i hope will result in a longer battery life.

 

[Knight Shift]

I use wireless chargers both bedside, in the truck and at work. Never have battery stress because it's always charged. $15 for a decent wireless charger.

My Phone Bro!

I used to do the same (keep a full charge), but I started having issues, and was told by Verizon to let the battery go low because keeping it fully charged is bad for the battery.

 

[Plum Street]

I just by the greatest and latest and keep it as long as I can. Just the way I am with pretty much everything. I buy a nice new car and then pay it off and keep it until I can’t or get tired of it.
Right now I have an iPhone 6 that I bought new , paid of off in 2 years and haven’t paid on it since . I did replace the battery a couple years ago . It’s getting towards the end of the line so I am about to pony up and repeat the cycle with a new iPhone

 

[ashokan]

On a separate, but related note - I can't believe we consumers have let cell phone manufactures get away with the whole non-replaceable battery scam the way we have. The hardware in the flagship phones is so powerful that the $1200 phone should last 5-7 years easily. But the batteries die out and you're stuck getting a new phone. WTF?

LOL

A lot of times you can replace the battery. Apple is the only one that really tries to thwart self-remedies, but they were like that on computer for decades as well. Other Manufacturers don't make it too hard, and process takes 15 minutes. Phone are mostly modular and parts clip/plug in. They also use sticky, metallic strips that can be detached and reattached without much difficulty. There is usually no soldering needed.

Check youtube for repair videos. Get batteries on Amazon/Ebay. A small screwdriver and tweezers (and a magnifier or glasses) and that should be all you need. I did an LG flagship phone from 2016 a few months ago (its only curved phone and I hate to get rid of it). Technically it wasn't a replaceable battery. New one cost $17.

 

[BigWill]

Mary Anne, I found over 50 years ago.

She's 5 - 9, Blue Eyes, Blonde Hair and my Trophy Girlfriend and now Wife.

She's still like the Energizer Bunny....

 

[rutgersguy1]

A lot of times you can replace the battery. Apple is the only one that really tries to thwart self-remedies, but they were like that on computer for decades as well. Other Manufacturers don't make it too hard, and process takes 15 minutes. Phone are mostly modular and parts clip/plug in. They also use sticky, metallic strips that can be detached and reattached without much difficulty. There is usually no soldering needed.

Check youtube for repair videos. Get batteries on Amazon/Ebay. A small screwdriver and tweezers (and a magnifier or glasses) and that should be all you need. I did an LG flagship phone from 2016 a few months ago (its only curved phone and I hate to get rid of it). Technically it wasn't a replaceable battery. New one cost $17.

I thought Apple will replace the battery for you at one of their stores for like 79 bucks or something like that.