[RelaxIN2]

Apple users... just to save you some time... I'm sorry, but I'm only interested in looking at Android phones at this time. I'm an IT guy and I'm looking for the flexibility that an Android phone has to offer. I know iPhones are great and I'm sure I'll appreciate the input, but I'd prefer to stick with Android for now.... Thank you for your understanding..

So in summary, I'm looking to upgrade my existing phone which happens to be an Android LG v40 and I want to get your advice on what your experiences are with the phones that you currently have, and, what you would recommend, or not.. I just started the research process so I thought I would hear some of the experience are and take it from there. I'm not on top of the "phone scene" all that much, and I dont necessarily have to have the latest "Thing"

I had a few Samsung Notes in the past along with LG's, etc.. and they all worked well.

Some must have would be:
- Good battery life
- Removeable SD Card (256Gb or more)
- Speed of course
- USB-C charging and wireless charging
- Quality front shooting or reflecting speakers. Primarily for conference calls, not so much music.
- A Good Display
- Honestly, I take pictures with my phone, but nothing that would warrant a high-end camera... general family photo's, videos, etc... but nothing high-end

Any feedback or suggestions you could provide would be great..!

Thanks....

[mapleleaf1773]

If you want to buy a phone straight out (without payments) id suggest the pixel 4a 5G. I got one for my wife half a year ago for like $450. It does everything well and has most things except wireless charging.

I have a Note 9, I love it as well. It should be decently cheap nowadays (for a Samsung device).

[RelaxIN2]

Oh, I can careless about the payment as I usually buy it outright regardless.

Thank you, I forgot to mention the 5G. That too would be a requirement. The lack of wireless charging would be a deal breaker for me though.. I loved the Note line as well, but I found that I rarely used the pen function. I find that I use speech recognition more than even finger txting...

[Pittz1]

Still have my Note 9. Best phone i have ever had. When my iPhone just stopped working randomly, I promised never to go back to iPhone. This Samsung hasn't skipped a beat with battery life and OS is spot on with updates.

I would stick with Samsung.

[MsGoGoMoto]

Get a pixel.
I own a pixel 3 and it is totally an awesome phone.
Its been a while since I used it, can pop the sim in and go anytime.
I'm currently an apple user because of my new job and equipment issued by IT.

Pixel worked out well for me, and I originally hated the android OS environment until the pixel 3. I think the 4 or even the 5 is out now. If I bust up my iPhone, my sim will magically float on over to the pixel and hover over it like……. …..sooooo. You gonna do this now or what?

[Our03z4]

I have a Kyocera DuraForce Pro 2. Speakers will blow your ears out and I love using it on speaker phone. Display is great outdoors, best I've seen in a long while while in full sun. Pretty much indestructible, mine falls in mud, water, on concrete pretty much daily and doesn't have a scratch on the screen. Best part is I can get 2-3 days on a charge. Type C charging port or wireless. Even has PTT which I use quite a bit, very few smart phones have that feature any longer. Can also take dual sim cards if you need two numbers for business. Takes up to 512Gb. 2 year warranty.

https://kyoceramobile.com/duraforce-pro-2/verizon/

[RelaxIN2]

Originally Posted by Our03z4

I have a Kyocera DuraForce Pro 2. Speakers will blow your ears out and I love using it on speaker phone. Display is great outdoors, best I've seen in a long while while in full sun. Pretty much indestructible, mine falls in mud, water, on concrete pretty much daily and doesn't have a scratch on the screen. Best part is I can get 2-3 days on a charge. Type C charging port or wireless. Even has PTT which I use quite a bit, very few smart phones have that feature any longer. Can also take dual sim cards if you need two numbers for business. Takes up to 512Gb. 2 year warranty.

https://kyoceramobile.com/duraforce-pro-2/verizon/

Hmmm.... very interesting..

Originally Posted by MsGoGoMoto

Get a pixel.
I own a pixel 3 and it is totally an awesome phone.
Its been a while since I used it, can pop the sim in and go anytime.
I'm currently an apple user because of my new job and equipment issued by IT.

Pixel worked out well for me, and I originally hated the android OS environment until the pixel 3. I think the 4 or even the 5 is out now. If I bust up my iPhone, my sim will magically float on over to the pixel and hover over it like……. …..sooooo. You gonna do this now or what?

I'm looking at the Pixel 5, Kyoceramobile and Samsung... The Kyocera has me intrigued though.. Also, is anyone running a newer Model Samsung...? if so, what do you think of it..?

[TiMSport]

Originally Posted by MsGoGoMoto

Get a pixel.
I own a pixel 3 and it is totally an awesome phone.
Its been a while since I used it, can pop the sim in and go anytime.
I'm currently an apple user because of my new job and equipment issued by IT.

Pixel worked out well for me, and I originally hated the android OS environment until the pixel 3. I think the 4 or even the 5 is out now. If I bust up my iPhone, my sim will magically float on over to the pixel and hover over it like……. …..sooooo. You gonna do this now or what?

Agreed. Pixel 3 is a great phone and I have no reason to upgrade it to a newer gen one yet because it works so well.

[xaban]

Samsung Galaxy S21 is a no-brainer here.

[evil-G-nius]

I have a Galaxy S20. You can probably get a good deal on one now that the S21 is out and there is literally no difference in features or performance between the 2. Its a great phone all around

[c1pher]

What is the flexibility you are looking for? Command line access? Side loading sketchy apps? Are you Neo from the Matrix?

I really like my iPhone 12 Pro Max but honestly an iPhone 12 is probably the best balance between power, capability and price as far as iPhones are concerned. And they are much more secure compared to any Android, hands down. I work for a tech company that reverse engineers a lot of tech and Android is fairly trivial to own.

[Redd]

Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra. Highest smartphone camera score on dxomark. Longer battery life than Samsung. Full Google services.

https://www.gsmarena.com/xiaomi_mi_11_ultra-10737.php

[zx10guy]

Sad but I'm still using my Samsung S8. Primary reason is it's the last Samsung phone that supported Samsung's keyboard case. I can't stand text messaging with a touch screen keyboard. The physical keys make alphanumeric entry on a phone so much more bearable. Can never understand why Samsung never advertised this product as everyone that's seen my phone has never heard of it and wants one now. For me to tell them, sorry, the S8 is the last phone Samsung provided this feature.

[King Rudi]

Originally Posted by Redd

Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra. Highest smartphone camera score on dxomark. Longer battery life than Samsung. Full Google services.

https://www.gsmarena.com/xiaomi_mi_11_ultra-10737.php

Holy shit! I worked for the big blue death star for years. It's been a while since I've been on GSM Arena, Phone Scoop, or the like. The specs on that thing basically make it the cell phone version of The Hulk. Wireless charging to 100% in 40 min??? Ceramic and aluminum outer casing, audio tuned by HK....not even touching on the Qualcom Snapdragon goodness. Impressive.

This might be my next phone.

[mapleleaf1773]

That looks like a tablet to me, lol

[RelaxIN2]

Originally Posted by xaban

Samsung Galaxy S21 is a no-brainer here.

I was actually looking at the S21, however the deal breaker for me is the NO SD card.. everything else I like about it...

[TiMSport]

Originally Posted by King Rudi

Holy shit! I worked for the big blue death star for years. It's been a while since I've been on GSM Arena, Phone Scoop, or the like. The specs on that thing basically make it the cell phone version of The Hulk. Wireless charging to 100% in 40 min??? Ceramic and aluminum outer casing, audio tuned by HK....not even touching on the Qualcom Snapdragon goodness. Impressive.

This might be my next phone.

As long as you don't mind the risk of using a Xiaomi.

[TheWatchGuy]

Why do you need an SD card?

over the years, I've gone with LGs phones just to end up going back to samsung. When it comes to phones, Samsung is the best of the best. The LGs just dont quite stand up in terms of durability and performance. I dont think I had 1 LG phone that lasted longer than a year.

[unluky]

I went from the Samsung Galaxy S9+ to the S20 FE 5G. IT's the first non-flagship phone I have owned in decades, but I could not pass up the deal with trade in.

I have been super impressed. All the bells and whistles I USE - and none I do not. SD card slot, type C charge port, wireless charging, power share (great when my watch or buds need a top up), great size and display, and the cameras are really good. Even the iClones friends I send pics to remark how good they are - which I know hurts them to say.

$ may be no object and you like to only have the flagships, but this phone has never felt like I was missing anything. Snappy response, and all day battery under fairly heavy use - works perfectly for me.

The S21 FE 5G is dues out soon - might be worth you checking it out if it checks your boxes.

disclaimer - I use mine for work, so lots of email and applications like that - I'm not a gamer or huge social media user, but I use my phone all day long.

[ryan stewart]

Sadly there isnt a "one size fits all" Android phone. Pixels are probably the most reliable and, at one point, had the best cameras. But they started going midrange with the specs and putting too small batteries in them. I think the Pixel 3 was the last flagship-level phone. Supposedly the Pixel 6 is going back to that. Although Google will never put an SD card in them again.

At the moment Samsung is still king for cramming everything into a single package for Android. I dont like their OS skins and Im on Google Fi so Id never take the leap but there is a reason they are the market leader.

Edit: sounds like other than battery life and SD card the Pixel line would fit your needs. I complain about the camera but honestly their computational photography would actually work well for your camera needs. Its also typically the most simple, up to date, etc phone on the market.

[ryan stewart]

Originally Posted by c1pher

What is the flexibility you are looking for? Command line access? Side loading sketchy apps? Are you Neo from the Matrix?

I really like my iPhone 12 Pro Max but honestly an iPhone 12 is probably the best balance between power, capability and price as far as iPhones are concerned. And they are much more secure compared to any Android, hands down. I work for a tech company that reverse engineers a lot of tech and Android is fairly trivial to own.

Not in mainline flaghship phones. The entire OS is encrypted same as Apple and as long as you are staying within the marketplace the applications are just as secure. Most people forget the good ole days of jailbreaking, which was "owning" IOS using nothing but a PDF bug via a freaking webpage.

The only way Android is less secure is if you are building your own thing from ASOP and leaving SU open, which plenty of 3rd parties do. But that is the case of anything UNIX, youre making what you want of it.

As far as end-user customization a topic JUST popped up on here about bluetooth where I could actually go in and edit the profiles of my bluetooth connection and enable/disable features where IOS wouldnt allow.

Let alone keyboards, default apps, custom launchers, theming, its almost a bottomless pit of customization that apple is only just now dipping their toes into. Honestly Ive been on the fence in switching but not being able to change default apps away from apple and run google as a service and not being able to actively multi-network roam means I still am better off traveling internationally with my pixel and Fi. I keep hoping Ill be able to use my passport beyond mexico again...

[6oclockshadow]

Originally Posted by RelaxIN2

I was actually looking at the S21, however the deal breaker for me is the NO SD card.. everything else I like about it...

Also, sorry to report, I am not getting great battery life out of the S21. Not like the Kyoceramobile described above anyway.