by "Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
Published 09/16/2017 at 14:06
by "Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
Published 09/16/2017 at 14:06
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STARS: 1
Hey everyone! Phone purchasing OCD is in full effect here at my household. I bought a Galaxy S7 Edge after the price dropped to $475 . Then I dedicated several hours of OCD to picking a case, and ended up with 2 different ones. Since I spent far too much time nerding out on phone prices, I’ll share them with you.
To qualify for this list, a phone must have at least 2 GB of RAM, a mid-level or better CPU, a fingerprint sensor, and a 1080p screen. Basically the minimum for it feeling like at least a somewhat nice, modern phone. I arbitrarily set the price ceiling at $670 which is the current iPhone 7 Plus starting price, and this is for US warranties, no grey market stuff. Verizon-compatible phones are marked with an asterisk.
(The HTC U11 is Verizon compatible, but doesn’t have a CDMA radio so doesn’t work on Verizon MVNOs like Total Wireless that aren’t yet on VoLTE. So it has a double asterisk.)
Moto G4 32 GB - $130
Moto G4 Plus 16 GB - $150 *
ZTE Axon 7 Mini - $195
Huawei Honor 6x 32 GB -
$200
Moto G4 Plus 64 GB - $200 *
ZTE Blade V8 Pro - $200
Alcatel Idol 4S - $210
Moto G5 Plus 32 GB / 2GB RAM - $220 *
Moto G5S Plus 32 GB / 3 GB RAM - $230 *
LG Nexus 5X - $250 *
LG G5 - $250 *
Huawei Honor 8 32 GB - $270
Moto G5 Plus 64 GB / 4 GB RAM - $270 *
Alcatel Idol 5S - $280
Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe ZS550KL (5.5” LCD, S625, 32GB, 3GB RAM) - $280
Blackberry PRIV - $280
Moto G5S Plus 64 GB / 4 GB RAM - $300 *
Huawei Honor 8 64 GB - $320
Asus Zenfone 3 Zoom - $330
LG V20 - $370 *
Moto Z Play - $350
Huawei Nexus 6P 32 GB - $365 + tax * (don’t worry about the Total Wireless branding, it’s unlocked)
ZTE Axon 7 - $380 *
Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe ZS550KL (5.5” LCD, S625, 64GB, 4GB RAM) - $390
Blackberry DTEK60 - $430
Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe ZS570KL (5.7” AMOLED, S820, 64GB, 6GB RAM) - $450
HTC U Ultra - $450
Moto Z -
$450
Samsung Galaxy S7 - $450 *
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge - $475 *
LG G6 - $480 *
OnePlus 5 64 GB / 6 GB RAM - $480
Huawei Mate 9 - $500
Moto Z2 Play - $500
OnePlus 5 128 GB / 6 GB RAM - $540
Blackberry KEYone - $550
HTC U11 64 GB - $550 **
Asus Zenfone AR - $550 + tax
Google Pixel 32 GB - $620 *
HTC U11 128 GB - $630 **
"Sam" (samwellington)
09/16/2017 at 14:13, STARS: 0
I’ve been very happy with my S7 Edge. The curved screen is 100% a gimmick, but I do like the lack of bezels.
"Svend" (svend)
09/16/2017 at 14:22, STARS: 0
Genuine question.
Does any one of them have a keyboard?
"farscythe - makin da cawfee!" (farscythe)
09/16/2017 at 14:22, STARS: 1
i still have an old nokia 3310.... yeah it doesnt do any of the fancy shit modern phones do.... but i can beat someone to death with it without it breaking
thats something right?
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 14:23, STARS: 0
My Moto X Pure that it’s replacing has very minimal side bezels as well. I like having as big a screen as possible without the phone being overwhelmingly large and that’s one of my favorite things about the X Pure. It’s one of the easiest phones with a 5.7" screen to hold with one hand. With the S7 Edge having navigation buttons below the screen, I’m not losing much screen real estate. I wish the S7 Edge had nice front facing stereo speakers like the X Pure but that’s really the only area I’m giving something up and more often than not if I’m watching a video on my phone, I’m using headphones.
(The ZTE Axon 7 has a similar combo of 5.5" curved screen and physical navigation buttons, along with excellent stereo speakers, but the S7 Edge camera how’s it out of the water.)
"Mercedes Streeter" (smart)
09/16/2017 at 14:29, STARS: 0
Three notes
- The Nextbit Robin is no longer in production and replacement parts for the phone were never made to begin with. Razer also stopped honoring warranties as of July. So you can still buy a brand new Robin (with an early 2017 build date) but the warranty is automatically null. You may be able to get the warranty honored by the merchant though, which would effectively mean getting the phone swapped out even for a tiny issue (again, no replacement parts). All this ignores the fact that Robins are broken from the factory to begin with.
- The Honor 9 is a new contender in the ring. It costs about $400-$550 depending on vendor with flagship specs and an unique design.
- If you’re not into big phones and you like Apple, you can snag a new unlocked iPhone SE for $200. Straight Talk is selling theirs for $120.
"Sam" (samwellington)
09/16/2017 at 14:30, STARS: 0
I had an HTC One M8 (the first one, it was like 4 years ago or so) and the front-facing speakers were the best thing ever. I’ve basically given up using the speaker on the S7, it’s pretty meh.
Honestly, I wish they would just rerelease the M8 with slightly updated tech, basically bring it up to the spec of the phones you listed here. It was the best phone I ever owned, until the camera sensor die to a software bug leaving the shutter 100% open always.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 14:31, STARS: 0
Samsung makes a keyboard for the Galaxy S7 Edge.
But I’ve always been happy with the swipe typing feature of Google Keyboard, and have no need for such nonsense.
"random001" (random001)
09/16/2017 at 14:32, STARS: 1
G5, player.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 14:35, STARS: 1
Didn’t know that about the Robin, it’s kinda the oddball on this list anyway.
Isn’t the Honor 9 not officially out in the US yet?
"CB" (jrcb)
09/16/2017 at 14:37, STARS: 0
New Pixel is apparently being announced October 4th, so I’m going to wait for that.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 14:43, STARS: 1
They’re basically taking existing phones and Pixel-fying them. The regular Pixel 2 is supposed to be similar to the HTC U11 but possibly with a slightly smaller screen. Pixel 2 XL is based on the LG V30.
But they’re not out yet and probably will cost a bunch.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 14:45, STARS: 0
It’s not a bad choice for the price. Personally I like a bigger screen and LG’s skin bugs me. The V30 still kinda intrigues me though.
"TheTurbochargedSquirrel" (thatsquirrel)
09/16/2017 at 14:46, STARS: 0
I think the Blackberry KeyOne is the only phone you can buy now which has a physical keyboard.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 14:48, STARS: 2
It’d be better if it was an 8110.
!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!
"Svend" (svend)
09/16/2017 at 14:49, STARS: 0
That’s the one I keep looking at.
"TheTurbochargedSquirrel" (thatsquirrel)
09/16/2017 at 14:50, STARS: 0
Both the U11 and V30 are good phones so I don’t mind them being used as a base design for the new Pixels. The are probably going to be priced similarly to most flagship Android devices.
"DaftRyosuke - So Long and Thanks for All the Fish!" (daft-ryosuke)
09/16/2017 at 14:50, STARS: 0
I’ve heard that the Pixel could be following the iPhone 7 route of having no headphone jack.
"Mercedes Streeter" (smart)
09/16/2017 at 14:55, STARS: 0
Huh, I guess the Honor 9 isn’t even coming our way at all. It doesn’t even have any US bands :(. Lame!
"CB" (jrcb)
09/16/2017 at 14:57, STARS: 0
Noooooo you bastards.
"random001" (random001)
09/16/2017 at 15:05, STARS: 0
But you can go around saying G5, player!
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 15:14, STARS: 0
Yeah I took the Robin off the list. Also knocked off anything Sony because no fingerprint scanners. Added the Blackberry DTEK60 though!
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 15:21, STARS: 0
It’s weird how basically all the phone companies pretty much gave up on stereo speakers. Other than the ZTE Axon lineup, Sony seems to be the only company that consistently includes stereo speakers anymore, and they don’t have fingerprint scanners in the US for some dumb reason. There are some phones like the Huawei Mate 9 and that have stereo speakers on the bottom. Oh and the Blackberry DTEK60 has front facing speakers haha!
"TheTurbochargedSquirrel" (thatsquirrel)
09/16/2017 at 15:24, STARS: 0
I can see the smaller HTC Pixel 2 dropping the headphone jack (HTC has been doing that for a while now) but I would be very surprised if the LG Pixel XL 2 doesn’t have one. LG takes pride in offering a great audio experience.
"facw" (facw)
09/16/2017 at 15:49, STARS: 0
I had an M7 and feel pretty much the same way (except for some bitterness over the purple camera). Great design and feel, I’d love for HTC to just release a version with updated hardware. As it is, I went to the Galaxy S7 which has some great features, but is also worse than the M7 in a bunch of ways. No argument about the pathetic crappy little speaker.
"facw" (facw)
09/16/2017 at 15:50, STARS: 0
I can understand giving up on stereo, but it would be nice to at least have one loud, good quality speaker on my S7. The one that is there is junk.
"duurtlang" (duurtlang)
09/16/2017 at 15:56, STARS: 0
I’ve got a 3310 too. It’s been in a drawer for long over a decade now. Are you telling me you’re still actively using a 3310?
"farscythe - makin da cawfee!" (farscythe)
09/16/2017 at 15:58, STARS: 0
yup.... well using it is a bit of a stretch... its my active cell yes.. but noone ever calls me and i never call anyone.... its mostly my alarm clock/watch
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 16:12, STARS: 1
I’m sure the speaker on the S7 Edge will be similarly disappointing to me, since it’s replacing a phone with nice front facing stereo speakers. For me, the way better camera sold me on the S7 Edge over the awesome speakers on the Axon 7.
"dsigned001 - O.R.C. hunter" (dsigned001)
09/16/2017 at 16:16, STARS: 0
The speakers were awesome. It’s really the only thing I miss vs the one plus 3t, but it’s something.
"dsigned001 - O.R.C. hunter" (dsigned001)
09/16/2017 at 16:19, STARS: 0
Gotta say, I’ve been really happy with my one plus 3t. I’ve not once felt that it was an inferior phone to anything else someone had. But I think that almost says more about the market right now. I think it’s harder to buy a bad phone than a good one.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 16:28, STARS: 0
OnePlus would definitely be on my radar if they had Verizon compatibility. Same with the higher end Huawei and Moto phones.
Motorola in particular frustrates me, because they do a great job subtly tweaking Android while leaving the good stuff intact. The X Pure was unlocked, global and Verizon compatible, but since then, all the Moto Z models have been split into unlocked global GSM and locked, Droid-branded, non-global Verizon versions.
They still do the carrier-universal thing on the G series, and my wife is very happy with her G5 Plus. The new X4 is also carrier universal, but it takes the midrange specs and 5.2" screen from the G series and adds premium build and camera.
But if you want a Moto with high end specs, Verizon and global compatibility are mutually exclusive.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 16:55, STARS: 0
There are two kinds of people in this world: those who maybe saw Tropic Thunder once and thought it was somewhat entertaining but haven’t thought about it in years, and those for whom TROPIC THUNDER IS LIFE.
Take a guess which kind of person I am.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 17:09, STARS: 0
I agree, and the Pixel 2 XL based on the V30 sounds very appealing to me in particular. Supposedly in exchange for the Pixel treatment, it will give up the V30's headphone jack, DAC and microSD slot.
But while I’m very much a phone nerd and appreciate all sorts of fancy gadgets, I can’t justify paying more than $4-500 for a phone and my goal is always to keep it for at least a couple years.
Generally when I buy a gadget I want to keep it for as long as possible and only replace it if it’s no longer functioning correctly or there’s some new, genuinely compelling feature on a new model.
If my Moto X Pure hadn’t developed a wobbly USB port, I would’ve just kept using the thing. It’s still a nice phone. With any luck, this S7 Edge will last me until 2020 at which point I will have plenty of new options to nerd out over.
If anything, my next gadget purchase will be a new tablet. But I’m trying to get at least another year out of my current Lenovo Yoga Tab 2 10 before I replace it.
"random001" (random001)
09/16/2017 at 17:16, STARS: 0
Lol.
"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked)
09/16/2017 at 17:36, STARS: 0
You forgot the BlackBerry KEYone, $549.99
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 18:19, STARS: 1
I was trying to figure out why it hadn’t showed up in my searching and I think it’s because the resolution is 1620x1080. But hey, I’ll add it to the list, even though it’s quite possibly the most expensive phone ever with a Snapdragon 625.
Blackberry OS was always a steaming pile of garbage, so while the reincarnated Android Blackberries no longer have that problem, I can’t help but think, “oh, how quaint,” when people say, “BBBBUUUTTTT THE PHYSICAL KEEEEEYYYYBOOOAAARDD!” as if modern touchscreen keyboards aren’t also totally fine.
"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked)
09/16/2017 at 18:42, STARS: 1
I switched back to one after a couple iPhones and a Moto X, and I had no idea how much I missed having it.
"Sam" (samwellington)
09/16/2017 at 19:08, STARS: 1
Ah yeah, I guess I had the M7. It’s hard to keep my meaningless numbers straight sometimes.
The purple camera I got was a real bummer, especially because the rest of the phone was rock-solid when it happened.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 19:38, STARS: 0
BBBBUUUTTTT THE PHYSICAL KEEEEEYYYYBOOOAAARDD
"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked)
09/16/2017 at 19:42, STARS: 0
Yeah, yeah. I’m faster and more accurate than with a touchscreen, and the phone doesn’t get all covered in greasy fingerprints. They mostly went away because a screen is cheaper to manufacture.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 20:23, STARS: 0
Or, like me, most people prefer a big screen over a physical keyboard.
"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked)
09/16/2017 at 20:33, STARS: 0
Meh, how big does it really need to be? I’m not using my phone for movie night.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 21:50, STARS: 0
It’s not a matter of need, it’s a matter of what people enjoy using. I enjoy using a phone with a big touch screen and the typing solutions offered by touch screens are totally fine for me.
Given the fact that basically every phone that’s not a Blackberry KEYone has a large touch screen and no keyboard, and phone manufacturers are for-profit companies that make products they think consumers will want to buy, it would stand to reason that many more people want to buy phones with large touch screens than phones with physical keyboards.
For the few remaining holdouts, there’s the KEYone, and various accessory keyboards like the one Samsung makes for the S7 Edge.
This is not a controversial topic. The touch screens have won, and they won a long time ago.
"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked)
09/16/2017 at 23:05, STARS: 0
Great, good for you. I’m done with touch screens and enjoying my keyboard, my money, my decision, my business, and I’m never going back to a touch screen if I can help it.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/17/2017 at 00:39, STARS: 0
I’m kind of tickled that I’ve managed to find the last person on earth clinging to their physical phone keyboard.
"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked)
09/17/2017 at 01:46, STARS: 0
Clinging? I came back to it after 7 years of touchscreens. I just got fed up with them.
Besides, this has (so far) been the fastest selling BlackBerry in the brand’s history, and they had trouble filling demand for the first half of the year. I was on a waiting list for two months to get one, so I don’t believe it’s all that small of a niche.
"Nauraushaun" (nauraushaun12)
09/17/2017 at 03:24, STARS: 0
Are there any phones more expensive and the 256 X? Making that list would be easier
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/17/2017 at 06:50, STARS: 0
I mean, really the only phones that got left off the list because of price are the Essential PH-1, and Samsung S8, S8+ and Note 8.
Sony gets left off the list because no fingerprint sensor in the USA on any of their phones. Moto Z2 Force doesn’t come in an unlocked version.
LG V30 and Moto X4 aren’t out quite yet.
I did miss the Moto Z2 Play and Asus Zenfone AR though. Might as well add those in the name of comprehensiveness.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/17/2017 at 07:20, STARS: 0
Actually I did some digging and the HTC U Ultra, U11, and Huawei Mate 9 do “stereo” by combining the earpiece speaker with the real speaker on the bottom of the phone.
Personally if I didn’t need Verizon compatibility, I’d be very tempted by the Mate 9.