New phone decisions

Discussion in 'Cellular - Voice - Data' started by skallagrime, Oct 31, 2017.

  1. skallagrime

    skallagrime Road Train Member

    3,855
    9,928
    Apr 10, 2012
    Indiana
    0
    I'm on verizon, my note 4 while it's served me well, is starting to show its age

    When I look at the new phones I'm having a hard time justifying 800$ for a device that has no sd card slot, removable battery, curved screen (limiting case choice)

    I dont care about the fingerprint reader, cannot deal with a rear power button (phone lives in a cradle so that makes it harder to use) I like physical home buttons on the front, MUST have an audio jack, 5.3 inch screen or larger, android 7.0 +, and generally be newer and better than my note 4

    I was looking at
    LG v30 / v20
    Stylo 3
    LG g6
    Pixel series
    The rugged Kyocera
    HTC u11

    The problem is every single one of them has deal breakers on them except the kyocera, which is basically not as good as my note 4 spec-wise

    Anyone have any thoughts?
     
  2. Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.

  3. Scooter Jones

    Scooter Jones Road Train Member

    9,551
    19,979
    Apr 19, 2011
    0
    Just received my new LG V30 yesterday.

    Nice phone, fast processor and graphics. Of course the picture (camera) quality is exceptional with LG. 64GB internal memory, expandable with SD card.

    The sound quality is very good and the volume goes pretty loud which is important to me.

    The only bummer was discovering the charging receptacle is not micro-USB. I will be purchasing the charging pad.
     
  4. skallagrime

    skallagrime Road Train Member

    3,855
    9,928
    Apr 10, 2012
    Indiana
    0
    Glad to hear you're happy with a phone that works for you, do tell me all about how nice it is to have a phone that is impossible for me to turn on 95 % of the time (I have a phone mount cradle, screen faces me, to turn on the screen I would have to take it out of the cradle, facial recognition would result in "always on", I do not and will not talk to it to turn it on)

    Sorry if that sounds like I'm ungrateful but the input ignores the fact that the lg v30 button design, despite its other qualities, is no better than a lump of coal for all the good it does me

    Edit *
    By the way, ever considered these cords?

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0725ZXVLV/ref=ox_sc_act_image_5?smid=A1M3RZCUEARYLM&psc=1&th=1

    The cord you buy once, then just grab tips to leave in various devices, the tips come in every style, just pick what you need, and tadaa, charge an ipad, new phone and wife's micro-usb all with the same cord...
     
    Last edited: Oct 31, 2017
  5. STexan

    STexan Road Train Member

    14,963
    29,160
    Oct 3, 2011
    Longview, TX
    0
    I'd make sure it has auto-focus and built-in flash so it can be compatible with various paperwork scanning apps such as Transflo
     
  6. snowwy

    snowwy Road Train Member

    20,612
    13,333
    Jul 6, 2009
    0
    The operating system these days is android 7. My Samsung I can just simply touch the homescreen button and the screen lights up.

    The magnetic cables are a champ. I wouldn't necessarily say just one cable once. They do breakdown. I left 1 cable in my coat pocket. Somehow 1 tip got pushed in and dirt accumulated inside the tip. But they are way better then the old cables which get replaced very often. Still have to be replaced but not as often. The tips eventually break down also. You can get em as cheap as the gas station or truckstop cables. The lifespan far exceeds the old cables. My savings account is actually growing now. :)

    The charging ports are called micro C or mini C or something like that. No idea on the reason behind the new style charging port but it looks like cables might actually last longer.

    I think an added bonus about the new phones. Is the new processors are designed to consume less power. I use my att hotspot at work. My sprint phone stays on wifi. And uses my hotspot as it has better coverage then sprint or Verizon. I can go all day and still have half battery when I go to bed now. If I use the sprint signal and leave wifi off. Then it'll consume more power. As it's always trying to find a signal that isn't there. My phone will usually be close to dead by the time I get home. But at least it makes it through the day.

    It's also nice to use my gps with wifi signal. Even with the screen lit up. It don't kill the battery very fast. A 2 hour trip home only takes about 10 - 15% juice. I use google for traffic at the end of the day if i'm coming home during rush hour.

    I don't care for the curved screen. I was concerned about 64 gigs internal memory and built battery also. But so far, no problems, 12 months later. I bought the s8+ basically right when it came out. But I did the contract. I don't see myself wanting to go back to Verizon. The service around home isn't what it used to be. And I'll probably be switching to att next year when their 5g starts rolling around. I would have made the switch this year but the speed just isn't there compared to sprint and Verizon.
     
    skallagrime Thanks this.
  7. daf105paccar

    daf105paccar Road Train Member

    6,564
    7,294
    Apr 15, 2012
    0
    My s7 edge is nearly 2y old now and a fine fast workhorse.
    No problems.
    Prices have gone down a lot as it is no longer the latest model.
    Is that a option for you?
     
    skallagrime Thanks this.
  8. Scooter Jones

    Scooter Jones Road Train Member

    9,551
    19,979
    Apr 19, 2011
    0
    Just tap the screen. No need to take it out of the cradle.
     
    skallagrime Thanks this.
  9. skallagrime

    skallagrime Road Train Member

    3,855
    9,928
    Apr 10, 2012
    Indiana
    0
    S8+ and v30 are still outside of reasonable price ranges, I mean if I can buy a Decent table saw or running car for the same price (700-800$) it's not making a whole lot of sense to call a 2 year gadget worth the same price, my feelings on this are a personal opinion I understand, and I get that the phone with the parameters I set is likelt not going to be 200$ (technology ain't cheap to develop) but given that the note 4 I have now can be had for 266$ and I'm not seeing a significant hardware improvement (for the extra cash, 3 x the price better be 3x the device) if I just felt like burning cash I probably would just get the note 8

    The s7 might be an option at a cheaper price than a new note 4 (200$) and the fact that it will be able to get android 8 when it comes out

    V30- tap screen to wake it from a screen off state? With no fingerprint or code input required? That's not too bad and makes me rethink it's uselessness (ie, its an option) in my use case, but doesn't quite sell it for me due to the cost to performance ratio i listed above, though the v20 may actually be in contention due to its price drop due to v30 coming out (if tap to wake works fine on it too, as it seems it does), but I REALLY would miss the physical front button

    Whoever said s7 edge, what about the edge is it that you weren't keen on in your 2 years of use? Personally I kinda think it's silly since I'd be getting a case that would limit it's extra functionality/cover it up, what was your experience? Can you elaborate on "not keen"?

    Not going to run out this minute to buy, but I've at least got more input, I welcome more and discussion on other options even outside my criterion isn't discouraged, as you may have something to help another driver picking out their phone/may think of something that I havent thought of

    Thanks for sharing
     
  10. Brandt

    Brandt Road Train Member

    4,635
    6,375
    Sep 17, 2012
    0
    Moto G5 Plus Unlocked 64GB of storage plus you can still add SD card if you want more. All metal case. The phone is like $350. Fingerprint sensor and 3000mha battery, should get Android 8 also. It not a bad phone for the price. It the old Motorola thats is now a Lenovo company.
     
  11. Aradrox

    Aradrox Heavy Load Member

    900
    622
    Jan 21, 2016
    0
    Take a look at the z force series by Motorola I got the zforca my gf has zforce 2 play both good phones hers has the audio jack built in mine has an adapter for the charge port... Fast charging with turbo power and long battery life.
     
  • Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.