Perhaps I'm asking too much of a modern mobile phone (company)

[PineyCreek]

It's strange how both headphone jacks and expansion card slots have seemingly gone away on newer mobile phones.  I can kind of understand in a lot of cases why the headphone jack is gone with the rise and advancement of wireless technologies for audio like Bluetooth, etc., but I liked using the jack for other things, ex. expansion recording microphone, Square payments device.  Is it asking too much of a modern flagship Android-based phone for, at the very least, a microSD card slot AND regular updates to OS and security patches?  Even on the newer Pixel devices and OnePlus devices I can get the updates but not the headphone jack or card slot.

 

To that end, should I resign myself to spend $200 USD extra on the extra storage model (rather than $40-50 for a comparable microSD card) or is there something out there where I can get an unlocked phone with the current best-in-class or close to it CPU (ex. Snapdragon 865), card slot, and reliable support?  Or is this conundrum basically the telecom industry and phone manufacturers collectively flipping me the bird?

[dizmo]

For most people? Yeah, it's a bit of an ask. Most people don't need expandable memory, or, to a lesser extent, 3.5mm jacks. Your use cases are also incredibly niche. Also, now that most people stream music to their devices, one of the main uses of expandable memory is gone; you can't really install apps on them (you can, but it's not optimal).

 

Regular updates is kind of subjective, as you didn't really state how many you expect. My older Samsung still gets security updates.

 

One thing to consider when you're paying more for the next tier of storage, is that you're often getting much faster storage. Think of it like getting an NVME vs SATA SSD.

 

The Sony Xperia 5 II is something I'd take a look at. Checks all of your boxes, though if you're looking for the 256GB version over the 128GB version it's a whopping $250 increase. Sony tax is strong with this one. It's a beast at everything else though, as long as you can live with the narrower display.

[Lord Vile]

3 minutes ago, huilun02 said:

You care too much about updates...

They don't impact your usage at all.

But they give you features that can be useful. Fairly certain iMessage, the control centre, the notifications centre, Siri and various other features introduced through OS updates have changed how I use my phone. 

[PineyCreek]

I was more specifically referring to the increased frequency which phones like Google-branded or OnePlus received updates, notably security updates, with an interval as little as a month.  By comparison my old LG phone (when it was new) got update like...one every half year, if it was lucky?

 

I'll check out the Sony phone.  I'm kind of leaning towards the OnePlus 8T if I'm stuck with no expansion card slot, but I haven't looked at Sony's offerings.

[Guest]

On 11/19/2020 at 12:38 AM, PineyCreek said:

It's strange how both headphone jacks and expansion card slots have seemingly gone away on newer mobile phones.  I can kind of understand in a lot of cases why the headphone jack is gone with the rise and advancement of wireless technologies for audio like Bluetooth, etc., but I liked using the jack for other things, ex. expansion recording microphone, Square payments device.  Is it asking too much of a modern flagship Android-based phone for, at the very least, a microSD card slot AND regular updates to OS and security patches?  Even on the newer Pixel devices and OnePlus devices I can get the updates but not the headphone jack or card slot.

 

To that end, should I resign myself to spend $200 USD extra on the extra storage model (rather than $40-50 for a comparable microSD card) or is there something out there where I can get an unlocked phone with the current best-in-class or close to it CPU (ex. Snapdragon 865), card slot, and reliable support?  Or is this conundrum basically the telecom industry and phone manufacturers collectively flipping me the bird?

Updates are handy, they solve many bug fixes (many behind the scenes) and generally keep your device stable throughout its life. Doesn't mean you can't have a great experience without them, it's just a little peace of mind that the people who made your phone are gonna stand behind it for longer than six months. But definitely not required or anything.

 

To OPs original point, yeah I feel where he's coming from. I remember when phone's tried to offer as much as possible to hit a wide audience. Remember IR blasters? I never used it but it was thoughtful that my LG V20 came with it. Same with the headphone jack, I mean yeah Bluetooth is cool and all, but sometimes you forget your headset or it dies or whatever and you just wanna pop something in without a dongle. It's such a simple feature and costs pennies, you'd think it'd be on there just because. Removeable batteries anyone? Pop off the back of a phone and slot in a new OEM battery and you could essentially power your device for years assuming the rest of the hardware held up. But then that takes away the incentive of 'upgrading' every year, so there's the rub.

 

It's money, that's what it come down to. Take away the jack so people gotta buy wireless. Remove expandable storage so you have to buy bigger onboard storage and/or invest in cloud storage. Seal the battery so when it degrades, it's not worth it to pay to replace it and make it easier to just get a whole new phone. Make the back of the phone frickin' GLASS so it's easier to shatter and crack and the user has to spend money to replace it. Kinda like cars nowadays, they aren't really built to last and neither are phones...though they certainly can, the market doesn't want them to.

 

To be fair it doesn't mean phones today don't have anything to offer, we've come a long way in the past say ten years. But I feel ya OP, I really do.

 

 

[Commodus]

8 hours ago, huilun02 said:

Or just buy some great hardware at a good price and then turn to XDA for software

If you have to rely on unofficial sources to get long-term and timely updates, then the phone manufacturer has failed. Buying that device rewards poor update policies no matter what software you put on it.

[PineyCreek]

10 hours ago, Commodus said:

If you have to rely on unofficial sources to get long-term and timely updates, then the phone manufacturer has failed. Buying that device rewards poor update policies no matter what software you put on it.

Right, that's what I think.  However, I noticed that both my carrier and the phone manufacturer in the cases of Google Pixel phones and OnePlus phones don't seem to have that insane gap between Google/OEM release vs. carrier.  Having timely security updates is very much appreciated.  OS updates as well, but security updates definitely.

 

To @Stylized_Violence's response, yes, that's the way I feel.  I admit that since I'm not rocking a portable audiophile set with my mobile phone and rarely require the jack for utilitarian uses much any more, I'm relatively fine with losing the jack.  I'm more peeved about the loss of the card slot.  I understand onboard storage is faster.  I understand that apps really don't get installed to the SD card that much as well.  I would still like to have the option to store backups, media files, etc. that don't need the speed.  In most cases, if there was a card slot, I could easily use the lower end model with less on-board storage...however, the lack of the card slot still forces me into the more expensive model.

[Commodus]

10 hours ago, huilun02 said:

Wow so now I'm a bad guy for the choice of phone I get? Smh...

 

The way I see it, is a problem with people's priorities, and how they are too weak to address the concern themselves.

 

This was a non-issue in the first place. If someone's placebo narrows the choice of what perceive to be acceptable, well then that's their problem.

 

Good luck to the OP...

I'm saying that you shouldn't rely on unofficial software as a crutch. Even the best-intentioned homebrew developers can't guarantee consistent support, and it's safe to say you're in trouble should something go wrong. If you value regular and timely OS updates, there are Android phones that deliver those without having to turn to unofficial code.