Having a hard time deciding for a phone

[Doublei7]

Hi. 

I have about 3 months to decide for a new phone, until my Vodafone contract gets renewed. I would prefer to get a phone available at Vodafone (https://www.vodafone.de/privat/handys-tablets-tarife/alle-smartphones.html) but I'm willing to pay cash if it's worth it. Price isn't much of a problem. 

 

Just so you know, until now I've been using a Galaxy S7 (Exynos). I've been mostly satisfied, but the battery life lately has been absolutely terrible (partly because i somewhat abused it) and the software is buggy, as is known for Samsung. 

 

As far as requirements go, it has to be Android, the battery must comfortably get me through a day of medium to heavy use, it has to feel responsive and I'd really like it if my phone doesn't randomly restart (I'm looking at you, Samsung). While it isn't a top priority, fast android updates are a welcome feature. To give you some reference, a day of use for me comprises of getting a zillion emails, deleting them, taking a picture of documents i need saved quickly, checking Google feed all the time (so lots of browsing), lots of WhatsApp and occasionally navigation. I prefer leaving gps etc on most of the time, and I'm often on data. I also love slow mo video and i like to mess with the pro mode from time to time (dying to get a dslr). 

 

Up to this point I've been more or less set on getting the Note 9, because it'll have a big-ass battery and I feel like the stylus could come in handy. Also I watch quite a lot of stuff on my phone so the HDR10+ display wouldn't go to waste. 

I was also considering the OnePlus 6 because of its great performance and software features but the battery life is apparently rather meh. 

Today I read about the Sony XZ2 Premium, and it looks like it's a great phone, but I don't see any reason to get it over the Note 9. Correct me if I'm wrong. 

The Pixel 2XL is a bit too old, but I'd get the 3 if it has a big battery, and if the screen isn't so meh again. 

 

Before I finish, I'm not interested in any Huawei phones. 

Also, I know tagging him is a bit of an asshole move, but if I could get an opinion from @LinusTech I would be very grateful. 

 

Thanks in advance. 

[dizmo]

If you watch a ton of content I think the Note9 is by far the best choice.

The XZ2 Premium is based on dinosaur bones. I wouldn't bother. Plus the XZ3 comes out soon, and aside from the 4k display (which hardly ever gets used), it'll be better in every way.

I have a feeling Pixel 3 XL won't be that great. The Pixel phones haven't blown away in any category except camera. I wish they'd make a beast phone, with a massive battery, but for some reason none of the big players want to approach that except Huawei and hopefully now Samsung.

[Doublei7]

6 minutes ago, dizmo said:

If you watch a ton of content I think the Note9 is by far the best choice.

The XZ2 Premium is based on dinosaur bones. I wouldn't bother. Plus the XZ3 comes out soon, and aside from the 4k display (which hardly ever gets used), it'll be better in every way.

I have a feeling Pixel 3 XL won't be that great. The Pixel phones haven't blown away in any category except camera. I wish they'd make a beast phone, with a massive battery, but for some reason none of the big players want to approach that except Huawei and hopefully now Samsung.

The Nokia 9 also seems interesting. 

I found out about it a bit earlier, should have a ~3800mah battery and flagship specs. 

But I'm still quite set on the Note 9.

I saw a battery life comparison earlier and the P20 PRO basically destroyed all the other phones (s9+, one plus 6 etc), and considering the Note 9 will have the same battery size, it should be a beast. 

The only problem is that the software updates are always 1 year too late. Hoping that improves, especially with Project Treble. 

[dizmo]

11 minutes ago, Doublei7 said:

The Nokia 9 also seems interesting. 

I found out about it a bit earlier, should have a ~3800mah battery and flagship specs. 

But I'm still quite set on the Note 9.

I saw a battery life comparison earlier and the P20 PRO basically destroyed all the other phones (s9+, one plus 6 etc), and considering the Note 9 will have the same battery size, it should be a beast. 

The only problem is that the software updates are always 1 year too late. Hoping that improves, especially with Project Treble. 

I'm interested in the Nokia 9 as well, but if you consume tons of content I think the much larger screen of the Note will be a lot more beneficial.

While I wish you could base battery life on the size of the battery, it sadly doesn't work that way. Some companies pack in huge batteries and get shit life.

It's all about software customization and component selection.

Eh, the newest versions of Android don't really bring that much tbh. Nothing that you'd likely notice.

[Doublei7]

5 minutes ago, dizmo said:

I'm interested in the Nokia 9 as well, but if you consume tons of content I think the much larger screen of the Note will be a lot more beneficial.

While I wish you could base battery life on the size of the battery, it sadly doesn't work that way. Some companies pack in huge batteries and get shit life.

It's all about software customization and component selection.

Eh, the newest versions of Android don't really bring that much tbh. Nothing that you'd likely notice.

Yea, Mah isn't everything, but considering Nokia uses near stock android and Qualcomm SoCs it's a safe guess that 3800mah is gonna be plenty. 

Also, it's true that the few last android updates didn't do anything crazy, but for eg the notification area revamps on nougat and oreo are very useful, and the dashboard thingy coming in android P sounds very interesting. 

[dizmo]

1 hour ago, Doublei7 said:

Yea, Mah isn't everything, but considering Nokia uses near stock android and Qualcomm SoCs it's a safe guess that 3800mah is gonna be plenty. 

Also, it's true that the few last android updates didn't do anything crazy, but for eg the notification area revamps on nougat and oreo are very useful, and the dashboard thingy coming in android P sounds very interesting. 

Even companies with heavy skins have seen better battery life than some Nexus phones; sometimes lack of tweaking isn't a good thing.

I find that a lot of the improvements they make with regards to notification areas and such is already in place with companies like Samsung, and it's just Google slowly picking things that work and incorporating them into stock Android. I've been pretty dissatisfied with my stock Android devices tbh.

 

[Doublei7]

2 minutes ago, dizmo said:

Even companies with heavy skins have seen better battery life than some Nexus phones; sometimes lack of tweaking isn't a good thing.

I find that a lot of the improvements they make with regards to notification areas and such is already in place with companies like Samsung, and it's just Google slowly picking things that work and incorporating them into stock Android. I've been pretty dissatisfied with my stock Android devices tbh.

 

I don't wanna bother you to much but if you have time could expand on your experience with different devices? No pressure. 

[dizmo]

2 minutes ago, Doublei7 said:

I don't wanna bother you to much but if you have time could expand on your experience with different devices? No pressure. 

The only thing you're keeping me from is cover letter writing, which I hate

 

I put Nova Launcher on everything. So my view might be a bit different than someone who doesn't.

Asus: Relatively fast updates, and they actually listen to the community. They have forums where you can suggest features, and they implement them. I've gotten more updates for my Asus phone than I have for any other phone.

Nexus's: While you get fast updates to the next version of Android, they're rather bare bones when it comes to features. Simple things that you take for granted are missing, and I found it rather annoying. Can't think of any off the top of my head, but I'd know them as soon as I used one again I'm sure.

Samsung: Most feature rich. Used to lag, I never noticed a problem on my Note5 and I can only imagine it's improved since then. They have things I haven't seen on other devices, like being able to customize vibration patterns. Not from a list, but you actually design your own. So far in terms of OS, this has been hands down my favorite device.

LG: Good on paper, poor in use. Every one of their devices I've owned has gotten horrid battery life, regardless of capacity. They have awesome ideas, and I like their design, it's just horribly executed.

 

I haven't owned a Huawei device, and won't until they lay out exactly what kind of storage system they use; I won't buy a flagship to find out it isn't using UFS.

I haven't bothered with a Nokia device as none of them have impressed me as of yet. I liked the Nokia 8 Scirocco but it was way overpriced.