The Great Smartphone & Tablet Thread, v5: Death to the Headphone Jack

So, I have been an Android user since the original T-Mobile G1.

I've had the G1, Nexus One, Galaxy S3, HTC One M8, Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, and now..................................

I have an iPhone 7+.

Honestly? I like it overall, and I didn't think I would've ever said that before.

I was thinking about getting a Pixel XL, but after reading too many horror stories with shitty Google support on an almost $800 phone, I said fuck it and decided to try the iPhone.

Let's get the negatives out of the way:
  • Customizability - a bit annoying that Apple doesn't let you arrange your screens how you want in terms of icon placement, but it's not a big deal breaker.
  • Notifications - The way Apple handles this is absolutely retarded, everything about it just straight up sucks.
  • Default apps - not being able to set Chrome (one example) as the default browser for everything is dumb, but can be overcome in most scenarios.
Positives:
  • Battery life - HOLY FUCKING SHIT! With my normal usage on the 6P, the phone would be dead around 2pm. With the iPhone and the same usage, I'm at 65% when I go to sleep. Unreal.
  • General Smoothness and Speed - My 6P was generally not too bad, although it started getting slower as it aged. However, even on a completely fresh install with no apps at all, it was never this smooth with animations, transitions, or scrolling.
  • Overall Quality - Don't need to talk much about this one as aside from a couple key Android phones Apple is always tops in actual build quality.
  • Power - Games are silky smooth with 0 input lag
  • Support - If I have any issues I can walk into any Apple store or AT&T store and pretty much get it resolved. No way I could do that with a Pixel.
  • Carrier - Since it's a carrier supported/tested phone, things like VoLTE and HD Voice work, unlike on the 6P.
Thankfully Google has pretty much all of their apps on iOS (sadly they're even better on iOS than Android, looking at you Hangouts), so I don't need to get very deep into the Apple ecosystem. That said, I'm definitely a fairly happy camper. Would I ever go back to Android? Very likely, particularly if Google fixes their shit support and releases the Pixel 2 on all carriers.
 
if you guys want a phone but can't get it due to your carrier, check out Ting.

it's a pay as you go phone service that has both CDMA & LTE coverage. they piggy back off of the Sprint, T-Mobile & Verizon Networks. doesn't matter where your phone comes from. if you require a SIM card, just order one from their site, pop it in & follow the simple activation process.

REMEMBER, do your research for your phone on their website before you make any purchases. I'm an IT Pro & have extensive time spent & experience dealing with the support teams of all aforementioned major carriers - Ting is by far the best when it comes to their support I shit you not especially when it comes to their online community. their staff is personable, knowledgeable & thorough every single step of the way, answering any & every technical mobile device question you may have even if it has nothing to do with their brand, 24/7. this is the only time I've ever come to this conclusion when it comes to support for mobile devices but they honor what true business is meant to be: take care of your customers & the business takes care of itself. their support site just has sooo much useful knowledge & documentation. I think I've only ever had to speak with a support rep once ever, like 4yrs ago. if you have a question, 99.9% of the time it has already been answered, documented & made available for viewing on their site.

finally, I'll end it with this. my Verizon bill used to range from $100-$120+ monthly (that was about 4yrs ago, so by today's standards it would be a LOT more). with Ting my bill is, I shit you not, $20-$30 a month.

no I do not work for Ting. being that I am an IT Pro, finding the best solutions is the name of the game all across the board within the vast spectrum of my industry. Ting is 'it' for me when it comes to mobile device services.
 
Anyone read anything on Apple updating the iPhone SE? My charging port on my 5 is dying.
 
Got my daughter a BLU vivo life 2 ($150) and it is a pretty damn good phone. For anyone who is price sensitive, you should check it out.

Anyone using the MotoZ and mods? I'm intrigued by this concept. Currently using a MotoX and looking to update to a new phone.
 
I'm very satisfied with my LG G5.

LG_G5.jpg
 
Still debating S7 Edge vs Google Pixel XL for my first android phone.

How bad are the slow downs and bloatware on Samsung phones?
 
SheetsMMAfan said:
Still debating S7 Edge vs Google Pixel XL for my first android phone.

How bad are the slow downs and bloatware on Samsung phones?
Click to expand...

You can disable the bloatware. The phone is lightening fast.


I would take s7 without the edge unless you can hold out for s8. The s7 edge has more tempermental edge than the note7. I have small hands and it still sometimes conflicted with holding the edge and scrolling. The edge will be fixed on the s8 which is likely be out in March.
 
Codger said:
Seems to me that Android phones are getting so good at the lower end of the market, it's hard to justify paying hundreds for the top end ones. I've got a £140 Moto G4 that is better in almost every way I'm personally aware of than the HTC One it replaced - a phone that cost me an additional £30 a month for 2 years.

I dropped it the other day and scuffed the corners and I'm not really bothered. If I lose it, I'll replace it.
Click to expand...

I'm using a $19 Black Friday special LG Tribute HD, and I don't miss my Moto X 2014 that I sold a year ago very much or the Nexus 5 I had before. Nice 5" display, Marshmallow, and runs the apps that I need reasonably well. The only thing is that the camera is low end, and it would be nice to have a premium camera. I'm not a power user/gamer, so I don't need flagship level specs. Browsing generally sucks on a phone, and I prefer internet on my desktop. I also user an older low-mid range LG Volt that has a lot of great features such as an IR blaster and notification light. Of course, I would like something nice such as an LG G5 or V10/20, but it's difficult to justify spending 20-35 times what I'm using now.
 
My buddy just got the Zenfone 3 deluxe -- that snapdragon 625 processor is pretty snappy. Decent camera and the feel of it is pretty good (albeit its a tad big for my taste)

Had no idea the midrange phone market was this developed.
 
Not sure where to ask this question so I will drop it here. I need a laptop for under $500. I would like to play games like Civ 6 on it. Any suggestions? thanks.
 
Bloatware on Samsung phones are massive.

And no you can't disable them. They're system background services that run all the time and there are at least 100-150 of them.

I have the Note 4, it has 3gb of RAM. Custom debloated ROM has the OS use 1.5gb of RAM, giving you 1.5gb of free RAM.

In an S7 Edge, there is 4gb of RAM. Operating system now uses 2.5gb of RAM (with all apps closed), giving you exactly the same 1.5gb of free RAM. It's a faster phone but has 40% more bloatware so there is a lot of UI lag and multi-tasking issues. I had to sell this POS of a phone after a few months.

Don't believe Scamsung, you're not getting more RAM or performance, for every increase in CPU/RAM, there is an even larger increase in bloatware services.

Samsung phones have some of the best hardware you can buy. But their software sucks and always will suck. Google phones generally run much faster. Iphones run even faster than Google phones because they don't passively data-mine your usage and activity.
 
milliniar said:
I'm loving my pixel xl. Best Android phone I've used.
Click to expand...


go on .....

I need a new phone, and I need the big screen so am looking at PixelXL or that Samsung with the big screen.
 
SammyPops said:
go on .....

I need a new phone, and I need the big screen so am looking at PixelXL or that Samsung with the big screen.
Click to expand...

Well basically no "Android lag", great screen. I don't take pictures or video so I can't really comment but most reviews saw how great it is for that. Finger print scanner on back is like the best thing ever.
 
milliniar said:
Well basically no "Android lag", great screen. I don't take pictures or video so I can't really comment but most reviews saw how great it is for that. Finger print scanner on back is like the best thing ever.
Click to expand...


do you do any voice control, dictating emails/texts with it?
 
I ordered my Pixel XL two months ago and STILL haven't gotten it.

Now the S8 is coming out soon and I'm thinking of canceling the Pixel and go for that instead.
 
I like to take pictures while riding my bike and I constantly drop my phone, so I don´t want to buy the most expensive, I just need one with a good camera.

I had de Moto G4 and the camera was actually good, but the phone was slow as hell, always had to clean the cache. Just bought a Zenfone 3 Max, battery is good, its faster but the camera is complete shit, takes ages to focus and I can´t get a clear image while riding.

Any suggestions?

Just need a phone with a camera as good or better than Moto G4 and that is faster for apps.
 
Is ios 10.2.1 ok for the iphone se? I don't want it to act a fool on the battery like the 6 does.
 
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