I’m upgrading because my phone is losing (lost?) support. I use a OnePlus 7 Pro and love it and wouldn’t bother upgrading otherwise. I’d appreciate some recommendations of android phones you like, please.
Thank you in advance! (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)
You could install LineageOS on your existing phone instead of upgrading. The OnePlus 7 Pro is supported. The install process can be daunting depending on your technical skills, but it’s a one-time process since the phone gets updates over-the-air after the OS is installed.
I did this with my OnePlus 6 a few months ago and the experience has been good. Switching to LineageOS bumped Android to version 13, whereas it was stuck on Android 11 on stock OnePlus firmware. I’m getting regular updates again, including open-source Android security patches. Not everything gets patched though, some of the core firmware is proprietary to OnePlus and that cannot be patched by anyone but them. It’s letting me extend the life of a phone still works well and has a 3.5mm headphone jack.
What about the newest fairphone which is being released this fall, not thc best for your bucks, but built a bit more ethically than the others, and a modular design enabling eeasy repair*
I don’t have one, but heard good stuff about the 4 and consider getting the 5 as my 5 year old Huawei is aging
I have the 4 and I relly like it. It can’t compete performance wise with other phones at the same price point, but the mission is great and you get a long life out of it and good software support.
I am running iodeOS right now and it is just great, couldn’t be happier. I am however not running games on it or anything, so not the biggest power user here…I have it, like it. Works well but no headphone jack is kinda weird. My screen does have a ghost input issue though which is very common for these phones. Recent update kinda fixed it but yeah its a hardware issue mainly so that sucks.
People get stuck on the repairability bit, but the two times I had to make candybar repairs I was able to do so regardless. The Fairphone is hyped up, but I’m in the market for flagship spec and I absolutely must have a headphone jack, so it doesn’t suit me.
Same boat here, headphone jack is nonnegotiable.
Wouldn’t recommend Oneplus anymore.
At the high end, Samsung has been pretty solid with their S lineup. The FE models are a good compromise as well. Pixels are a hit or miss, I’d recommend waiting for issues to surface before deciding on the 8/8 pro.
On the more budget - midrange side of things, Motorola has been doing a fairly solid job. They do have a lot of models, so some youtube videos should give you a fair idea on what’s right for you.
Why wouldn’t you recommend OnePlus though? I have a 9 pro which I enjoy. I really don’t miss the Samsung’s bloatware.
I’ve bought Samsung for the past 5 years now and have never had an issue with bloat if you buy from Samsung. If you’re buying it from a carrier then yeah there’s probably a ton of crap preloaded. Imo Samsung just offers too much of a complete package to pass up. Pixel is good but hardware leaves some to be desired. The cute software quirks just don’t make it up for me.
Imo Samsung just offers too much of a complete package to pass up.
That’s basically the exact reason I refuse to buy a Samsung, haha. They’re positioning themselves to be the Apple of Androids, offering exclusives to bring people into their ecosystem and making it hard to leave. Down to petty things like swapping the back/menu keys so just using a different brand of phone feels uncomfortable.
Samsung has let you swap the back and menu keys for years.
Severe inconsistent quality issues in both software and hardware, treating their customers as beta testers, random motherboards dying, etc.
They are still riding the ‘flagship killer’ wave, but they are just as overpriced as Samsung, while offering unfinished products.
Honest question. Where is all this bloat stuff coming from for Samsung?
Like, I genuinely haven’t noticed any software that I didn’t want installed. Sure, there are a few pieces that I’ve kept but don’t use, but nearly all of it can be uninstalled unless it’s stuff that’s actually needed.
Experience, to be fair though I last owned one 3+ years ago and that one was 3 ish years old.
I didn’t manage it in an argumentative way. Sorry. I’ve seen quite a few comments about that. But I haven’t noticed it, so I’m trying to see if it’s like a provider issue or a country thing. Or just whatever.
Ahh, I only meant to say that I might be living in the past. I thought the bloatware came from Samsung since what I heard on the street matched my experience. Maybe it’s time to borrow that hatchet though.
To be fair it wasn’t a big issue. It was just like five apps that I were stuck with. But back in the days with less memory overall it really grinded my gears. These days I’m not sure I’d even notice.
Ohhh. I understand. Thinking about it, i can see how some apps could be considered blaotware. Like Facebook, which I think is auto installed? Could be wrong there. And a few others, but they’re like actual things for it. I just don’t use them.
I’m gonna be honest, I fully thought you meant like a lot of absolutely useless apps. So, I’m sorry about that.
Yeah, maybe a bit of hyperbole on my part as well. Have a good Saturday evening!
Non- phone carrier variants of Google Pixels because of Grapheme OS. The crap that Verizon pumps out blocks the boot loader to be unlocked, but the ones google and amazon sells can do OEM boot loader unlocks.
Edit: also want to point out, pixels usually get the most updates out of all androids. So long as its in the support window, google will update drivers and kernels for it.
The people behind GrapheneOS even extend the support. Currently rocking Android 14 with GrapheneOS on my Pixel 4a.
How? I have an 4a and it’s on Android 13 and won’t update.
Used pixel, install grapheneos
used because it’s better environmentally than buying new
grapheneos because it’s more secure and private than stock android
I do something the same, I buy last gen or gen before phones used on Swappa and then install Lineage OS so I can have a stable, updated, and efficient phone.
I would say about 9h of screen on time for a Pixel 5 on its original OEM battery is not to bad.
I have had a pixel 5 and 6 and both died within 2 years. They would both hard crash and shut off for a bit and eventually stop powering up altogether. I never had that issue with other brands. I ended going back to samsung with an S23 and it works fine for now.
Why not Lineage os or /e/ os?
They have different goals. I use /e/, where the focus is removing all communication with Google while providing an OS that’s as user friendly and ready to use as the competition.
You can just not install google play services on grapheneos and communication with google is removed, while still being more secure
I was just pointing out the differences in goals.
Does Graphene OS come with microg, the open source reimplementation of Google Play Services, installed by default like it is on /e/ OS?
no, grapheneos doesn’t come with anything google installed by default. It does have some shimmed play services that you can install if you want though
All overpriced. Keep using your 2019 phone, install a custom ROM if you want a refresh.
If you love it, repair it.
I also love my Oneplus 7 Pro, currently running crDroid (on Android 13, based on Lineage). It is updated semi-weekly and maintained by one person. It gets the latest security updates, but I am unable to relock the bootloader, if that is relevant to you threat model.
I’m probably going to do a battery swap soon and really want to use this phone until it breaks!
Can you use banking apps? Use Google pay, Netflix?
I do not use Google Pay or Netflix on my phone, and my german banking apps work perfectly fine. YMMV though
No security updates though.
Lineageos keeps merging the updates.
After four years there are no more security updates coming from OnePlus, unless someone started doing the work themselves. This is the only reason I updated my last phone.
A Pixel (with long security updates) because GrapheneOS is the operating system to use.
It’s limiting but that’s the way it is.
Depends on your needs - do you need a good camera? 5g? Sd card slot? Oled vs lcd screen? Etc etc.
Price to features, I like the Poco F3 (f4, f5 maybe f6 is out now?). Xiaomi 14 has some phones that compete with Samsung. Redmi sits below them.
A lot of these recommendations are for super privacy focused anti-Google setups or other niche concerns.
If you just want a nice, straightforward phone, that’s going to do normal phone things, and have security updates for a long time…
The pixel 8 is quite compelling.
I have a Pixel 7. I love it.
Likewise, a buddy just got the 8 and really likes it. My parents like their 6a and 6. I have a couple of friends that like their 6/7as.
I was (am?) in the same dilemma. Loved my 7 pro, but someone dropped it, cracked the screen, and things started going downhill (hardware wise) from there.
As a replacement I got an 8t (still OnePlus). It’s nice, but I miss the 7 pro.
OnePlus is no longer an enthusiast brand, and I think the Pixel is the only other one currently. Maybe the Nothing phone? That’s kind of early adopter territory still, I think.
Sorry I’m not more helpful. I prefer phones with unlocked bootloaders that allow for alternate firmware to be installed.
have been using a Fairphone 4 for over a year now, the FP5 seems to improve in nearly every way despite still missing a headphone jack. at least you won’t have to worry about software support. only really available in Europe though. in the US you can get a FP4 with /e/OS through Murena. really recommend it.
I recommend getting the ones popular in India for great 3rd party support (: Snapdragon Xiaomis are a safe bet if you’re on a budget
It used to be… Recently xaoimi started to delay publishing kernel source. Thus some new phones are not officially supported by lineage. Or the cuatom rom experiemce is not as good as it used to be .They started going the route of BBK.
what is bbk?
Its the Chinese smartphone manufacturer , OPPO (sub-brand OnePlus), Vivo (sub-brand iQOO), Realme are all part of BBK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBK_Electronics
I just picked up a Sony Xperia 1 V, and so far I’m happy with it. It’s snappy as can be, and the camera is absolutely fantastic.
Get a Pixel.
It just works
For real tho…
Just make sure to install Graphene.
Graphene is cool but such a process. Stock pixel is great on its own.
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Samsung, because they are the only brand still (mostly) not manufacturing in China. Most Samsung phones are made in Vietnam.
