Budget 20-25K Need a decent mobile for smooth experience

Jee

Jee

Disciple
Questions:-
1. Budget?
A: INR 20k-25k. Might go above if there's a compelling option.

2. Preferred display size, type and resolution?
A: AMOLED 90+ Hz preferred. Good pixel density (~400) with longer aspect ratio like 20:9 would be nice.

3. Preferred operating system? (Android (with version), iOS, etc).
A: Android 13 but planning to flash a custom rom.

4. Preferred connectivity options? (4G, 3G, 2G etc).
A: 5G

5. Do you have any brand preference or dislike? Please name them.
A: Need something that supports LineageOS or clean stock android that I can tweak. Will be degoogling the device. So definitely not samsung and manufacturer service based ones like miui unless I can run it with custom rom.

6. What is your intended use for this phone (internet, camera, multimedia, mails etc.)?
A: Web surfing, scrolling.

7. Single SIM/ Dual SIM?
A: Dual sim, physical sim slots preferred as switching e-sim seems to be a pain.

8. New or Used? Online or Offline?
A: New. Need GST bill for claiming refund.

9. Any other requirements?
A: I use wired iem so headphone jack would be nice. Good battery life. Not gonna be running any heavy games on mobile so just looking for customizable, comfortable user experience.

10. If you have already considered a phone, then please mention the model
A: Pixel 6a, Moto g84.

Having quite a predicament choosing between the 2 as I really want a Pixel 6a to try out GrapheneOS but display is only 60 Hz, no headphone jack, only 1 sim slot and expensive, time consuming repair process. Moto g84 seems decent but camera is average, lower IP rating and weaker in performance. Not too sure about the battery life in both but pixel does seem to be super slow in charging with only 18W.

Currently running a Samsung M51 which has a nice amoled but 60 Hz display, 7000 mah, headphone jack, slender body. But the os was awful, heavily bloated and had to use adb to remove garbage as I didn't want to root and break knox and void warranty. Would have liked some waterproofing and fingerprint scanner on the side was quite limited and annoying sometimes. Replacing the screen costed 8.5k which I find quite high but will be handing it over to my dad as everything else was fine.

Would like more recommendations, suggestions, some experience about other custom rom's and would like to hear about any prior experience with google and moto customer service. Thanks.
 
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You can Wait for Motorola Edge 40 Neo launching 21st September 2023 on Flipkart.
This looks like the perfect phone with world's lightest IP68 underwater protection, 144Hz 10-bit curved pOLED display, HDR 10+, 5000 mAh battery, 68W turbo power charging, 50MP night vision camera with OIS, near stock android 13 with assured 2 OS updates and 3 years of security updates.

Motorola Edge 40 Neo Coming Soon Eh83dh Store Online - Buy Motorola Edge 40 Neo Coming Soon Eh83dh Online at Best Price in India | Flipkart.com

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rajanmehta said:
You can Wait for Motorola Edge 40 Neo launching 21st September 2023 on Flipkart.
This looks like the perfect phone with world's lightest IP68 underwater protection, 144Hz 10-bit curved pOLED display, HDR 10+, 5000 mAh battery, 68W turbo power charging, 50MP night vision camera with OIS, near stock android 13 with assured 2 OS updates and 3 years of security updates.

Motorola Edge 40 Neo Coming Soon Eh83dh Store Online - Buy Motorola Edge 40 Neo Coming Soon Eh83dh Online at Best Price in India | Flipkart.com

Motorola Edge 40 Neo Coming Soon Eh83dh Online Store in India. Check Motorola Edge 40 Neo Coming Soon Eh83dh Prices, Ratings & Reviews at Flipkart.com. ✔ Free Shipping ✔ Cash on Delivery ✔ Best Offers
www.flipkart.com www.flipkart.com
Click to expand...
Is there anything similar but without curved display? I think it would be difficult to get a good tempered glass and protective cover for them. I do like the specs otherwise, any idea on price tag? Edge 40 is already 30, this might go over my budget I am afraid.
TinTinSnowy said:
POCO F5.
Click to expand...
Heard about some motherboard issues with poco mobiles, has it been fixed with this model? And any ideas on after sale service?
 
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Jee said:
Is there anything similar but without curved display? I think it would be difficult to get a good tempered glass and protective cover for them. I do like the specs otherwise, any idea on price tag? Edge 40 is already 30, this might go over my budget I am afraid.

Heard about some motherboard issues with poco mobiles, has it been fixed with this model? And any ideas on after sale service?
Click to expand...
Older models like Poco X3 had mobo issue. So only time will tell if F5 has any. Anyways it has 2 year warranty vs 1 year for other brands. It will be closest to your 25k budget. Also, the biggest sale of the year is likely just 1 month away on amazon & FK.

Other good options are Edge 40, Edge 40 Neo (might be similarly priced because of slightly inferior SoC, I will prefer this because of bigger battery vs Edge 40), OP Nord CE3 & Nothing Phone 1. Check reviews for all of them & take a call.

Since you are using a 60Hz phone, Pixel 6a's panel is not a major con, battery life is. Charging is slower than others as well, 18W vs at least 30W for others. SoC on it is not power efficient nor thermally efficient. 6a has eSIM for 2nd SIM. After sales is surely not good, would rate it below Xiaomi, Oneplus, maybe even Moto & Nothing.

IMO no phone might last you as long as M51 did, it had a big battery + efficient SoC.
 
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OMEGA44-XT said:
Interesting, my cousin's M51 also developed a screen issue. It became a bit washed out, sometimes it flickers, sometimes becomes yellow.
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My dad was using the one I have. It never had any display issues, but one morning last month, its screen was flickering a bit, so he switched it off, and when powered on again, it gave no display output.

When did yours start having the issues?
 
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Jee said:

Need a decent mobile for smooth experience​

Click to expand...
iOS, even with 60Hz display, the UI will be buttery smooth, because v-sync is always on and frames never go below 60, and with the addition of 120Hz input update rate which I guess is present on many newish models, the 60Hz display feels smoother than ever.
 
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retrophiliac said:
My dad was using the one I have. It never had any display issues, but one morning last month, its screen was flickering a bit, so he switched it off, and when powered on again, it gave no display output.

When did yours start having the issues?
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About 6 months or so for the desaturated screen issue, the phone is now 3 years old. Recently one day the phone stopped giving any display output, but after an hour started working again. Ordered M34 for my cousin.
 
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OMEGA44-XT said:
About 6 months or so for the desaturated screen issue, the phone is now 3 years old. Recently one day the phone stopped giving any display output, but after an hour started working again.
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Mine is also more than 2.5 years old now. Don't know what exactly could be causing multiple devices to fail in a similar manner. Is the average lifespan of sAMOLEDS 2-3 years? Or is Samsung butchering the good old devices knowingly? Or something else? I was watching a screen replacement video for this on YouTube and found the comment section filled with many people facing similar issues recently with this phone, and also found many complaining about the same on Samsung community forums.

OMEGA44-XT said:
Ordered M34 for my cousin.
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M34 also comes with an sAMOLED screen. See how long it goes.
 
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retrophiliac said:
Mine is also more than 2.5 years old now. Don't know what exactly could be causing multiple devices to fail in a similar manner. Is the average lifespan of sAMOLEDS 2-3 years?
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Samsung m30s, owned for 3 years now. Mine has just developed display issue too with some sort of inky violet cloudy pattern on one side that is growing slowly. googled it and that seems to be a regular issue with samsung oleds. Dunno about oleds in general, but samsung may have quality issues as my family member's phone also had to be repaired recently and we have a samsung fridge that has given a lot of trouble in its life. Whats the point of long software support if hardware goes bad earlier ..
 
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I think it is well-documented at this point that the earlier Samsung M series phones were plagued with multiple issues, especially the ones released circa 2020-21/22. There have been multiple reports in the Samsung community forums about motherboard failures, device slowdowns, etc. Might be possible due to bad QC and/or use of poor quality components to keep the prices competitive, since the M series was primarily targeted to compete with the aggressive offerings from Xiaomi/Realme.

Exhibit A | Exhibit B | Exhibit C

Samsung did a good job covering up the issue (took down a SamMobile article), which is the reason why you do not see people talking about motherboard issues for their M series phones but do so for Poco models. Also, I'm not sure if the newer Samsung M series devices are immune from these issues. Only time will tell.
 
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retrophiliac said:
Mine is also more than 2.5 years old now. Don't know what exactly could be causing multiple devices to fail in a similar manner. Is the average lifespan of sAMOLEDS 2-3 years? Or is Samsung butchering the good old devices knowingly? Or something else? I was watching a screen replacement video for this on YouTube and found the comment section filled with many people facing similar issues recently with this phone, and also found many complaining about the same on Samsung community forums.


M34 also comes with an sAMOLED screen. See how long it goes.
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Let's see. My S8's display is still working after 6 years (not being used for last 2 years though). My father is still using his 5-6 year old C7 pro as 2nd device.
 
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retrophiliac said:
Was the screen physically damaged, or was anything else the reason? I also have a M51 lying in the closet; its screen randomly died.
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I believe it was a damaged connector from dropping the phone. No visible damage from outside but the connector inside somehow broke. Probably the poor QC others mentioned.
 
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Heisen said:
iOS, even with 60Hz display, the UI will be buttery smooth, because v-sync is always on and frames never go below 60, and with the addition of 120Hz input update rate which I guess is present on many newish models, the 60Hz display feels smoother than ever.
Click to expand...
I am trying to degoogle my android and I only run linux on pc. Will never consider an apple product but thanks for suggestion. :sweatsmile:
 
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If you're truly out for UI smoothness, I've noticed that iOS, ColorOS (in Realme, OnePlus and Oppo), stock Android and XOS (in Infinix and Tecno) are the best bets. These have extremely good hardware optimization, and can run fine with a semi decent SoC. I'd place MIUI and OneUI at the last for optimization, while they're not "bad", you're almost always bound to run into a stutter in mid range devices.

Not sure about you're compulsion about stock. If you're out for aesthetics, then you could just use a third party launcher like Nova Launcher or Lawnchair. Other brands' UI skins offer much more features than stock android anyway.

Maybe check out the Infinix Zero 30 or Lava Agni 2.
 
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