15-20K smartphone to replace iPhone 4

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vyral_143

vyral_143

Jarvis
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1. Budget?
A: 15-22k (25k for iPhone)
2. Preferred Form Factor(flip, bar, slider)?
A: Bar
3. Preferred display type?
A: at-least a 720p display with ~300 ppi
4. Do you have any brand preference or dislike? Please name them.
A: No to Local brands, HTC, Samsung, lesser reputed Chinese brands
5. Preferred input method (Touchscreen, QWERTY, etc.)?
A: Touchscreen
6. Camera required or not? If required, please specify type like front camera/flash/etc.
A: A decent to good camera if not excellent
7. Preferred operating system? (Android, Symbian, iOS, Windows Phone etc).
A: Android and iOS
8. Preferred connectivity options? (3G, Wifi, Edge etc).
A: 3G/WiFi
9. What is your intended use for this phone(internet, camera, multimedia, mails, etc)?
A: WhatsApp, Tapatalk, surfing internet, mails, multimedia (Music and few games)
10. Any other requirements?
A: Compact and good battery life
11. If you have already considered a phone then please mention the model.
A: used iPhone 5S 16GB, Moto G - 2014, Moto X - 2013, LG G2 32GB

I am looking for a no-non-sense smartphone to replace my iPhone 4. Following is detailed criteria as per priority;

Size: I am looking for compact smartphone. It must be operable by one hand. Example: While holding phone, I should be able to use bottom 3 keys as well as able to pull down notification bar without readjusting phone. I have tried Moto G - 2013/2014, Moto X 2013, Xperia Z3C in hand and have found them usable/suitable. For Moto phones I guess curved back is helping; but not sure if other phones in similar physical dimensions will also be easy to use in a hand.

Battery: Batterylife of phone should be very good. It should last me for a day with usage as - close to 3 hours of WhatsApp (many job related communications happen over it), couple of hours of surfing and Tapatalk, ~10 hours of 3G connection when I am not at home, calling of around 30-40 minutes, music or game for around an hour while I commute, 25-30 mails a day. My iPhone 4 battery lasts me close to a day but without any games/videos.

Usability: I prefer out-of-the-box usable phone without tinkering phone constantly. One time process like rooting/jailbreaking and installing few tweaks/mods is acceptable. But after which I would not desire that need arises to tinker it regularly.

Software and updates: OS running on the phone must not be customized heavily like TouchWiz. Stock/near-stock or lightest UI preferred. Device should be able to run on latest OS for at-least 1.5-2 years; translating one more new update after next 8-10 months.

Misc:
Camera: should be good with flash light
screen: at least 720p screen but not too much over-saturated colors like displays in Samsung phones.
Audio quality: I m not very much sure if i will be able to settle on audio output of non-Apple devices as since last 7 years I am listening to Music from Apple devices.

Brief Pros and Cons of phones considered
iPhone 5s
+already comfortable with ecosystem
+compact size, Music continues on Apple device
+good camera and 1 day battery life
-price

Moto G 2014
+operable in one hand with 5" screen
+fast updates and out-of-the-box usable
+/-Not sure how good battery, camera and Music quality is

Moto X 2013
+compact size
+good performance
-not-so-great battery life
-average camera and music quality

LG G2
+compact for 5.2" display (however I am unclear if I can operate it in one hand)
+large battery, very good camera and quite capable hardware
+/-not sure how good music quality is
-cost is well above my budget. If looked at imported one for to fit in budget, like Sprint LG G2 LS980, I am not sure if how easy to update software or apply mod/tweak to an unlocked phone. Also not sure how prevalent hardware related issues are.

Apart from the above factors if purchased used phone I would be looking for dent-free/scratch-less/issue free and with some warranty preferred. If music quality is not good, I can invest in to music players like iPod Nano.

I also had given thought to combo of 6-7k phone such as Lumia 525 for WhatsApp, Tapatalk, surfing and iPad Mini 2. However not yet fully convinced for this setup. For such a phone I can compromise on camera and music quality. I would still avoid Lumias for such phones due to lack of proper apps and browser.
 
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ashrr said:
Yeah but if he's spending money on a new device and the camera is important to him, it makes sense to buy something that is good. The Moto cameras aren't.
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True but consider where is coming from. Bet his brothers 720 will beat the iP4.

A flagship is good for 4-5 years. In that period an entry midrange or even low range will match it.

Depends how much of a bump up he expects.

Otherwise moto g & g2 are valid contenders with the g2 being better. No replaceable battery or sd card which isn't an issue coming from iphone. But decent battery life & camera which can even output raw (!)

I could not figure out any answers for this thread then realised the key was his present device, how old it is :)
 
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I havent owned a G2 . That is primarily because of how it feels in the hand, not talking about the size here, if you can manage the moto G second gen with one hand, lg G2 wont be a problem either. I just dont like the feel in hand ( just personal preference ).

Else , a like new sprint G2 should fit your requirements ( not sure how you like the UI though, I hate LGs UI, but then I always flash cm anyways :-P )

Again, if the camera part is left out, htc M7 should fit in just fine. The M8 is excellent, but a lil taller than I would like.

So, consider going to a shop where you can get a feel of all the handsets and have a look at the UI too. ( HTCs sense UI is amazing and shouldnt be any problem)


International and the sprint LG G2 are similar physically, so no difference there.
 
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Nope, dunn think 4G will be mainstream for next 1-1.5 years. For LG G2, I want to know how good idea is too get Sprint one - LS980? Since it would not have warranty, how much risk is involved ? Can we update software directly on an unlocked phone or it has to pass through carrier?
 
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I suggest you to go with Windows eyes closed. I recently made a switch and I couldn't be more happy. You can also ask arun for more suggestions.
 
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avi said:
I suggest you to go with Windows eyes closed. I recently made a switch and I couldn't be more happy. You can also ask arun for more suggestions.
Click to expand...

:hilarious:

To update this thread, with help of @avi to get an iPhone 5S from bids he won, I have paid for iPhone 5S 16GB on eBay USA. It will be shipped to my brother there, who will bring it in December. Also @benryu helped me over attempting to payment via PayPal, though we were not successful. I really appreciate gesture of help from both of you. I may also get Nexus 7 2013 edition to complete my upgrade of devices for now.

raksrules said:
I think you will end up with another iPhone only :p
Click to expand...

How come you predict that so accurately and confidently ? I have some more questions for you on the way via PM :p
 
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@vyral_143

I myself would find it difficult to get to a new eco system (android or otherwise) now that I have used iPhone. I am not saying I cannot. I am gonna go bankrupt soon with a imminent purchase of 6 Plus (not for myself).
 
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There is no turning away from iPhone.

Okay lets list some devices which:

- has a great battery life
- doesn't look hideous
- gets official support for next 3 years
- great build
- good display
- snappy
- good camera
- good audio
 
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Comparing updates for android and ios is not fair every android flagship gets minimum 2 major system upgrades which i think is fair enough. M7 s4 xp z will get android l and i think note 2 will get it too 2 years of support is very good i believe.
 
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avi said:
There is no turning away from iPhone.

Okay lets list some devices which:

- has a great battery life
- doesn't look hideous
- gets official support for next 3 years
- great build
- good display
- snappy
- good camera
- good audio
Click to expand...
Xperia Z3/Z3c

about official support, CM after two years. yes official build.

if you mean which is more likely to be stolen because it has a beter resale price then xperia may not compete. A friend lost her iphone that she paid 75k for in may, pinched in the office. The cops returned it to her a few days ago. It had changed hands five times before they found it. Am amazed they managed to find it. They were scolding here for not being more careful. She was not amused :D

best time to buy a 5s is after 6 comes out but she did not know that. How people manage with a 4 inch screen ? they dont. not very well.
 
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ruiner21 said:
Do update me on hows the battery performance on 5s while using 3G.
Click to expand...

Will do, but you may need to wait till December.

blr_p said:
How people manage with a 4 inch screen ? they dont. not very well.
Click to expand...

I do not see anything wrong with 4" screen for me, since this preference varies from person to person. I intended to have phone with 'fitting' in one hand and had narrowed down on 5 handsets precisely. Though major chunk of people and manufacturers have moved to 5" as a standard screen, I feel there always be a demand for compact phones. :)
 
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vyral_143 said:
I do not see anything wrong with 4" screen for me, since this preference varies from person to person. I intended to have phone with 'fitting' in one hand and had narrowed down on 5 handsets precisely. Though major chunk of people and manufacturers have moved to 5" as a standard screen, I feel there always be a demand for compact phones. :)
Click to expand...
I meant in terms of reading. SMS or short messages are one thing. But what about sites that are not formatted for the screen or have mobile versions ? that is where the problem arises.

I tried looking at the railways site on a 4.3 inch and to get the font comfortable meant much more scrolling at arms length. arms length being more comfortable than holding it up to your face which you won't be able to do for long.

This is where bigger screen size comes in. i could manage a 5.2 incher but not a note. That is more advantageous than not being able to go over 4 inch screen.

people that go with smaller screens are not very far away from a bigger one. They have other devices at their disposal. Smaller size for portability is specialisation which is fine so long as you can afford it AND the other devices. I don't need to read on the iphone as i have an ipad for that. means you need to have one to go with a smaller size screen.

Of limited use which means this issue of readability does not arise.

Point is you'd have been better off with the 6 than the 5s. But you will say i don't have the budget. Sure you do, just not right now.
 
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blr_p said:
Point is you'd have been better off with the 6 than the 5s.
Click to expand...

If I had moolahs I would have gone for 6, for sure :P

Coming to other points, I do agree for bigger screens for reading newspapers, articles or for surfing for medium-long hours. However, IMO, usage pattern also have a 'say' on screen size. I am not very confident on handling a phone which does not fit in one hand while I am on move (~2.5 hours/day for me in Mumbai locals and buses). Also I am not very keen on watching videos or reading for long time on a phone. Hence comparatively a smaller screen is apt for me. Same is case with my colleague, who have not moved from Moto X due to very same reason - phone fitting in one hand. On the other hand there is one close friend of mine, who was using Note 2 before it got stolen, can not adjust himself on Moto G. If my usage and routine would have been different, I would have definitely considered screen with ~5 inches :)
 
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avi said:
There is no turning away from iPhone.

Okay lets list some devices which:

- has a great battery life
- doesn't look hideous
- gets official support for next 3 years
- great build
- good display
- snappy
- good camera
- good audio
Click to expand...

Half baked updates are not called updates.

If you dont get half the features whats the point of an update anyway.

M8 ticks everything ;)
 
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