A Cellphone Q&A Thread

[Ar-Pharazon]

I see a few very old cellphone threads, so thought I should start a new one for questions and suggestions.

I had several Samsungs before switching to a Pixel 7 Pro last year. The Samsungs got more and more bloated with crap and harder and harder to root in order to control the bloat.

The Pixel has been OK, but only a year and it's getting OLED cancer or somesuch. A black splotch at the top left that keeps getting bigger, with no actual screen damage. They might fix it under warranty, but the place (Asurion) most of the manufacturers want you to bring a phone to get fixed is run by idiots, so maybe a new phone is the easier option.

My question today is, who has owned a OnePlus or a Sony and how do you feel they stack up against the Samsung Galaxy? How is the overall quality of these two? Both have relatively low max RAM for 2023 phones (256GB) and I don't think the OnePlus has a microSD slot.

I like high end camera capability (hence wanting more RAM), but not necessarily the photo editing ability. The Galaxy Ultras have the best camera of anyone, but again Samsung, plus the Ultra is so damn big. Like Note big. The Galaxy+ is more or less identical in specs to the comparable Pixel Pro.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Sony will offer you MicroSD Card Slot & 3.5mm Headphone jack, while other brands will have deleted those features.

So if you want those features, you'll probably have to stick with Sony to get them.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

I opted for the OnePlus 11 due to better overall features and a better camera (weird because Sony is cameras)

I had it 2 days. What a frickin' nightmare.

Got it home and started setting it up....multiple times:
- Screen started flashing purple and wouldn't stop. Factory reset.
- Wouldn't stay connected to my laptop via USB (didn't require a driver). Factory reset.
- Had issues with the home "button" not going back to home, with or without Nova launcher. Factory reset.
- Back to the USB connectivity issues. Took it back to Best Buy and got....ugh, a Samsung Galaxy S23+ (a bloated PoS, but at least they're stable).

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

I opted for the OnePlus 11 due to better overall features and a better camera (weird because Sony is cameras)

I had it 2 days. What a frickin' nightmare.

Got it home and started setting it up....multiple times:
- Screen started flashing purple and wouldn't stop. Factory reset.
- Wouldn't stay connected to my laptop via USB (didn't require a driver). Factory reset.
- Had issues with the home "button" not going back to home, with or without Nova launcher. Factory reset.
- Back to the USB connectivity issues. Took it back to Best Buy and got....ugh, a Samsung Galaxy S23+ (a bloated PoS, but at least they're stable).

Have you tried Sony or Motorola, seriously, give them a shot.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

Have you tried Sony or Motorola, seriously, give them a shot.

I looked at many spec comparisons before going with the OnePlus. I know MP isn't the end all and be all of cameras (CMOS sensor is a factor), but the Sonys I looked at had very low MP cameras, which was surprising.

With all the trouble screens have, no way I'd ever get a foldable screen.

I had Moto Razrs 1 & 3 back in the day. Again, I looked at the current model specs, but nothing stood out.

I'm hoping this S23+ lasts 2 years at least. 1 year is BS for a near thousand dollar device, or even the cheaper ones.

 

[Santaman]

I have a Motorola, downside of them is that their update strategy is totally rubbish, buy one now and within a few years it will be obsolete.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

I looked at many spec comparisons before going with the OnePlus. I know MP isn't the end all and be all of cameras (CMOS sensor is a factor), but the Sonys I looked at had very low MP cameras, which was surprising.

Sony's Sensors are usually pretty awesome in low light, just look at many online reviews.

I have a Motorola, downside of them is that their update strategy is totally rubbish, buy one now and within a few years it will be obsolete.

That's true of most Android vendors, it pisses me off how much e-waste they're creating for the sake of sales.

 

[Santaman]

True, but Motorola is exceptionally pathetic with it, they provide three years of updates and no upgrade to a newer Android version, if I buy a Pixel 6A it gets 5 years and at least one, maybe two upgrades to a newer version of Android, haven't looed into it much but Samsung also seems to be quite good with that.
I'm looking for a new mid-ish ranged phone and it won't be another Motorola just for this reason.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

True, but Motorola is exceptionally pathetic with it, they provide three years of updates and no upgrade to a newer Android version, if I buy a Pixel 6A it gets 5 years and at least one, maybe two upgrades to a newer version of Android, haven't looed into it much but Samsung also seems to be quite good with that.
I'm looking for a new mid-ish ranged phone and it won't be another Motorola just for this reason.

Sony Xperia 10 V

 

[Santaman]

^^ That one is actually on my list, when I have the time I'll be able to look into them all.

 

[publiusr]

Does Motorola have any advantage from years of producing walkie talkies?

 

[Santaman]

The tech behind phones and walkie talkies is very different so I don't see any advantage.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

Using a Nokia G21 and very happy with it. But did notice a month after I got it they came out with the G22 which is supposed to have user replaceable parts.

 

[think]

Hello Moto.. 2021 still good np..

 

[Mage]

My Samsung A71 is nearly 4 years old and still fine, battery lasts for about 2 days with normal use.
It acted a little funny yesterday while charging, it went to a 100% but after about an hour (still had it on the charger) it suddenly said 99%, even though it was still hooked up.
While still charging, I rebooted it and it said 97%. Took it off and after 14 hours (I slept in the mean time) it's at 82% now so it seems all is still well.

In any case.... I might have to think about replacing it. I'm considering the S23, which seems to have about a similar battery life even though it's 3900mah instead of 4500mah like the A71. On paper, the camera should be better, and I use it for vlogging.

Just curious as to what people think of the S23 in general. I won't go for the Ultra or the S24 since both are just too expensive.

 

[Random_Spock]

My Samsung A01 did that charging issue before. Had to unplug and replug in to get it to charge right. Could it be an issue with the charger or port? Read about it before when I had the issue and they mentioned about charger damage or port damage.

Tbh, my phone is around 7 years old. Been looking around at phones that are around $70 or less.

It's still a decent phone, but the top of the screen is unresponsive. It ran into ghost touch issues too. Where buttons would randomly be pressed and such.

 

[Mage]

My Samsung A01 did that charging issue before. Had to unplug and replug in to get it to charge right. Could it be an issue with the charger or port? Read about it before when I had the issue and they mentioned about charger damage or port damage.

Hm. Could be ofcourse. I'll keep an eye out for it. Thank you for the tip

 

[Random_Spock]

Hm. Could be ofcourse. I'll keep an eye out for it. Thank you for the tip

You're welcome.

I checked for any dust or dirt in my phones port too just to be on the safe side.