Help me fine my next smart phone!
July 9, 2021 4:24 PM Subscribe
I have had my iphone SE repaired too many times. I find online shopping for technology to be impossible, and I hate learning new technologies, but I'm ready to move on from Apple. I'll list my specific criteria below.
- Durable, or with really durable cases available. I have a job where it is very easy to accidentally break things, and I use my phone at work a fair amount.
- Long battery life, I'm tired of my phone dying all the time. I use it for bluetooth at work. Notably, I am sometimes working outside in winter in New England and I have found that this does permanent damage to iphone batteries. I can try to do better at keeping my phone in inside pockets and stuff but who knows.
- On the smaller side. I often wear women's clothing with tiny useless pockets
- Visually Customizable, I'd like to be able have my screen and physical phone or case be in lighter colors, move apps around, etc. (I really don't know how non-apple phones are on this, maybe it's a regular feature)
- Actual headphone jack, I absolutely will lose a dongle in 3.5 seconds.
- Under 400$
- SD card slot
So, I think with that criteria I'm looking for a phone that's a couple years old? I really don't need anything fancy, I use my phone primarily for music/audiobooks, social media, casual games while watching tv, and texting/fb messenger. It seems like everything these days has pretty good cameras and whatnot. I'm looking for some models to look for specifically if I go into a store and try some phones out so I don't have to sort the wheat from the chaff and spend 3 hours in Best Buy.
- Durable, or with really durable cases available. I have a job where it is very easy to accidentally break things, and I use my phone at work a fair amount.
- Long battery life, I'm tired of my phone dying all the time. I use it for bluetooth at work. Notably, I am sometimes working outside in winter in New England and I have found that this does permanent damage to iphone batteries. I can try to do better at keeping my phone in inside pockets and stuff but who knows.
- On the smaller side. I often wear women's clothing with tiny useless pockets
- Visually Customizable, I'd like to be able have my screen and physical phone or case be in lighter colors, move apps around, etc. (I really don't know how non-apple phones are on this, maybe it's a regular feature)
- Actual headphone jack, I absolutely will lose a dongle in 3.5 seconds.
- Under 400$
- SD card slot
So, I think with that criteria I'm looking for a phone that's a couple years old? I really don't need anything fancy, I use my phone primarily for music/audiobooks, social media, casual games while watching tv, and texting/fb messenger. It seems like everything these days has pretty good cameras and whatnot. I'm looking for some models to look for specifically if I go into a store and try some phones out so I don't have to sort the wheat from the chaff and spend 3 hours in Best Buy.
Ah! I did this just before the pandemic! I needed to move on from my iPhone 5 and looked at a buuuunch of phones online and in person and, yep, the Pixel 4a is what you want. It has everything on your list except the SD card. It just works.
Tip: If you get it, don't use the YouTube Music or whatever the native music app is now. It is absolute garbage. Just download the VLC app and play your music through that.
posted by greenland at 6:04 PM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
Tip: If you get it, don't use the YouTube Music or whatever the native music app is now. It is absolute garbage. Just download the VLC app and play your music through that.
posted by greenland at 6:04 PM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
The Pixel 4A doesn't have an SD card, but comes with 128GB, so it shouldn't be too bad for most uses.
GSM Arena Details.
posted by coberh at 6:44 PM on July 9, 2021
GSM Arena Details.
posted by coberh at 6:44 PM on July 9, 2021
I just got a Pixel 4a, and am very happy with it so far. Based on the reviews I've read it doesn't have the longest battery life (and it also lacks wireless charging, if you care about that), but overall it's been great for the brief period I've had it.
posted by DingoMutt at 8:01 PM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by DingoMutt at 8:01 PM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
Just as a battery life data point, I have a Pixel 3 and it handled Norwegian winter at -10 to -15C pretty comfortably as long as it was in a pocket receiving some body heat. Keeping it out or in an uninsulated bag away from my body meant the battery dropped off pretty quickly. That said, it tended to last better than my partner's iPhone SE (old/original version).
posted by knapah at 2:53 AM on July 10, 2021
posted by knapah at 2:53 AM on July 10, 2021
If battery life is your priority, you could also check out the Moto G Power, which is on a lot of the "best budget phone" lists along with the Pixel 4a and has long battery life as the main selling point. It's slightly larger in size but does allow an SD card.
As far as durability, my current phone is a Moto G3 (earlier model in the same Motorola line as the G Power) that I've had for 5 years now with no case at all; I've dropped or sat on it probably a hundred times and it's still in one piece and functional. It's finally slowed down enough that I will replace soon, and will probably be deciding between the G Power and the Pixel 4a. Worth noting that the Pixel is likely to receive updates for longer than a Motorola phone will, if that's a concern.
posted by josyphine at 5:31 AM on July 10, 2021 [1 favorite]
As far as durability, my current phone is a Moto G3 (earlier model in the same Motorola line as the G Power) that I've had for 5 years now with no case at all; I've dropped or sat on it probably a hundred times and it's still in one piece and functional. It's finally slowed down enough that I will replace soon, and will probably be deciding between the G Power and the Pixel 4a. Worth noting that the Pixel is likely to receive updates for longer than a Motorola phone will, if that's a concern.
posted by josyphine at 5:31 AM on July 10, 2021 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by dobi at 5:40 PM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]