My HTC 10 is 2 and a half years old now. I’ve had the battery replaced (and oh, that was an adventure from hell), but the new battery is dying and I have a small but spreading crack in the screen.
My last three phones have been HTCs but this year’s HTC doesn’t thrill me. I’ve heard good things about the Pixel 2, but it doesn’t have a micro SD slot, so I’m looking at the LG G7 ThinQ and the Samsung Galaxy S9.
Thoughts?
Does it have to be a new ‘new’ phone?
I picked up a Sony Xperia Z5 (Premium, big screen thing with dual-SIM) off eBay for a pittance. Sure, it’s not the latest model but it does everything I need it for, and more.
It doesn’t have to be the latest and greatest, but it needs:
MicroSD (I have over 11K songs on my phone)
Good battery life (Pokemon Go is a battery monster)
Good audio quality (11K songs, right?)
Decent amount of RAM (Pokemon Go)
I use my phone primary for Pokemon Go and music.
My old phone finally developed a problem bad enough to consider replacement: the screen was dying, starting with the bottom 30%. This is a problem when typing the unlock password, though I got decent at blind-typing after a bit. I could’ve replaced the screen, but after 2+ years it was time. I need my phone at work, and it was showing its age.
Anyway, I had similar requirements, though for a different game. Old phone was a Galaxy S7, and I really wanted to keep the microSD support. I ended up with a Galaxy S9+. I despise Bixby, but it’s easy to disable. It’s a physically bigger phone, but I don’t mind. So far, battery has been better than expected – surprisingly good.
I got it as a “gently used” model from a phone refurb company. If you’re okay with minor cosmetic blemished, that will save you a couple hundred bucks. I could barely see the one scratch on the back panel, and I always use a case so it’s irrelevant.
Protip: If you do go with a new model, many are USB-C. I got a pack of 10 micro-to-C adapters for $6, so I didn’t have to replace all the cables.
I love my crapple 6s, this thread also interested me because it may be time to leave the apple “safety” net…
I’m happy with my Ph-1. And they keep getting cheaper.
The Ph-1 certainly looks decent and the price is excellent. It doesn’t say if it has a Micro SD slot, though. Does it? (I suspect not, since it’s not mentioned, but I thought I’d ask).
Using a Samsung Galaxy S9+ for Pokemon Go etc. and have zero issues with battery life with mine.
Nope, just 128gb internal. More than I need so I don’t even think about it.
And on the other side of the spectrum - wanting to get a basic phone (something like the Matrix Nokia) but with whatsapp and telegram support.
I don’t use my phone to its full capacity, so may just as well go for a basic something.
The original Pixel XL comes in a 128 GB version, and with the release of the Pixel 3 around the corner is relatively cheap. I snagged a new one the other day, when my previous phone took a dive. Battery life is great, supports aptX for music, and seems to work fine for Pokemon Go (I play a bit).
The PIxel sounds like a really good phone, but 128 GB isn’t enough storage for me, and it doesn’t have a microSD slot. My 128GB microSD card is precariously full, so having only 128 GB for apps and OS just won’t work. 
My Droid is dying a slow, painful (for me) death… And just waiting out the time to upgrade. I plan to get the Pixel 3… My bff has the Pixel XL and loves it, and the 3 looks even better. And just to make things more interesting, I plan to leave Verizon and jump to Google fi, as I will be dropping five unused lines, and Verizon cannot beat the price. Same bff has had Google fi for years and no problems…and since we spend like 80% of our time in the same place (yay work!) I can’t imagine I’d have any issues either. Really just looking forward to the new phone though.
I really wish the Pixel had microSD support. Unfortunately, with over 11,000 songs on my phone (and adding more every time I buy a new album), 128GB isn’t enough to store it. I’ve had the Google streaming option brought up to me, but I’m not willing to pay more for data just so I can stream my own music.
How do iThing fanbois handle it? I mean - they cannot add extra storage space to their favourite iThings… once it is full, you are stuck between a rock and a hard place.
@Nabiki - you may want to take a look at this :
On my old iPad and iPod, I had to be selective. Not all music is equal. So I made playlists called ‘Padworthy’ and ‘Podworthy’. The first was primarily my favorite artists and albums, the second, more a ‘greatest hits’ thing.
Then I’d use auto fill to load as much of the music as would fit on each device. Every so often, long before I could get bored, I’d plug them into the mini and reload a new batch of songs. I was fine with not having everything all the time, but that was probably me just making a virtue out of a necessity.
With my current iPad, it hasn’t been a problem. But I only have 6-7000 songs taking up 65 GB with 40 GB of unused memory available if I go on a music buying spree. @Nabiki not only has more music, I’m sure there are other things she’s not willing to go without taking up memory too. So unless she’s willing to triage her music, she’s going to need another solution.
A lot of Android phones are going that direction too.
Amazon’s deals of the day had a 256 GB microSD card for $51 today. I bought it.
I personally love my Idevice, and have never needed more than 64gb, but i also have only 5 GB of music, so it was a non issue.
I was looking at getting the Iphone Xmax, but the lack of headphone jack is a huge turn off(i listen to 20+ hours a week to books or podcasts).