New cheap-ish mobile

[defblade]

I've had a quick flick back through the last month, and not a lot wiser except for adding the Pixel 3a back onto the list...

My G3 is about 3.5 years old and recently has started shutting down from time to time with "low battery", when the battery hasn't even hit the red (has happened from maybe 40% downwards). Annoying, to say the least.

As you can guess, I'm not exactly a power user - WhatsApp, texts, Google maps, Waze, Strava, Zwift, weather, puzzle games and occasionally even phone calls! I don't take lots of pic, either... never been happy with the low light results on the G3 at parties etc, so improving that would be nice



I don't take lots of pic, either... never been happy with the low light results on the G3 at parties etc, so improving that would be nice (or possibly inevitable as the tech has moved on?)

Drawn to the G8 Power as I don't use it a lot and I like only charging every few days, but it's a chunky lump.

Likely longevity and support quite important, too, as I don't usually chop and change faster than battery failure forces me (previous HTC was nearly 5 years old and the new Chinese replacement battery was no better than the OE it replaced)... the G3 won't run modern Android, so I can't easily sync it with my Windows10 PC; I think this points to the Pixel 3a?



Looking in the £2-300 range, plus or minus.

Also on the list:
Samsung A41 or A51 (I can get a small discount, 15%, on these)
Another version of the G8?
Realme 6 or 6i
Pixel 3a

Not keen on buying into Huawei as it seems politics may eventually come before function there... even if my wife and daughter are both happy with theirs.

Any thoughts/comments/things I've missed?

Thanks in advance!

[Riley Blue]

I had a similar battery problem with my LG K10 2017, the battery's charge would abruptly plummet and the phone switch off. A new battery at less than a tenner cured it.

[ukfan]

The 3A XL is currently on offer from Argos. Great phone for the cash and an amazing camera

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/1246674

The 4A was due out in May but has yet to be released. Rumours say any time between now and October

[nikaiyo2]

iPhone SE?

A touch over budget, but will still be working in 6 years, with full support and security updates, unless you break it.

[manracer]

nikaiyo2 said:

iPhone SE?

A touch over budget, but will still be working in 6 years, with full support and security updates, unless you break it.

Something tells me that someone who shortlists only android handsets aroun 2-300 quid, doesnt want a £400 entry level iphone.

I could be wrong... but....

[The Mad Monk]

Motorola Moto G7 Power?

Most of the Motorola range get good reviews.

I take it you want Android - not Apple?

[Condi]

I've recently bought a Motorola G7 Play (£99) and Samsung S10 (£550), and to be honest the G7 does everything almost as well as the S10. Its a bit slower, the screen isnt as nice, the camera isn't as good, but the huge additional cost of the S10 makes it hard to justify when the G7 runs all the same apps and will do all the same things, maybe just a little slower. Also if I drop the G7 or lose it then its only £99 to replace, whereas to find another £500 is probably an insurance claim.

Having had top of the range smartphones for years, I think that the mid-range or lower end phones these days are more than good enough for the vast majority of people, and the S10 really doesn't do that much more than my old Samsung S7 of 4 years ago. Progress is much more incremental than revolutionary now, unless you want 5G, or a folding phone.

The mid-range Samsung ones are very good phones, but you pay more for the spec compared with a Motorola. The biggest difference between them all is the ergonomics; where the buttons are and where the fingerprint reader is etc. Anything in your price range will be more than capable of running the apps you want.

EDIT - otherwise if you are happy with the phone replacing the battery yourself will cost about £10-£15, or maybe £35/40 for someone else to do it. Not hard to do, just a little fiddly.

Edited by Condi on Friday 10th July 09:25

[stevoknevo]

ukfan said:

The 3A XL is currently on offer from Argos. Great phone for the cash and an amazing camera

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/1246674

The 4A was due out in May but has yet to be released. Rumours say any time between now and October

Same price as the standard 3a too! I'm a big fan of the Pixel software experience (I've got a 2xl) it's fast, sleek and intuitive, camera is fantastic. My mate bought a 3a last week, open box on Ebay, for £240 and he's delighted with it as a) he prefers smaller phones, and b) he's into photography and only needs to take his DSLR out when he wants too now.

[defblade]

manracer said:

nikaiyo2 said:

iPhone SE?

A touch over budget, but will still be working in 6 years, with full support and security updates, unless you break it.

Something tells me that someone who shortlists only android handsets aroun 2-300 quid, doesnt want a £400 entry level iphone.

I could be wrong... but....

The Mad Monk said:

I take it you want Android - not Apple?

It'll be a cold day in Hell before Apple get any of my cash...


The older Motorolas are kinda tempting, but I'm already finding my G3 is stuck with its old OS, so I'd like to be at least on top of the curve a bit buying this one, rather than possibly starting behind it already.

More research suggests that waiting a few weeks might be a good idea - the Pixel 4a due sometime soonish; the OnePlus Nord coming in a couple of weeks, both of which might suit well.



Anyone got the Realme 6i at all?

[Mr-B]

There are quite a few Chinese makes (other than Huawei) that compete strongly in that end of the market, OPPO, Poco, Vivo, Xiaomi, Doogee, etc all decent bang for buck spec wise. Plenty of TY reviews available too if you have never heard of some of them.

[mike9009]

I have recently bought an OPPO Reno for myself and wife.

Seem to tick most boxes for me. Wife prefers it to her Nokia 7.2 for better pictures, screen and battery life.

They seem to get good review too, if that is your measuring stick.

[AJB88]

Get the Pixel.

[A900ss]

I just bought a refurb Samsung A40 for £130.

Looks brand new, no marks in it. Running Android 10 very well. Great screen and not too big in the hand like a lot of phones.

Edited by A900ss on Saturday 11th July 11:31

[defblade]

AJB88 said:

Get the Pixel.

Talking at work today... mentioned possibly replacing the battery in the G3, but (a) doing that didn't make much difference in my last phone and (b) it still won't run up-to-date Android, so I'll still be missing the pairing with Windows 10... I said that if the phone could be connected to W10, I'd already have the back off... which crystallises what I really want out of my phone, which is to be able to some of the latest features... so Android update support becomes the most important issue (given I don't push the boundaries otherwise, and all the cameras are better than mine already).

So the Pixel rises to the top, I think the xl will be fine for me with the argos price mentioned above.

Next choice...

...with the 4a due anytime between May and October (so far....), and the 3a/3a xl technically discontinued, but still widely available, do I grab one now at full price, or wait for the 4a to launch (and maybe buy that is the price is the same) and hope to get a clearance one cheaper... but maybe miss them completely???

Edited by defblade on Saturday 11th July 16:33

[nmd87]

defblade said:

Talking at work today... mentioned possibly replacing the battery in the G3, but (a) doing that didn't make much difference in my last phone and (b) it still won't run up-to-date Android, so I'll still be missing the pairing with Windows 10... I said that if the phone could be connected to W10, I'd already have the back off... which crystallises what I really want out of my phone, which is to be able to some of the latest features... so Android update support becomes the most important issue (given I don't push the boundaries otherwise, and all the cameras are better than mine already).

So the Pixel rises to the top, I think the xl will be fine for me with the argos price mentioned above.

Next choice...

...with the 4a due anytime between May and October (so far....), and the 3a/3a xl technically discontinued, but still widely available, do I grab one now at full price, or wait for the 4a to launch (and maybe buy that is the price is the same) and hope to get a clearance one cheaper... but maybe miss them completely???

Edited by defblade on Saturday 11th July 16:33

329 is already a clearance price for the XL. It was 469 originally and then 399. I know this as I bought the 3a standard edition for 329 for the wife about 7 months ago. I don't think think you'll get a better price on the XL, but who knows.

[AJB88]

I'd get it now while price is low.

[defblade]

nmd87 said:

329 is already a clearance price for the XL. It was 469 originally and then 399. I know this as I bought the 3a standard edition for 329 for the wife about 7 months ago. I don't think think you'll get a better price on the XL, but who knows.

AJB88 said:

I'd get it now while price is low.

Think I'll just wait until Monday - seen in a couple of places that it's the next "possible" 4a announcement date - it's be just my luck to miss the new version by 24 or 48 hours... and then it'd be cheaper, too!

[heisthegaffer]

I have a Samsung S8 which is OK, brilliant camera but battery life is not very good, barely get a day out of without the highest resolution screen being utilised etc so I'll be looking at a Motorola G8 Power when my contract is up due to the massive battery.

Interestingly there was a website comparing older higher end handsets with new mid range and they happened to be testing the S8 and the G8.

G8 won but camera not so good unfortunately. No wireless charging either (not that S8 has either) which is one feature I'd like.

[manracer]

heisthegaffer said:

I have a Samsung S8 which is OK, brilliant camera but battery life is not very good, barely get a day out of without the highest resolution screen being utilised etc so I'll be looking at a Motorola G8 Power when my contract is up due to the massive battery.

Interestingly there was a website comparing older higher end handsets with new mid range and they happened to be testing the S8 and the G8.

G8 won but camera not so good unfortunately. No wireless charging either (not that S8 has either) which is one feature I'd like.

I had a Samsung S8 and it had wireless charging.

The camera was OK during the day but at night it was sub par IMO.

[heisthegaffer]

manracer said:

I had a Samsung S8 and it had wireless charging.

The camera was OK during the day but at night it was sub par IMO.

Ah yes... I think you're right but as the car holder requires a metal plate stuck to the phone, it means I can't use the wireless charging.