Discussion
dontlookdown said:
If you're happy with the phone you have apart from the battery life, get a new battery fitted at one of those high street phone shops and off you go. Rarely more than 100 quid IME and quite probably less.
Yeah, that's an option I was considering, but it feels really unnatural as there's never not been an obviously better option. Obviously now I've been looking I'd like a shiny new thing. The other thing is if I do that it'll cost me £100 now and keeping it another two years will mean losing the next Android Update, possibly two, and the trade-in value will be much lower as well, so the cost to change will be much higher at that point.
It feels like I'm missing something, there should be a really obvious upgrade for me otherwise how will Samsung continue to make money from me?
paulrockliffe said:
It feels like I'm missing something, there should be a really obvious upgrade for me otherwise how will Samsung continue to make money from me?
A couple of months ago, for the first time in almost 20 years, I've kept my phone and not upgraded when my contract was up. I'm not going to bother going from an S21U to an S23U, because I don't see it as that much of a change now. If they put the S21/22/23U camera on the upcoming Fold5, then I suspect I will get one of the those. But if they don't, I will stick with my S21U.
snuffy said:
A couple of months ago, for the first time in almost 20 years, I've kept my phone and not upgraded when my contract was up. I'm not going to bother going from an S21U to an S23U, because I don't see it as that much of a change now.
If they put the S21/22/23U camera on the upcoming Fold5, then I suspect I will get one of the those. But if they don't, I will stick with my S21U.
Maybe that's what I'm missing, I'm supposed to 'upgrade' to one of their folders, which I admit I haven't looked at as I can't see a single reason why I would want to fold my phone in half.If they put the S21/22/23U camera on the upcoming Fold5, then I suspect I will get one of the those. But if they don't, I will stick with my S21U.
paulrockliffe said:
snuffy said:
A couple of months ago, for the first time in almost 20 years, I've kept my phone and not upgraded when my contract was up. I'm not going to bother going from an S21U to an S23U, because I don't see it as that much of a change now.
If they put the S21/22/23U camera on the upcoming Fold5, then I suspect I will get one of the those. But if they don't, I will stick with my S21U.
Maybe that's what I'm missing, I'm supposed to 'upgrade' to one of their folders, which I admit I haven't looked at as I can't see a single reason why I would want to fold my phone in half.If they put the S21/22/23U camera on the upcoming Fold5, then I suspect I will get one of the those. But if they don't, I will stick with my S21U.
paulrockliffe said:
dontlookdown said:
If you're happy with the phone you have apart from the battery life, get a new battery fitted at one of those high street phone shops and off you go. Rarely more than 100 quid IME and quite probably less.
Yeah, that's an option I was considering, but it feels really unnatural as there's never not been an obviously better option. Obviously now I've been looking I'd like a shiny new thing. The other thing is if I do that it'll cost me £100 now and keeping it another two years will mean losing the next Android Update, possibly two, and the trade-in value will be much lower as well, so the cost to change will be much higher at that point.
It feels like I'm missing something, there should be a really obvious upgrade for me otherwise how will Samsung continue to make money from me?
dontlookdown said:
That's exactly where I got to last autumn. And why I changed from Samsung (loyal customer for 10yrs) to a Pixel 6a for 300 quid. It's a bit chunky but great value apart from that.
I went from a S21 Ultra to a Pixel 7 and find it oddly buggy. Apps crash and some things don't seem to work every now and then. Odd for a pure Android phone. Think an updates just been announced though that'll hopefully sort those out.I did briefly consider other options, but apart from Samsung's insistence on rewriting perfectly good apps, calling them the same thing and forcing them on you, and Bixby, the Samsung setup is really really good. Especially if you have their watch, tablet and ear buds already. I'm pretty sure I would miss all the little integrations and bespoke things that Samsung have added in.
I got my wife an S21 last week, it was £300 on eBay. I think that's a better option than moving away from Samsung. I was leaning that way but couldn't find the S21+ for less than £500, which is far too big a price disparity when it's not really any better than what I have and when the S23 Ultra isn't a huge amount more because of the trade-in and the ability to pay monthly and never notice the cost.
I think my options are the S23 Ultra and keep it for 3 years or the S21 and keep it until the S25 comes out. I need to go and hold an S23U I think, I'd probably have bought one now if I wasn't worried about the increased thickness annoying me.
I got my wife an S21 last week, it was £300 on eBay. I think that's a better option than moving away from Samsung. I was leaning that way but couldn't find the S21+ for less than £500, which is far too big a price disparity when it's not really any better than what I have and when the S23 Ultra isn't a huge amount more because of the trade-in and the ability to pay monthly and never notice the cost.
I think my options are the S23 Ultra and keep it for 3 years or the S21 and keep it until the S25 comes out. I need to go and hold an S23U I think, I'd probably have bought one now if I wasn't worried about the increased thickness annoying me.
Luke. said:
I went from a S21 Ultra to a Pixel 7 and find it oddly buggy. Apps crash and some things don't seem to work every now and then. Odd for a pure Android phone. Think an updates just been announced though that'll hopefully sort those out.
The Pixel phones do have a bit of a rep for that, but touch wood mine has been fine so far. The lacko of bloaty apps you can't uninstall is a welcome change and although the hardware is definitely a notch or two behind the flagship Samsungs, so is the price. Just got a 512gb S23 Ultra down Cash Converters to replace a P30 Pro.
The one and only reason I got it was because of the camera. The P30's was dogs
t.
I don't like the shape. The sharpness of the bottom edges is extremely unergonomic. Battery life is worse than the P30, but that was expected.
It seems we're still a few generations away from a phone camera fully replacing a proper one, but it's a vast improvement.
I'm undecided as to whether it's worth having so much money tied up in one function so far. If the P30 camera was any good I wouldn't have given replacing it the slightest consideration.
I may send it back and lump it for now. Other than pics there is absolutely zilch it improves on for my uses. A very nice slab of electronics all the same though.
The one and only reason I got it was because of the camera. The P30's was dogs
t. I don't like the shape. The sharpness of the bottom edges is extremely unergonomic. Battery life is worse than the P30, but that was expected.
It seems we're still a few generations away from a phone camera fully replacing a proper one, but it's a vast improvement.
I'm undecided as to whether it's worth having so much money tied up in one function so far. If the P30 camera was any good I wouldn't have given replacing it the slightest consideration.
I may send it back and lump it for now. Other than pics there is absolutely zilch it improves on for my uses. A very nice slab of electronics all the same though.
the-norseman said:
simonwhite2000 said:
Did anyone get the promo code from Samsung offering 150 off the s23 Ultra and did not use it? Would appreciate one so I can get my dad the best price. At 74 years old he wants an S23 Ultra !!!
S23SAVE is a Samsung code on their own website. My indecision has cost me, after going the longest time ever without smashing my phone screen it fell out of my pocket this morning and has a smallish crack in the top corner. I suppose at least it wasn't a new phone!
Anyway, I reran the numbers and my £290 trade-in is now £195, but they'll take any cracked Samsung for £150, so I might as well send them my old S8 which is properly muntered front and back. I sent that one to Mazuma mobile after they offered me a tenner or something ridiculous for it, but they sent it back because it was only 128Gb rather than 256Gb, like that makes a difference on a £10 phone that's smashed to bits!
Worth bearing in mind if you have a trade-in, even at £290 it might have been worth eBaying my S20+ and trading in some junk instead.
Anyway, I reran the numbers and my £290 trade-in is now £195, but they'll take any cracked Samsung for £150, so I might as well send them my old S8 which is properly muntered front and back. I sent that one to Mazuma mobile after they offered me a tenner or something ridiculous for it, but they sent it back because it was only 128Gb rather than 256Gb, like that makes a difference on a £10 phone that's smashed to bits!
Worth bearing in mind if you have a trade-in, even at £290 it might have been worth eBaying my S20+ and trading in some junk instead.
snuffy said:
A couple of months ago, for the first time in almost 20 years, I've kept my phone and not upgraded when my contract was up. I'm not going to bother going from an S21U to an S23U, because I don't see it as that much of a change now.
If they put the S21/22/23U camera on the upcoming Fold5, then I suspect I will get one of the those. But if they don't, I will stick with my S21U.
Cathartic If they put the S21/22/23U camera on the upcoming Fold5, then I suspect I will get one of the those. But if they don't, I will stick with my S21U.
I fortunately never really had upgraditis on phones. I typically run them until they stop.
Currently have a Note 10+ 5G. It's a bit scuffed on the corners, and the battery life is diminishing (though I think this may be largely down to some Cisco VPN s/w on it). It's had a couple of glass case backs (don't buy non-OE ones), but as a phone it's still as good as it always was. I see little to no reason to upgrade it. Especially not with new phones running to £1k.
I wanted to get my son an S21 to replace his S10 for when he goes travelling next week. The choice was to either get him a refurbed one or to upgrade my contract S21 and give him that. The latter was cheaper option so I did that.
My new S23 arrived today and one thing I immediately liked about it was the form factor; slightly smaller than the S21 if not as small as my previous S10. A step in the right direction for me, anyway.
The second thing I've noticed is the quality of the camera - I've just taken a few low light shots at home and the camera's ability to cope is a major improvement.
It's also a bit quicker than the S21, And I was able to go for 256Gb rather than 128Gb which might come in handy. Plus the battery life should be significantly better.
I'm not that bothered about phones in the big scheme of things and would never normally bother getting the latest phone but for the cost of getting a s/h S21 for my son, I'm happy I've gone for an upgrade to the S23.
ETA; the facial recognition is far better in poor light and the fingerprint recognition is better (although that may be due to a better screen protector).
Anyway, FWIW, I'm pleasantly surprised about how much better it is than the S21. Having read the reviews I wasn't expecting much although maybe they were comparing the S23 with the S22.
Finally, there's the ease of being able to easily copy an image of my S21 over the the S23. For someone not really interested in phone tech and more interested in ease of use that's a big plus for me.
My new S23 arrived today and one thing I immediately liked about it was the form factor; slightly smaller than the S21 if not as small as my previous S10. A step in the right direction for me, anyway.
The second thing I've noticed is the quality of the camera - I've just taken a few low light shots at home and the camera's ability to cope is a major improvement.
It's also a bit quicker than the S21, And I was able to go for 256Gb rather than 128Gb which might come in handy. Plus the battery life should be significantly better.
I'm not that bothered about phones in the big scheme of things and would never normally bother getting the latest phone but for the cost of getting a s/h S21 for my son, I'm happy I've gone for an upgrade to the S23.
ETA; the facial recognition is far better in poor light and the fingerprint recognition is better (although that may be due to a better screen protector).
Anyway, FWIW, I'm pleasantly surprised about how much better it is than the S21. Having read the reviews I wasn't expecting much although maybe they were comparing the S23 with the S22.
Finally, there's the ease of being able to easily copy an image of my S21 over the the S23. For someone not really interested in phone tech and more interested in ease of use that's a big plus for me.
Edited by AC43 on Wednesday 15th March 08:40
paulrockliffe said:
Maybe that's what I'm missing, I'm supposed to 'upgrade' to one of their folders, which I admit I haven't looked at as I can't see a single reason why I would want to fold my phone in half.
It's the otherway round, why wouldn't want the ability to turn your phone into a tablet pretty much any where any time. Had the Fold 4 for just 6 months, and every time I pick my wifes Note 20 it feels its 2007, and picking up my old Treo 650 after playing around with the iPhone!
The Fold 4 has totally changed my ability to work pretty much any where any time, without having to carry around the laptop. I'll be upgrading to the Fold 5/6 etc.
gangzoom said:
paulrockliffe said:
Maybe that's what I'm missing, I'm supposed to 'upgrade' to one of their folders, which I admit I haven't looked at as I can't see a single reason why I would want to fold my phone in half.
It's the otherway round, why wouldn't want the ability to turn your phone into a tablet pretty much any where any time. Had the Fold 4 for just 6 months, and every time I pick my wifes Note 20 it feels its 2007, and picking up my old Treo 650 after playing around with the iPhone!
The Fold 4 has totally changed my ability to work pretty much any where any time, without having to carry around the laptop. I'll be upgrading to the Fold 5/6 etc.
justin220 said:
gangzoom said:
paulrockliffe said:
Maybe that's what I'm missing, I'm supposed to 'upgrade' to one of their folders, which I admit I haven't looked at as I can't see a single reason why I would want to fold my phone in half.
It's the otherway round, why wouldn't want the ability to turn your phone into a tablet pretty much any where any time. Had the Fold 4 for just 6 months, and every time I pick my wifes Note 20 it feels its 2007, and picking up my old Treo 650 after playing around with the iPhone!
The Fold 4 has totally changed my ability to work pretty much any where any time, without having to carry around the laptop. I'll be upgrading to the Fold 5/6 etc.
I can see that others would have different lifestyles where it makes more sense, but for me the bar is pretty high for me to consider compromising on a phone that is double the thickness as a phone and the wrong aspect ratio as a tablet. The Tab s8 Ultra is a proper work of art too.
Anyway I ordered the S23U in the end and just s
t myself because the confirmation email says, "Welcome to Your New Fold". Christ.After much deliberation about phones over the last year or so I finally took the plunge and bought an S23 256gb in Graphite.
I spent more than I imagined (and wanted) on a phone. But looking at the current line up of phones they really don't cut it in terms of what i'm after. The S23 has a few shortcomings but seems like the best compromise for me.
I spent more than I imagined (and wanted) on a phone. But looking at the current line up of phones they really don't cut it in terms of what i'm after. The S23 has a few shortcomings but seems like the best compromise for me.
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