I’m sick & tired of getting replacement/refurbished phones that don’t work. Instead of going for my third in about a month, I think I’m just going to buy a new phone.
Criteria:
[ul]
[li]Must: Be an Android phone. I will never own a crApple product & I don’t think the windows phones have reached critical mass to have enough selection of apps.[/li][li]Must: Be on T-mobile or Verizon. Other carriers don’t have enough coverage in my area.[/li][li]Strong preference: Removable/replaceable battery. I’ve had bad luck with an external battery pack (like a Morphie) on the go. The cable always seems to become disconnected in my pocket; therefore, I find it easier to just carry a spare battery that I can swap in if/when necessary.[/li][li]Low priority: Color - it’s going to be in a (kickstand) case anyway.[/li][/ul]
What do you recommend that I look at?
I was thinking one of the Google Nexus phones as they both get software updates quickly & aren’t loaded with a lot of non-removable bloatware (I’m looking at you Samsung) Anyone have any experience with them?
The Nexus phones would be a good choice. I’d also recommend the Moto X Pure. It’s almost pure Android (just a couple of useful Moto apps, and absolutely no carrier bloatware), latest version of Android, and uses SD cards. If you can wait a bit, the Moto Z has accessories that snap magnetically to the back of the phone, one of the items is a battery. But it wouldn’t have the cord hassles of an external battery, there are contacts on the back of the phone. Looks interesting.
The Nexus 6P is supposed to be very good. I’m hoping my current phone lasts until the next Nexus phones are released, if not I’ll probably get the 6P. The HTC M10 is also supposed to be good. Can both be used on Verizon.
I had a Nexus 4 for 3 years and just upgraded to a Nexus 5x. I really enjoy the Nexus line. The only issue you might have is that they don’t have a battery that is designed to be removable.
I got the Samsung S7 and I wish I’d waited for the next Nexus. My partner always gets a Nexus, and vanilla Android seems a superior user experience than the skinned versions. My previous phone was an HTC and it wasn’t as bad, but now I’m back on Samsung, I remember how much I loathe TouchWiz.
I’ve been using HTC phones all the way back to the G1, and always loved them. Sometimes I’ve liked the T-Mobile skins, sometimes not, but it doesn’t matter because I always install the Nova launcher to replace it. They don’t currently have replaceable batteries, which bothers me in theory, but it hasn’t turned out to be a problem.
I have a nexus 6P and love it. It performs well and has everything you are looking for except the removable battery. It seems that new phones are moving away from them.
The LG G5 has a replaceable battery, as well as the modular accessories gimmick–that gimmick didn’t seem to really take off, so I wouldn’t expect too much more beyond the camera that’s already out there.
It seems to be just fine as a top-end 2016 smartphone from everything I looked at.
Since I have mostly had HTC phones, I ended up going with the HTC 10–it is very close to stock out of the gate, if you care about that (to the point where I saw people on HTC forums complaining because various HTC apps were dropped out of the 10 because HTC decided to stop spending effort duplicating apps that already came with Google)
Another vote for the NExus…especially the 5s version on Project Fi by Google. If you sign for their service (actually runs on Tmobile and Sprint), you can get one for $199. The Project Fi service is getting a lot of excellent reviews for the features, fair price and simplicity.
For example, they charge you for data overusage at exactly the same /MB rate that they return to you for under usage.
I used this when I picked out my new phone (I got a G4 and LOVE it) and I thought the reviews were excellent. Easy to read, and they go into the technical things for the tech-o-philes, but they also say what’s good about it from a practicality standpoint and it made it easier for me to find out which phone was perfect for me.
I have a Nexus 6P and I really like it. It will work on EITHER Verizon or T-Mobile. It has good battery life, runs Stock Android and is at the top of the list for the latest updates. The camera is really nice and it is amazingly fast too.
I have the Nexus 6p and like it a lot. It’s so nice not having to wait 2 years for Verizon to update something. That said, wait for the Nexus refresh later this year before you buy one. Only gripe is no removable battery, but the Type-C quick charger charges it really fast (but you’ll need new chargers and cords).
I might upgrade when the new generation comes out, mainly because I want something smaller (I have tiny hands). I’d sell you the 6p if you want a lightly used one then.
I have a 6P on Verizon. It is exceedingly cool, and works as well as a Verizon-branded phone on Verizon’s networks.
The only minor annoyance is getting the Verizon network nanoSIM and activating the phone on the network, but that was just a 20-minute stop at the closest Verizon store (not authorized reseller, who either can’t or won’t).
You should give more detailed preferences/requirements if you want more specific recommendations. The best piece of info you could give would be how much money you want to spend. Next, size would seem to be an important preference to know - some people want a big phone, some people want a small phone, and some want something in between.
Assuming you want a good, cheap, big phone, just get this for $179 and be done with it: Robot or human? (works with a regular Tmobile SIM card with no futzing around, right out of the box)