I want it unlocked with 5g and wireless charging and a Droid.
As cell phones are disposable now a days, I cannot justify spending $1500 on a Samsung S24 Ultra. My current Samsung is 3 years old and has issues, the charger falls out and of course needs a new battery. I look at reviews online and what worries me is everyone has the exact same phones listed as the best and all are $600 or more. I’m not a CTer but it seems … odd.
According to the reviews I should buy a Google Pixel 9 but I have never considered the Google phones as serious. What am I missing?
They’re pretty much commodities these days. Unless you have specific requirements regarding the camera, display, or processor, it doesn’t really matter. Just get whatever is on sale with your carrier (maybe wait till Black Friday ish), or find something on eBay/Craigslist/Facebook Marketplace.
The Pixels are great, for what it’s worth, primarily because of their first-party support from Google. No third-party bloatware (though of course it has Google’s own bloatware, like the incessant AI nags). The spam blocking on Pixels is really nice (filters both SMS and calls), especially during election season. Been a Pixel user for a decade, and the Nexus before that, and have been happy with them. They can be cheap from time to time, if you go with older generations or sign up for a Google Fi plan (Google’s own wireless service; they are a MVNO on top of T-Mobile). They also go on sale from other carriers from time to time. There’s no reason to get a 9 in particular if an 8 or 7 is available cheaper. The 7a is available from Google for $499, for example, or Best Buy has a good selection of 7s, including both refurbished and open-box ones for less money.
But it doesn’t really matter. We’ve long since passed the point where phones are are that different from each other. Most people probably couldn’t tell the difference between any two semi-recent Android phones of the last five years or so.
PS most batteries can be replaced at a cell phone store for like $80, and as for charging, you sure it’s not the cable? They wear out over time. And if you have wireless charging anyway, why not just use that?
I’m not sure what you are missing. The Google Pixel series has regularly ranked among the top flagship phones with usually only Samsung and Apple eclipsing them (and not even always then).
Google also has regular sales and will often throw freebies in like Pixel Buds (headphones). When I got my Pixel 8 they sent me a free Google watch which I sold immediately for $300. After trade-ins and what-not my phone cost around $350.
I checked with Google and it seems they do not want a Samsung A32 as a trade-in so that sucks.
I love my Pixel. Google does a lot of little things really well. Automatic call screening, auto call and text blocking (some little still gets through but very little), it will hold for you while you wait for support (you hear nothing, see a text readout of what is being said and the phone rings when a live person finally answers…love it soooo much). Very good camera (some others are better but this is near the top). Updates are frequent and near immediate after they roll out.
I would not call them “low cost” though unless you are getting a much older model or get a great sale with some perks like I did.
The Galaxy A15 5G is $179 on Amazon.
Storage 128gb
It comes with Android 13 and is unlocked
The S22 is $90 I wouldn’t go that cheap. Theres not much internal storage. You’ll have limitations installing a few Apps. 16GB is the bare minimum for Android 10 and up.
All Fi phones come unlocked as soon as you get them, so you can switch to another carrier the same day you receive it, if you want. And the Fi plan isn’t a “contract” per se… the phone is on an installment plan, and you get the cost of it back as monthly credit over 24 months. Meaning if you stay with Fi for 24 months, it’s totally free (aside from the cost of your plan, which is also very affordable and pretty excellent). If you leave before 24 months, you just have to pay the difference in monthly credits. But there’s no other penalty for leaving early. It’s not a contract like with other carriers.
Edit: I don’t know if you ever use the Samsung apps (which I consider bloatware, personally, but maybe some people find them useful). The Pixel phones obviously don’t have Samsung stuff on them, so if you use any of their apps, you’ll have to find an alternative.
Edit 2: There’s also a bunch of deals and trade-ins on the Google Store page (which is Google’s non-Fi store, meaning you don’t have to switch carriers): https://store.google.com/category/phones?hl=en-US
When I needed to replace my last phone (about 6 months ago, a Galaxy S10+), I went looking on Amazon and found a Galaxy S21+, Amazon guaranteed renewed, for $280. Recently my wife started talking about getting a new phone, the S21+ Ultra (Amazon renewed) is right at what I paid for my S21+. The plain S21+ is going for about $215 right now. I’ve bought a few phones from Amazon this way, have been pleased every time.
Currently I do not see a Pixel Pro XL (the comparable phone) for less than $1,099. The Samsung seems the better choice and, if you have liked Samsung, then great…I am sure you would love the S24+.
My BiL has one and I will take my Pixel over it any day. Maybe the Samsung looks better on paper (faster charging, better camera) but I never see that in the real world. They both do very well even if one is better. Like I said, it is all the little things Google does that adds up and they just do it better. Especially frequent updates (all Google Pixel phones get the latest Android updates as soon as they are released…you might wait months for Samsung to get it to you).
Bottom line though…they are flagship phones and I think you’d be happy with any of them. Samsung is a world leader here for a reason.
To get useful advice you really need to provide more information on how much you use the phone and what you use it for. For example your current phone how many GB does it have and how much of that are you using? One person might be using very little and another person might have a phone filled with photos.
I’ve been using MotoG phones in the $200+ range for years and been happy. I’m not a heavy phone user. The MotoG’s are fast enough and have good enough battery life for my needs.
The best way to explain my needs is I need a phone. That’s it but I need the requirements I listed above
Wireless charging - I don’t have that currently
New battery - I know I can replace mine but I think I need an overall upgrade
More storage - I’m maxing out my 64GB
Pictures - This I’m exploring. I need a camera for when the granddaughter and dogs do something cute or in an emergency but I’m seriously thinking of getting a digital camera for vacations to get better pictures AND not be that idiot that drops their phone off a bridge. tl;dr I need a servicable camera but not a top-end James Webb level camera.
The S24+ is the top end of what I want and need. If I could justify the cost I’d but it right now, but $950 for a phone that will be thrown away in 3 years?
Is there a reason why you need the latest greatest model (e,g, Pixel 9)? A Pixel 6 has wireless charging and is $300 on amazon. If you get refurbished it’s even less.
My current phone is a pixel 5 – it doesn’t have wireless charging, and the camera isn’t quite as good as the newest models, but it’s actually pretty darn good (I got surprisingly good pics of the comet this week!) and I’m very happy with it.
Ports sometimes get clogged with lint. I have repaired 3 “broken” phones by using a sewing needle to loosen and then remove the lint jammed into the charging port. You don’t need to be especially gentle, either, although of course you don’t want to actually break the piece that sticks up.
The pixel 5 has wireless charging. (There were variants that didn’t, but the plain old 5 did.) I just replaced my pixel 5 with a pixel 9, because the battery was getting long in the tooth, the screen was cracked, the on/off button fell out, and it is no longer supported by routine security updates. But i loved that phone. An enormously better fingerprint reader than the 9 has. Smaller than most of what’s on the market. Wireless charging. Waterproof (when new, with an intact screen). Decent (not super, but completely decent) camera. Just an overall terrific phone.
I wouldn’t buy a phone so old that it’s not supported, though.
Oh, man, I miss those SO much. The in-screen readers are TERRIBLE. I would so love love love a basic Pixel phone with a good old-school fingerprint reader in the back and no unnecessary glass black (who thought THAT was a good idea?!).
In my experience (S23 Ultra and a couple of late model new cars), the wireless charging is sluggish at best. Something that’s decent enough if you’re making a long drive and are passively charging it as you drive.
But it’s too slow if you’re trying to get your phone significantly charged before doing something else.
I don’t but I have a current Samsung so I’ve started there and said, “To get what I want, what would it cost?” to get a baseline. So now I know the max to spend.
I’m buying new, no refurbs.
First thing I checked. From what I hear and with my last phone, the charging port is a weak spot on modern phones.
Almost all charging would be via cable but in our two cars, wireless is sooooooo convenient.
Oh crap I forgot that requirement
Fingerprint/Biometric reader.
And there are a bunch of only-semi-compatible wireless quick charger standards It’s even worse than the USB-C mess. You never know if a specific combination of wireless charger + phone is going to be able to charge the phone quickly enough even just to keep it from draining while idle, much less for a quick charge for immediate use
Ugh. I ended up having the best luck using Apple MagSafe chargers with my Pixel, strangely enough. They at least eventually fill the battery over a long enough drive…
It’s even worse than the USB-C mess. You never know if a specific combination of wireless charger + phone is going to be able to charge the phone quickly enough even just to keep it from draining while idle, much less for a quick charge for immediate use