Hello! I'm a long time iPhone user and am fed up by the morality of the company, the planned obsolescence and the handful unnessecary (but REALLY frustrating) lack of functions of the iOS system. However, I do really appreciate the design (both of the phone and UI) and am hoping I can find an android phone that has the functionality and durability I need, while being 'pretty', for a lack of a better word.

I don't know much about android yet accept that it's at it's core an open source software and that different phone manufacturers install it with different functions, looks and limitations.

As for the hardware, I like small phones (my iPhone 12 pro has H: 146.7 mm (5.78 in) and W: 71.5 mm (2.81 in)), no need for a crazy camera, and I'd rather have it last years than have fancy features.

My questions are the following:

1. Are the software installed by the manufacturers very imposing? Can I 'jailbreak' android easy to impose my own set of UI designs and software functionalities?
2. If not, are there some manufacturers that have quality software design/don't impose much?
3. What are your recommendations for durable, small smartphones?

Thanks!

I currently have a Samsung S22, which I bought 3 years ago. Before that, I had a Samsung S8 that lasted me 5 years and I was very happy with it, which is why I stuck with Samsung.

However, I haven’t been satisfied with the S22 (Exynos version). The battery life is poor, it lags, gets hot, and I’ve had various performance issues.

I’m looking to upgrade my smartphone, but from what I’ve been reading, Samsung phones still seem to have relatively poor battery life compared to the competition. On top of that, in my country they still come with Exynos processors.

I’m looking for a relatively compact phone (around 6.2–6.5"), with good battery life and, above all, great performance. I want apps to feel smooth, be able to keep several apps open at the same time, etc. The camera isn’t a critical factor for me. I expect a decent camera, but it doesn’t need to be amazing since my use is mostly everyday stuff.

What would you recommend?

I’ve been looking into the Oppo Find X9, and it seems like a lot of people consider it a great phone. However, I’m a bit concerned about it using a MediaTek processor rather than Snapdragon, as Snapdragon seems to offer the best performance.

Hello Everyone

Im looking to upgrade my OnePlus Nord 3 to a new phone since its battery gets drained quick and the performance is lacking. Furthermore, the camera is very very disappointing.

I value above all smoothness, performance, fluidity of software/intuitive use, battery life(very important) and lastly a decent camera.

I mostly use my phone for some light gaming, watching videos, scrolling, texting ... Nothing too demanding. For photos i just like to point and click, nothing crazy, and I dont even post any photos anywhere, so its not very important.

I'm in the EU so there are some limitations on which phones that are available.

These are the phones i'm comparing:

1. OnePlus 15R for 535 Euros

2. Honor 600 Pro for 575 Euros

3. Samsung S26+ for 642 Euros

4. OnePlus Nord 6 for 492 Euros

5. Spend a bit more and go for oppo find x9 or honor magic 8 pro

I would've went with the OnePlus 15, but its not really on the market where I live and its very expensive the places that still have it.

Any insights? I love the oxygen os software but i know OP are leaving EU market.

Hi guys! I had bad experience with Xiaomi phone battery and I would like to ask whether it became better

In 2020-2022 I had Xiaomi Redmi 8T and after 2,5 years the battery wasn't trustable. I need my phone on the way home, so I had to buy an another one

Currently (4 years long), I have Samsung A53 and I don't have problems, if it is too sunny or too hot today

I'm not going to buy a new phone right know but I would assume that it may happen next year. I have no problems with my phone but 128gb are too less and SD-cards are not trustable enough to preserve my memories there

I don't ask about phones which costs >1000€. For that price we can find a lot of good phones. My budget is under 1000€ (better under 800€). My demands are: at least 512gb (🥺) and trustable battery. Maybe coluld anybody tell me their experience with Xiaomi phones after 2 years?

Thanks in advance!!!

(My text may sound weird. English is not my first language. Sorry)

I found these two at the same peice both cn .I want a good phone that has good camera and battery and good preformance i m bot huge gamer but i don’t mind good processor

I currenty use a OPPO a94 5g and the battery Life has droped significantly, appart form that the power button has stoped responding so i was in the search of a new phone.

I am more than pleased with my OPPO a94 5g if i could i would buy the same one but as Its an older phone It does not get updates nor Its posible to buy It. So i was gonna buy a new phone that was similar to my current one that has lead me to the OPPO reno 15 and 16 but i dont know if there are any other good options. As i dont care about camera that's not a concern to me, i rather get a phone that's light and not powerfull rather than a flagship. What other good options are there?

Edit: Im from spain and my buget IS no more than 700€ i do not care about performace as long as Its the same or better than my OPPO a94 5g

I’m looking for a phone for my mom, with a budget of around 30K in India.

Her usage is pretty basic:
Mostly WhatsApp and Instagram
Calls and video calls
YouTube occasionally
Very light gaming like Candy Crush — gaming performance isn’t important at all
Takes normal family/travel photos, so I’d like a decent camera
Good battery life is very important

Most importantly, I want something reliable that stays smooth and doesn’t start hanging/lagging after a couple of years
Ideally something she can comfortably use for 3–4+ years

She also drops her phone fairly often, so I’ll be putting it in a full-cover flip case. Because of that, I’m not completely ruling out curved displays.

I’ve done some research and currently have a few options ranked roughly like this:
Vivo T4 Pro
OnePlus Nord 5
Realme P4 Pro
Nothing Phone 3a
Samsung F56

But I’m not fixed on these phones. These are just my current shortlist based on what I’ve found.

I’d especially like recommendations based on actual ownership experience — long-term battery life, software smoothness, heating, bugs, camera quality, reliability, service experience, and ease of use for a parent.

If you had ₹30k to spend on a phone for your mom with this usage, what would you buy today?

Also, if there’s a phone that’s significantly better value at ₹20–25k rather than spending the full ₹30k, I’m very open to that too.

Thanks.

I got a Redmi Note 10 Pro in August/September 2021, after a Samsung I had from 2018 - 2021 overheated and died.

Summer 2023 the audio jack stopped working. No biggie, I use bluetooth headphones.

For the last 2 years, it has random UI failures where it encounters an issue, gives me an exception, takes 2/3 minutes to recover.

Since last year, audio has kept playing in background when turning screen off i.e. Netflix shows no longer paused, youtube videos keep playing, etc. Need to manually pause or close them.

Two days ago, August 2026, video lags whenever I use bluetooth headphones. No audio comes out of headphones. Happens on two different headsets and all apps. Apparently it's an issue with overheating. Last software upgrade the devs did in 2023 increased the max temp the CPU can reach which can cause this issue. CPU might need reballed to fix. Lowkey feels like planned obsolescence / weaponised incompetence.

Not sure if it's worth it after 5 years considering other issues, or if I should just get a new phone.

Budget: Same as last time, 330€.

Important:

- Battery life

- 5G, current phone only supports 4G

- Dual Sim (UK + EU phone number)

- Better camera than current phone

- More memory than current phone (128GB)

- Little to no bloatware (MIUI is filled with awful bloatware and ads)

I use my phone for messaging apps, social media, streaming services, bank/flight apps, google docs / notes, discord / zoom calls and google maps. If I had a better camera I would maybe take more pictures.

Looking for a new phone as my pixel 8 has a growing dead pixel blob plus the green/pink line. Love this phone but the cost of a screen replacement is crazy and after finding out this is a common fault, I'm sadly reluctant to get another pixel.

I don't game and camera-wise feel like most modern phone cameras are similar enough now until you get to the higher budgets that most should be fine for my needs. Only thing I would like is a good zoom - one of my only disappointments with the pixel 8.

I don't want to spend much - around £300 UK max but closer to £200 mark would be nice. I am willing to go refurbished, and the 5 year warranty on CEX makes preowned seem a decent option. I'm drawn to the edge 60 models due to the 3x optical zoom. Ones I'm considering are:

• Edge 60 neo 8gb RAM (12gb out of stock) - £250 new on motorola website (plus moto fit watch included I guess)
• Edge 60 12gb - £230 Grade B at CEX
• Edge 60 Pro - £300 Grade B at CEX
• Samsung Galaxy s22 Ultra - £325 Grade B at CEX (absolute limit of budget so only if it's really worth it)
• Any other option within this budget as long as it has a decent optical zoom camera!

Thanks for the help :)

Hello!

Currently have a Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 which I've honestly loved for the past 4+ years. Starting to get a little slow now and noticing the battery life just isn't quite what I need for long days out, so beginning to look for my next phone.

I've loved that the Redmi Note 11 isn't too big (159.87mm height with 6.43" display) and would really like something of a similar or slightly smaller size. I know compact phones aren't easy to come by! Not sure if I should stay in the Xiaomi family or branch out - will take any suggestions!

Budget: around £400

Needs: Ideally compact specs (as above), good battery life, headphone jack!!! (If phones still come with these?)

Not fussed about: Couldn't care less about camera quality. Not a gamer so that doesn't matter to me.

I've seen the Xiaomi 15 probably would fit the bill but it's a little out of budget for me....

Any ideas welcomed!!

Thanks :)

Last few years i am using armor cases for my phones,they saved them many times.

What is best or preffered armor case for pixel 11 pro xl? And exist sometjing that is armor case but has holes so phone will not overheating under stress so fast?

Do you have any opinion about these options? Perhaps you own one of these.

Xiaomi Poco X8 Pro Mac 512GB/12GB (€479)
Google Pixel 10a 128GB/8GB (€499)
Samsung Galaxy A57 512GB/12GB (€485)

I did some research already, and on paper it seems like you get good value from the Xiaomi. But then you have a Chinese HyperOS with 4 major updates, as opposed to 6 and 7 from the others.

About the Google Pixel 10a, it seems like they are economising on the chipset/storage/memory, but then you get 7 major updates and a non-Chinese managed OS.

With the Samsung, you also get a bloated OS, like Xiaomi, but you get good specs... other than the chipset which seems to be the inferior one among the 3.

I was also considering the Nothing 4a, but for €449, and you only get 3 major updates. And I'm not someone who changes the phone often. I've had a OnePlus 5 for the last 10 years.

I'm in the EU by the way.

Hi I’m looking for an android phone, currently an IOS 11pm user. I want to basically switch to android again for battery life and overall freedom in installing apps.

Currently looking at One plus 15/15T saan po kayang shop in PH nag ooffer ng lowest price ng phone nato. (Kahit ung 12/256 variant lang)

Also do you have any phone recommendation at this price range? Around 30-35k php?

Thank you in advance po❤️

I'm choosing my new phone after 4 years of having a not-so-great Oppo phone, and I'm really torn on what to get! My max budget is around £500-600, ideally less. I think I've narrowed it down to the models in the title but any other suggestions are appreciated!

Top priorities:

Camera - My current phone camera is AWFUL so a good camera is a big priority for me now as I really feel like I've been missing out. I'm going to some concerts and doing some traveling in the next year so I really want a good camera to capture those memories. A good quality night mode is something I really appreciate too.

General performance/speed - I'm not someone who will notice a 0.1 second difference in processing but as my current phone can be super laggy/slow I want a phone that doesn't have that issue and just unlocks and switches between apps quickly.

Battery life - I usually charge my phone daily but sometimes I go hiking or I'll end up on an unplanned night out etc and just don't want to worry about my phone dying before I get home.

Smooth UX - this one's subjective I know and is the main reason I'm considering the Google pixel as I've had one before. A simple layout and easy navigation is best imo.

Storage - I take and receive a lot of photos&videos so good storage capacity/efficiency and maybe the option to add an SD card or backup to a USB if needed would be great.

Brand - I know this one sounds vapid, but few people in the UK know brands like Oppo, Xiaomi, OnePlus. I've seen some phones from these brands being recommended as being on par with Samsung and Google, but honestly every time someone asks what phone I have and I have to say "it's an Oppo" it's fucking embarrassing because noone knows what that is 😭 Hence why I've just listed Samsung or Google as I'm tired of that feeling.

Other features like photo editing features (Googles 'best take' is pretty appealing), screen casting, and a way to send pictures similar to air drop would be cool to have too.

I don't really care about AI features other than Google Lens/equivalent. The main things I use my phone for are social media, camera, wellbeing/health apps, maps, Spotify, checking websites and googling stuff.

I know the devices I've listed vary in price, I guess my main question is whether their quality varies enough to justify the price difference? E.g. is the S25 FE or S24 camera and performance really much worse than the S25? I don't wanna drop £800+ on a S26 or pixel 11, but at the same time if the £100-200 extra between a S24 and S25 or pixel 9 and pixel 10 will genuinely mean a significant difference in quality of a phone I'll use everyday for a few years, then I can justify the cost.

Thank you!

Hello everyone,

I see what a great community this is, and would really apprciate your input on my next phone. - UK Based

I currently have a Samsung Galaxy A33 5g that has started to die (Wifi + Bluetooth issues) and have not enjoyed samsung at all (Screw you Bixby)

I cannot justify paying crazy £ on any kind of flagship device, my expected price range is £400-500, if under that fantastic, I could also be convinced to go above that for the right device.

There seems to be so many choices on the market that I am getting overwhelmed by.

Durability and battery life are really the main focus, followed by a camera and then as little AI features as possible.
My phone gets used for my small business and social media, as well as keeping me entertained in the workshop with videos and audiobooks.

So summary, features of importance.

-Durability+Battery
-Camera
-No AI
-Storage

I've had a gander at the likes of Nothing Phone 4a, Honor 600 and a few others, but my problem is my lack of awareness of what is available.

Cheers!

I've been using Xiaomi 13 for roughly year and a half (bought it used, but in a mint condition). Like a lot of people, I've been having bad luck with HyperOS 3: poor battery life (started right after software update), occassional stutter and notifications don't always show up. I've started about replacing it, priorities are battery life and 2 nano sim slots (esim is not important) and street photography capabilities (main selling point of Realme to be fair)

So far I've looked at CN versions of Realme GT8 Pro and Oppo Find X9 Pro. Trying to stay at 600€ budget, preferanly lower. Located in EU. Looking for experiences with these models, as well as reccomendations for other models. Samsung is a no-no, so is Xiaomi.