If you don't care too much about updates, it's a MUCH better deal to get a used note 8 or note 9. On ebay (at least in the US), I can get a note 8 for 250-300 usd, or a note 9 for ~400 usd....
If you don't care too much about updates, it's a MUCH better deal to get a used note 8 or note 9. On ebay (at least in the US), I can get a note 8 for 250-300 usd, or a note 9 for ~400 usd. There's not a huge difference between the note 8/9 and the note 10+. They have similar battery sizes, similar displays, they all have an S pen, and they all have flagship level processors. The biggest upgrade would be the camera. And the note 10+ actually has some drawbacks, like the lack of a headphone jack, or the hole punch display (subjective).
I purchased an S8 used for ~200 usd recently, and it's way better than the current mid-range offerings at a similar price point. This is all assuming you don't care about updates that much, which I don't, personally.
I would disagree actually. A major reason I even bother to upgrade at this point every 2 or so years is to refresh the dying lithium-ion battery. For used, you really have no idea how many cycles,...
I would disagree actually. A major reason I even bother to upgrade at this point every 2 or so years is to refresh the dying lithium-ion battery.
For used, you really have no idea how many cycles, what temperature, and overall what the health of the battery is.
And at least IMO battery life is incredibly important for modern phones..
Samsung is discounting S9/S8's pretty heavily anyway new, and they have their budget lines too which don't have water proofing but are otherwise well featured.
You can get a new battery for many phones, especially Samsung phones (due to their popularity) for pretty cheap. A cursory search of ebay puts the price of a new S8 battery at ~10$. Along with...
You can get a new battery for many phones, especially Samsung phones (due to their popularity) for pretty cheap. A cursory search of ebay puts the price of a new S8 battery at ~10$. Along with that, many sellers replace the batteries already, usually the ones that claim to sell refurbished phones.
Replacing a battery in a modern phone will typically sacrifice water-proofing/resistance, but most of the similarly priced budget phones don't have it either, and it really shouldn't be relied upon anyway. There are probably repair centers that have the tools to replace the battery in a phone and keep the water resistance, although I haven't looked into that myself.
Personally I've never had any issues buying phones used. Just make sure you do a bit of research into the seller, and make sure you can return the device so you have a trial period to test and make sure the device is in working condition.
If you're really replacing your phone that often, maybe you should look into doing a simple battery replacement yourself, and see how much it extends the life of your phone.
You can buy a new battery, but the replacement process is not trivial. You need to unglue the phone, and remove some screws + logic board connectors. Not impossible, but I'd want to at least have...
You can buy a new battery, but the replacement process is not trivial. You need to unglue the phone, and remove some screws + logic board connectors. Not impossible, but I'd want to at least have like an ifixit toolkit before attempting. And yeah, it ruins the water proofing.
I personally am fine replacing my phone every 2 years. I have enough of an income that it doesn't particularly matter, and the way I see is that I use my phone pretty heavily day-to-day, and it's an important device for productivity let alone entertainment. And so the amortized cost of a flagship, whether that be $800 or $1000, is a pretty whatever price for me.
True, if you have the income to afford it, there's nothing wrong with replacing a device. Although not everyone has the luxury to do that, and people buying used phones probably aren't the same...
True, if you have the income to afford it, there's nothing wrong with replacing a device. Although not everyone has the luxury to do that, and people buying used phones probably aren't the same people who are capable of doing that so frequently. Besides, if replacing a battery, which takes about an hour, saves me 800-1000 usd. That gives me a momentary 'salary' of 800-1000 usd per hour. I doubt most people's time is worth more than that.
Right, I wasn't advocating for everyone to buy new phones every 2 years, that was just an aside since you commented on my habits. What I suggest is buying new phones that go on sale. For instance,...
Right, I wasn't advocating for everyone to buy new phones every 2 years, that was just an aside since you commented on my habits.
What I suggest is buying new phones that go on sale. For instance, the S9 was $300 new on Prime day, and while that wasn't normal it does dip into near territory pretty often. Or the budget lineup of Pixels; they're almost feature complete with the flagships anyway, especially once you remove waterproofing.
And IMO new battery + warranty for most people is better than a used phone.
Jesus. Why though? Like... I get why smartphone sales are slowing. Why would you need this, except to brag that you can afford it? Screens look perfect for 5 smartphone generations, now (and still...
12GB of RAM
Jesus. Why though? Like... I get why smartphone sales are slowing. Why would you need this, except to brag that you can afford it? Screens look perfect for 5 smartphone generations, now (and still look crap in sunlight since no artificial light can compete with the sun – come on there must be some technology for this!). It apparently has directional microphones and a depth scanner. Why, though? What do I use that for? The camera is now 5 times the resolution of my retina instead of 4 times, great. It apparently has all the software in the world installed by default, who needs that?
Isn't it obvious? To eat up the battery life. Seriously, though, more RAM means more programs can be kept in-memory. Modern apps tend to be VERY memory-intensive. Additionally, Samsung really...
Isn't it obvious? To eat up the battery life.
Seriously, though, more RAM means more programs can be kept in-memory. Modern apps tend to be VERY memory-intensive.
Additionally, Samsung really wants people to use DEX, and desktops tend to use a lot of memory in general.
I really doubt any apps exist on Android that require more than 2GB. And on an OS like android, what use is there in having multiple of those open? You can't rely on them staying alive in the...
I really doubt any apps exist on Android that require more than 2GB. And on an OS like android, what use is there in having multiple of those open? You can't rely on them staying alive in the background. And no individual app will ever use that much by itself. For one, because I can't think of a single task (that a phone OS and processor is suited for) that could possibly use that much. And two, if a task needs that much its cutting out 99% of its potential userbase.
Really just seems like these numbers exist only for bragging rights.
You should never underestimate the power of bloat. Heck, Firefox including it's data and cache uses 1GB of storage for me. And there is a whole 14 GB restricted for Android system files on my...
You should never underestimate the power of bloat. Heck, Firefox including it's data and cache uses 1GB of storage for me. And there is a whole 14 GB restricted for Android system files on my phone.
Beyond that, phones can also run video games, including some very complex ones like Fortnite, which already excludes the majority of smartphones in the market today.
You're talking Storage though. Especially cache, that has nothing to do with RAM usage. The cache (and a lot of storage) exists only to be loaded in tiny portions into RAM on-demand. As far as...
You're talking Storage though. Especially cache, that has nothing to do with RAM usage. The cache (and a lot of storage) exists only to be loaded in tiny portions into RAM on-demand. As far as apps that demand 12GB, I really don't know of any. Even Fortnite, minimum reqs are 3GB. Most mid-tier phones have at least that much, although I can't say how exclusive the GPU requirements are. I'm still just kinda confused by that much RAM being in a phone. Especially since I thought we were in some kind of a shortage?
A few quick thoughts: I think the S Pen is a great idea and I would love it if Apple added Apple Pencil support to the iPhone. This thing is crazy expensive for a phone that likely won't get...
A few quick thoughts:
I think the S Pen is a great idea and I would love it if Apple added Apple Pencil support to the iPhone.
This thing is crazy expensive for a phone that likely won't get updated software for more than two years.
Flagship phones in general have gone completely crazy on pricing in the last few years. Apple seems to be realizing this with their sales projections, and I can't help but think that there's going...
This thing is crazy expensive for a phone that likely won't get updated software for more than two years.
Flagship phones in general have gone completely crazy on pricing in the last few years. Apple seems to be realizing this with their sales projections, and I can't help but think that there's going to be a reckoning for all of the big players within the next few years.
I feel a lot better about paying $1,200 for an iPhone XS Max though since I can reasonably expect it to be running the latest software in 5-6 years. The market for mid-range phones is exploding...
I feel a lot better about paying $1,200 for an iPhone XS Max though since I can reasonably expect it to be running the latest software in 5-6 years.
The market for mid-range phones is exploding though. I think in a few years, most people will be using those instead of the latest flagships.
Absolutely, I still use an iPhone 6s, and I love that Apple provides support for so long. Although, at $1,200 for an XS Max I think Apple is still pushing it with most customers, especially those...
Absolutely, I still use an iPhone 6s, and I love that Apple provides support for so long. Although, at $1,200 for an XS Max I think Apple is still pushing it with most customers, especially those who prefer to upgrade relatively often. Those customers have kept their sales up for over a decade now, and I think their recent sales/earnings show that that is falling off a bit with the crazy prices.
Are updates really that important? I'm sure that 5-6 years from now there's not going to be a big difference between Android 12 (most likely the last major OS revision this phone will get) and...
Are updates really that important? I'm sure that 5-6 years from now there's not going to be a big difference between Android 12 (most likely the last major OS revision this phone will get) and Android 14 (assuming a similar update schedule).
Yes, they kind of are? I don't know about you but I really want my phone to be patched for security holes and have new features added for as long as possible. Android's unsolved updates problem is...
Yes, they kind of are? I don't know about you but I really want my phone to be patched for security holes and have new features added for as long as possible. Android's unsolved updates problem is also an environmental catastrophe. It promotes disposable & replaceable electronics. Apple even goes so far as to make older phones run faster on later versions of iOS.
As /u/emdash mentioned, security updates are the important thing. At least with Android, they've started pulling security patches out of the main releases and made them a separate thing.
As /u/emdash mentioned, security updates are the important thing.
At least with Android, they've started pulling security patches out of the main releases and made them a separate thing.
Yes, for security reasons. There may not be a big difference in features, but there will be in existing exploits. The internet is a dark and scary place, and you should keep yourself as up to date...
Yes, for security reasons. There may not be a big difference in features, but there will be in existing exploits.
The internet is a dark and scary place, and you should keep yourself as up to date as possible to prevent being added to a botnet.
The record for Samsung is pretty spotty. Google has begun to mandate security update regulations for Android providers, but it was just this month that Samsung abruptly stopped, and then began...
The record for Samsung is pretty spotty. Google has begun to mandate security update regulations for Android providers, but it was just this month that Samsung abruptly stopped, and then began again, security updates for the S7 line, which is just 3 years old.
For Pixels, probably. For iPhones, certainly. For Samsung phones? Most likely, but you never know.
I think that's a bit of a stretch of the imagination, to be frank with you. There may be a small handful of examples where some Android phones have received a patch for a security issue 4-5 years...
I think that's a bit of a stretch of the imagination, to be frank with you. There may be a small handful of examples where some Android phones have received a patch for a security issue 4-5 years after release, but by and large it looks like most handsets are sunsetted, and stop receiving any updates within about 24 months.
I would say that's just a symptom of the large number of android phones compared to iPhones. If you get a pixel phone or a Samsung phone, you'll have a longer timeframe of security patch support.
I would say that's just a symptom of the large number of android phones compared to iPhones. If you get a pixel phone or a Samsung phone, you'll have a longer timeframe of security patch support.
If you don't care too much about updates, it's a MUCH better deal to get a used note 8 or note 9. On ebay (at least in the US), I can get a note 8 for 250-300 usd, or a note 9 for ~400 usd. There's not a huge difference between the note 8/9 and the note 10+. They have similar battery sizes, similar displays, they all have an S pen, and they all have flagship level processors. The biggest upgrade would be the camera. And the note 10+ actually has some drawbacks, like the lack of a headphone jack, or the hole punch display (subjective).
I purchased an S8 used for ~200 usd recently, and it's way better than the current mid-range offerings at a similar price point. This is all assuming you don't care about updates that much, which I don't, personally.
I would disagree actually. A major reason I even bother to upgrade at this point every 2 or so years is to refresh the dying lithium-ion battery.
For used, you really have no idea how many cycles, what temperature, and overall what the health of the battery is.
And at least IMO battery life is incredibly important for modern phones..
Samsung is discounting S9/S8's pretty heavily anyway new, and they have their budget lines too which don't have water proofing but are otherwise well featured.
You can get a new battery for many phones, especially Samsung phones (due to their popularity) for pretty cheap. A cursory search of ebay puts the price of a new S8 battery at ~10$. Along with that, many sellers replace the batteries already, usually the ones that claim to sell refurbished phones.
Replacing a battery in a modern phone will typically sacrifice water-proofing/resistance, but most of the similarly priced budget phones don't have it either, and it really shouldn't be relied upon anyway. There are probably repair centers that have the tools to replace the battery in a phone and keep the water resistance, although I haven't looked into that myself.
Personally I've never had any issues buying phones used. Just make sure you do a bit of research into the seller, and make sure you can return the device so you have a trial period to test and make sure the device is in working condition.
If you're really replacing your phone that often, maybe you should look into doing a simple battery replacement yourself, and see how much it extends the life of your phone.
You can buy a new battery, but the replacement process is not trivial. You need to unglue the phone, and remove some screws + logic board connectors. Not impossible, but I'd want to at least have like an ifixit toolkit before attempting. And yeah, it ruins the water proofing.
I personally am fine replacing my phone every 2 years. I have enough of an income that it doesn't particularly matter, and the way I see is that I use my phone pretty heavily day-to-day, and it's an important device for productivity let alone entertainment. And so the amortized cost of a flagship, whether that be $800 or $1000, is a pretty whatever price for me.
True, if you have the income to afford it, there's nothing wrong with replacing a device. Although not everyone has the luxury to do that, and people buying used phones probably aren't the same people who are capable of doing that so frequently. Besides, if replacing a battery, which takes about an hour, saves me 800-1000 usd. That gives me a momentary 'salary' of 800-1000 usd per hour. I doubt most people's time is worth more than that.
Right, I wasn't advocating for everyone to buy new phones every 2 years, that was just an aside since you commented on my habits.
What I suggest is buying new phones that go on sale. For instance, the S9 was $300 new on Prime day, and while that wasn't normal it does dip into near territory pretty often. Or the budget lineup of Pixels; they're almost feature complete with the flagships anyway, especially once you remove waterproofing.
And IMO new battery + warranty for most people is better than a used phone.
Jesus. Why though? Like... I get why smartphone sales are slowing. Why would you need this, except to brag that you can afford it? Screens look perfect for 5 smartphone generations, now (and still look crap in sunlight since no artificial light can compete with the sun – come on there must be some technology for this!). It apparently has directional microphones and a depth scanner. Why, though? What do I use that for? The camera is now 5 times the resolution of my retina instead of 4 times, great. It apparently has all the software in the world installed by default, who needs that?
Isn't it obvious? To eat up the battery life.
Seriously, though, more RAM means more programs can be kept in-memory. Modern apps tend to be VERY memory-intensive.
Additionally, Samsung really wants people to use DEX, and desktops tend to use a lot of memory in general.
Never heard of DEX before. So it's basically a way to plug stuff into your phone to use it as a portable desktop?
More or less. They've been building it up for quite a few years now.
I really doubt any apps exist on Android that require more than 2GB. And on an OS like android, what use is there in having multiple of those open? You can't rely on them staying alive in the background. And no individual app will ever use that much by itself. For one, because I can't think of a single task (that a phone OS and processor is suited for) that could possibly use that much. And two, if a task needs that much its cutting out 99% of its potential userbase.
Really just seems like these numbers exist only for bragging rights.
You should never underestimate the power of bloat. Heck, Firefox including it's data and cache uses 1GB of storage for me. And there is a whole 14 GB restricted for Android system files on my phone.
Beyond that, phones can also run video games, including some very complex ones like Fortnite, which already excludes the majority of smartphones in the market today.
You're talking Storage though. Especially cache, that has nothing to do with RAM usage. The cache (and a lot of storage) exists only to be loaded in tiny portions into RAM on-demand. As far as apps that demand 12GB, I really don't know of any. Even Fortnite, minimum reqs are 3GB. Most mid-tier phones have at least that much, although I can't say how exclusive the GPU requirements are. I'm still just kinda confused by that much RAM being in a phone. Especially since I thought we were in some kind of a shortage?
A few quick thoughts:
Flagship phones in general have gone completely crazy on pricing in the last few years. Apple seems to be realizing this with their sales projections, and I can't help but think that there's going to be a reckoning for all of the big players within the next few years.
I feel a lot better about paying $1,200 for an iPhone XS Max though since I can reasonably expect it to be running the latest software in 5-6 years.
The market for mid-range phones is exploding though. I think in a few years, most people will be using those instead of the latest flagships.
Absolutely, I still use an iPhone 6s, and I love that Apple provides support for so long. Although, at $1,200 for an XS Max I think Apple is still pushing it with most customers, especially those who prefer to upgrade relatively often. Those customers have kept their sales up for over a decade now, and I think their recent sales/earnings show that that is falling off a bit with the crazy prices.
Are updates really that important? I'm sure that 5-6 years from now there's not going to be a big difference between Android 12 (most likely the last major OS revision this phone will get) and Android 14 (assuming a similar update schedule).
Yes, they kind of are? I don't know about you but I really want my phone to be patched for security holes and have new features added for as long as possible. Android's unsolved updates problem is also an environmental catastrophe. It promotes disposable & replaceable electronics. Apple even goes so far as to make older phones run faster on later versions of iOS.
As /u/emdash mentioned, security updates are the important thing.
At least with Android, they've started pulling security patches out of the main releases and made them a separate thing.
Yes, for security reasons. There may not be a big difference in features, but there will be in existing exploits.
The internet is a dark and scary place, and you should keep yourself as up to date as possible to prevent being added to a botnet.
Android (at least Samsung) phones still get 4-5 years of security updates, just not feature updates.
The record for Samsung is pretty spotty. Google has begun to mandate security update regulations for Android providers, but it was just this month that Samsung abruptly stopped, and then began again, security updates for the S7 line, which is just 3 years old.
For Pixels, probably. For iPhones, certainly. For Samsung phones? Most likely, but you never know.
I think that's a bit of a stretch of the imagination, to be frank with you. There may be a small handful of examples where some Android phones have received a patch for a security issue 4-5 years after release, but by and large it looks like most handsets are sunsetted, and stop receiving any updates within about 24 months.
I would say that's just a symptom of the large number of android phones compared to iPhones. If you get a pixel phone or a Samsung phone, you'll have a longer timeframe of security patch support.