happy happy new phone time...maybe!

[Trem]

Ok, got the Z3C yesterday not used it normally yet as I am waiting for my number to be ported over but after fiddling and browsing etc.....fuck me it's fast, just really fast. It doesn't need rooting! Don't forget I am on a Nexus 5 with Android 5 freshly installed as of yesterday and the Z3C leaves it standing for smoothness and speed at which stuff opens, really impressed,

Loads of Sony shite on it but none of it has offended me yet, used the Google launcher for the home screen instead of the Sony one etc, but there are improvements over stock android which Sony has chucked in (battery % for one).

It isn't compact in the grand scheme of things either, it doesn't feel massively smaller than my Nexus, it is obviously but not wee. It just isn't stupidly big like the trend seems to be nowadays.

I tell you what this is going to be the Android phone of the year bar none (unless people go all snobby about the size).

 

[Tuthmes]

I would select a phone on:

1. It has to have a Micro SD slot.
2. Be able te replace the battery.
3. Have a good camera.
4. Radio.

The rest is a matter of taste.
Large storage, because I want plenty of music to choose from. At times watch movies (Bugs Bunny, Dexter, lectures, Skate movies and so on). Read comics and books.
The battery, because a good phone will last for atleast 4 years. Beeing a frequent user, the battery will decay within 1 or 2 years and with any luck a better one for the phone will be out by then. Also you can have more then 1. I currently have 3 (including the old one). Easy to replace, so a full battery when needed if you are without a steady current.
I really hate shit camera's. Mostly because my current phone has one.
I still listen to the radio. Works without an internet connection. It has the added bonus of beeing nice to your battery.

All this because my phone is prepaid and will remain so. So mobile data is off all of the time and Wifi is only on when in range. Good for the battery too!

 

[ECA]

I would've agreed with you last year on points 1/2 but now I'm not so sure.

With 64gb becoming more standard, and probably heading towards 256/512gb within a few short years, the need for a microsd for storage alone isn't holding up as an argument.
Now if you have a dslr and want to upload photos, or a gopro and want to upload videos, etc you might think an sd slot would be a good idea - but you can just use an OTG cable or adapter and do it anyway.

On battery - replaceable batteries require the phone to have an internal configuration that allows for access - which isn't always optimal for space/build.
As phones finally start to get decent battery, and being able to go 4-5 days on low usage, phones being able to go for a full day even with high usage, and the availability of cheap powerbanks if you really need it...

tldr, would've agreed with you, before my opo and the comparable life on the z3c and future phones.

 

[Trem]

@Tuthmes the battery thing seemed crazy to me a while back, "you can't take the battery out! MADNESS I TELLS YA!!" but they seem to have sorted their shit out with them, they don't seem to suffer with the problems of old anymore. I don't notice my phones losing charge any quicker etc like I used to. I am a bit OCD about completely running phones out a few times when I first have them though dunno if that helps anymore.

 

[Tuthmes]

Well fair enough.

I could see the storage go up in a few years time, but by then my old phone could have a 512GB microsd card and be good to go again. The batteries are still a problem (a 1,5 years old Galaxy S4 for example) and no real improvements so far. There's little news that this will be improved dramatically in the future and with phones getting ever more and faster cpu cores and features I doubt the battery life will improve anytime soon. Keep in mind that new phones last longer on their batteries, because their batteries are still new...
To put it short, I doubt the battery will still last 4-5 days on low usage after 1-2 years. Then again, not many people will want to keep their phone for 4 years though. Even though an (good) old phone is nice to have when you go out (swimming, camping, go to a festival or something). Also I've read somewhere that the radio frequency will be changed within a couple of years (atleast in the Netherlands). So my point 4 could go out of the window pretty soon.