Database Develop

My Note 4 thoughts

I figured it might be a good idea to share my thoughts on the Note 4, since I always put a lot of research into smartphone buying and someone might find it useful There are some of you that are still leaning toward different flagships all of the time (like I did!), so I hope this helps.
First of all I would like to mention that about a month ago I made up my mind to give up my LG G2 and switch to a new smartphone.
The Xiaomi mi4 came up first.
I liked the design, UI, price, specs. Everything about the mi4 is just above average, but thats about it. It didn't have that even slightest "wow factor" that I needed to push me to buying one. It's a very good phone, but the warranty would require me to send the phone far into the unknown in case something was wrong, I wasn't sure If I would pay tax as well. Nobody had the 64 gb model either (16gb and no card expansion, really?!). I decided that this would probably be a wise choice but it didn't offer anything more than what I already had on the G2, and in some cases, it was worse (camera). I passed.
My second choice was the LG G3.
So like always, I started researching, checking out different variants and prices, digging through the specs, looking for its strong sides and flaws. I liked the quad hd display at first, the SD 801 SoC, good camera with laser autofocus. The UI was a nice upgrade from the LG G2's cartoonish look. The 32 gb model seemed a good option with its 3gb of ram (although I didn't like the design as I wanted something different from the G2).
As I started to dig deaper though, I noticed that the display isn't all that awesome, as there is more to it than just resolution. I think they might have made the phone much better if they sticked to a 1080p panel and focused on other aspects like color reproduction, brightness, power consumption. I found out that the 801 chip is stretched to its limits (even over them..) with that display, which caused overheating, throttling and lagging in demanding tasks and games. I believe a smartphone should be able to handle anything you throw at it so I dumped the G3 from my plans.
Then the Z3 came up.
So again- researching, digging, looking at the cons and pros. I liked the design a lot better than the G3 (besides the plastic corners, although I can justify the reason they used them for). The display was beytter than the Z2, with very good brightness and color reproduction after making some adjustments to the stock settings. The audio quality is superb as well, the whole phone is waterproof and its battery life was very well above the current smartphones.
The camera in the Z3 is top of the line, but I didn't like how it overheats. Making the phone thinner wasn't necessary in my opinion and sony might have thought about the component allocation in the device, as putting everything in the top part of the phone wasn't too smart of a choice. The UI was something that I didn't like the most though. I know I could throw a custom ROM at it in a while, but I wasn't sure how that would work with the camera, battery life and other features sony offered in the stock ROM.
I almost made my mind up on the Z3, as it had everything I wanted and I could live with its cons but then the price came into my mind: 515 pounds including tax.
Thats the part the note 4 came into play.
I watched the Note 4 presentation: the phone impressed me in overall, I liked the design, UI, hardware etc. So I started digging again.
I've always wanted the best out of my phone, no matter if I was going to use all of the functions it had or not. I used my phone for calling, texting, making notes in google keep, gps, playing games, listening to music, browsing the web, taking pictures. Usually I endep up rooting it and putting a stock like ROM on it (although I used the stock LG G2 ROM all the way). The design of the phone was always important for me, thats why I had an iphone 4s and 5 for a month before ditching it cus of the awfully simple and boring OS.
The Note 4 seemed to be a very good phone that offered what I wanted and much more beyond that:
1. The display
It's resolution could have been not increased. Samsung could have stayed with a 1080p panel. But thats not whats important about this panel. This is what the DisplayMate test results are:
"The Galaxy Note 4 delivers uniformly consistent all around Top Tier display performance: it is the first Smartphone display to ever get all Green (Very Good to Excellent) Ratings in all test and measurement categories (except one Yellow for a Brightness Variation with Average Picture Level) since we started the Display Technology Shoot-Out article Series in 2006, an impressive achievement for a display. The Galaxy Note 4 has again raised the bar for top display performance up by another notch. "
The display is a window through which you interact with your phone, and it is a component that must be top of the line. There should be no compromise here. Samsung exceeded my expectations in this matter.
2. Performance
There are 2 variants of the Note as most of you know. I'm still having a hard time with both of them. At first I thought the Snapdragon is an obvious choice considering it was superior to all of the other chips last year.
But then the 64-bit affair came into place. Anyone would like their phone to be futureproof, and a 64-bit SoC would be a wise choice. The exynos and snapdragon chips offer pretty much the same performance. I tried looking at the benchmarks, real world usage, gaming, but one outpaces the other in different things and it is very hard to tell the difference. I believe the fluidity of the UI and overall performance must be taken into consideration the most, as I believe both chips will handle anything you throw at them when apps and games are optimized. The choice is either taking the 20nm exynos and hope for better battery life and 64-bit support OR the snapdragon one and expect better dev support.
I wanted the Exynos for the wolfson chip, as I like good quality music from my phone. I'll be using good headphones and PowerAmp so I figure I wouldn't notice much difference anyway. At least not enough to pay extra and import the exynos variant.
I'm pretty much set on the Snapdragon 805 as I believe the battery life should be good on both (the andreno 420 is powerful with lowered power consumption). Like I mentioned earlier I might change the ROM after a while if something good comes out. It's a matter of personal taste- NOT performance of the chips. Thats my opinion on the matter.
3. User Interface
Touchwiz was out of the question for me up until I saw the Galaxy S5 UI. I actually liked the flat style and functions it offered. The note 4 UI is pretty similar. I really like the S-Pen experience, it should be a great change for people who haven't used it before. I love taking notes and I'll use it often. I like the functions it offers, the selection in different UI elements, the ease of copy/pasting, more precise touch input.
Touchwiz has a lot of useless apps that I might not like, but I'm sure it will be possible to get rid of the ones you don't like later on, the dev community in here will surely help. I could go on about the stamina mode, multi-window, the ability to resize apps etc, but you've all seen that on videos. The most important fact for is that touchwiz had been improved, it is eye pleasing, smoother and faster than ever. It is the best custom android OS you can get atm.
4. Camera
On paper both of the cameras looked really good to me, but I wanted to wait and see the real world results. I wasn't disappointed. there were some early comparisions done, but some of them were pictures or videos not taken with the note 4, so getting a correct view at the performance was quite hard. We have these results now and the note camera is a top notch performer. I find day pictures top of the line, the details are there, colors are popping, OIS helps as well. 4k shooting isn't all that important to me but its a nice addition. The camera seems to be very capable and will perform great in a day-to-day user's hands as well in an experienced person ones.
You may find the night shots worse than of the lumia or z3, but thats just terribly trying to find a flaw to me. Come on- who the hell is going to photograph a piece of paper in the dark of the night!? insane. There are pictures taken with the note at night, i like how the lights aren't blurred and everything seems very crisp and detailed. Do remember what you'll be using the phone camera for, and the Note 4 delivers more than I want in those terms.
5. Battery life
Many people find this very important. I thought the Note 4 might get bad results cause of that screen so I checked out some vids of the LTE-A Galaxy S5 with the higher res display. The results were the same as the standars S5.
I am not sure if its the chip that is more power efficient, some power saving changes in the OS, or the screen, or maybe all of these at once, but the results people are having on the Notes they recently picked up are very pleasing to me.
Final words
I probably shouldn't, cause its so ridiculous, but I'll mention the gap gate as well- I don't give a crap about it. I wont even notice it. Especially with the case I'm going to put on the phone. And its something that samsung probably addressed already in the new batch of phones. There are other things I should maybe mention, but these 5 are most important for me. I really like the performace of the Note 4, its UI, functions, metal frame design, micro SD storage expansion, camera, battery, IR blaster and everything else that seems to be a full package that many will find good enough to put their money on. I surely will. On the black one of course

You have really done some good work digging up info and comparing them.

Just to add couple points to OP's excellent write up:
The battery life concern in #5 is actually addressed in already mentioned DisplayMate article, right towards the bottom it clearly states that the new screen, despite having larger number of pixels is more power efficient than 1080p screen of Note3 (0.05W for 50% and 0.2 W for 100% brightness), about 5 to 10% more efficient and Note 3 has proven itself to have very good battery life already.
The gap between screen and frame around might be by design, due to combination of plastic, glass and metal having different expansion rate due to temperature changes. My thinking is that if the phone was brought from very warm room into very cold outside, metal frame would cool and shrink much faster than the rest and could even possibly crack the glass, doing so. The gap possibly allows for contraction/expansion without doing any damage. Either way, outside of aesthetics, it doesn't affect anything and it's a non issue. Probably blown out of proportions as an attempt to shift attention away from bendgate.

pete4k said:
The battery life concern in #5 is actually addressed in already mentioned DisplayMate article, right towards the bottom it clearly states that the new screen, despite having larger number of pixels is more power efficient than 1080p screen of Note3 (0.05W for 50% and 0.2 W for 100% brightness), about 5 to 10% more efficient and Note 3 has proven itself to have very good battery life already
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think he was referring to the increased GPU load due to the higher resolution which is a valid concern.
But as it has already been said, even the S5 LTE-A with its Snapdragon 805 and QHD resolution has the same battery life as the regular S5 with Full HD and Snapdragon 800.
Still, it would be interesting to see the battery life on a Snapdragon 805 device with only a Full HD display.

I would prefer the note 4 to have a 1080p panel with the same characteristics. But how many people actually use their head before buying a phone? It's a spec war for android phones..

han4mi said:
I would prefer the note 4 to have a 1080p panel with the same characteristics. But how many people actually use their head before buying a phone? It's a spec war for android phones..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Normally I would agree that FHD 1080p would be more than enough. However, since the GN4 is going to host the Gear VR, with magnifying lenses, I'm happy it went for the QHD
Sent from my Surface Pro 3 using Tapatalk

Audio Quality
Thanks for taking the time for the write up.
One area I would really like to know about is the quality of the rear speaker.
The sound quality is much more important to me than the placement (and sometimes the rear placement actually helps when you put it on a flat hard surface). I ruled out the Note 3 because its speaker was worse than the Note 2 which is still my current phone. The Note 2's speaker is actually pretty decent if the 4's is equal or better I would be thrilled.
Any input?

ymmp said:
Thanks for taking the time for the write up.
One area I would really like to know about is the quality of the rear speaker.
The sound quality is much more important to me than the placement (and sometimes the rear placement actually helps when you put it on a flat hard surface). I ruled out the Note 3 because its speaker was worse than the Note 2 which is still my current phone. The Note 2's speaker is actually pretty decent if the 4's is equal or better I would be thrilled.
Any input?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the same question, ´cause I am afraid, that speeker-quality will be on low level and I am used to fantastic stereo sound of my current htv one m8.
I think, the price for Note 4 ist extremly high. Meanwhile Samsungs flagships are playing in the same €-league with the latest iphons. So I want to hold it in my own hands first before buying it. In center of Europe the Note 4 will be available in about 2 weeks.
Maybe the new Nexus 6 has a better balance between price and specs. We´ll check it out.

Just read Phone Arena's review. Here's a quote:
"Unfortunately, the audio portion of the media experience isn't so spectacular. The single speaker of the Galaxy Note 4 is rather quiet and lacking any depth, making it sound thin and weak. It's not too bad, but it's far from the best we've heard"
How disappointing! The new Moto X is supposed to have an amazing front speaker. I just wonder if it is more like the Note 2 or 3.

I believe the speaker will be good enough to play the ringtone I choose. I prefer earphones+ Poweramp for my music. Like I said, it depends what you're expecting to use the phone for. The Note 4 meets my demands in key aspects and thats why I'm going for it. I don't want THE BEST PHONE. Such a phone does not exist. All of the flagships have their strenghts and weaknesses and a smart person would take the one with the most personally suitable set of features.

Note 8 or One Plus 5

Hi, I need some advice on which device I am going to buy. I'm going to use this I guess 3 to 5 years as I dont replace my phone that often so this thread will help A LOT. I'm basing on some reviews, speed tests, but the two seems to be on par with each other. Price is/may kind of an issue here as I would love to use some of the money (if I buy the OP5) for the after sales and some personal stuff. However if the Note 8 is really "bang for the buck" then I'll gladly go with it. I also tried to search some issues. Here's what I found so far:
One Plus 5:
GPS Issue
Bluetooth Issue
Overheating issue
Jelly Effect in screen
Note 8:
Red tint in a lot of device
Light leak (lights leaking on the side of the phone not much of an issue for me)
If you have some issues with the phone, please feel free to reply. It would be appreciated a lot!
I also created Pros and Cons that might help me but I ended up more confused what to buy. Haha.
Pros for One Plus 5
Performance
Price
Dev Community as I love to mod my phone
Fingerprint Scanner placement + the scan speed is so fast
I've seen a lot of people who still uses OPO or OP2 which means that this device last long
The toggle above the volume like in iPhones
Customizable hardware buttons (I really love this one)
Cons for One Plus 5
Issues above as I really need the GPS and bluetooth, and I play heavy games.
No waterproofing
No Micro SD slot (I guess 128gb is enough but I would love to have the option of expanding more)
Pros for Note 8
SPen
Camera
Performance (but I've read OP5 has better. The 8gb ram may be the reason. But please feel free to correct me)
Display is a plus
Iris Scanner and Face Recognition (Is it accurate?)
Cons for Note 8
Samsung phones tend to slow down after months/years of using it.
Price
Body build is somewhat easy to crack due to glass body + curved edge
Samsung is a little bit strict when it comes to flashing Custom ROMS and I dont know if the SPen functionalities will be affected. (Please correct me here)
Fingerprint Scanner placement
I may be wrong with some of this but I've researched and this is what I've seen.
If this is a point to consider, I'm coming from a Xperia Z3Compact which didn't last long (I hated sony to the hell because of this) because of the digitizer issue. However, I enjoyed tweaking that phone. Now I'm forced to use my iPhone5s with jailbreak.
Note: Just to be clear, the devices in comparison are OP5 8gb/128gb and Note 8 6gb/64gb Exynos
Note: I'm posting this to each respective forum to have a fair discussion for each phone. I hope this is allowed. I also hope to help some people that have the same options with me.
Note 8 Thread: Link Here
OnePlus 5 Thread: Link Here
Thank you guys. After a long comparison, I'm going for the OP5 even with the rumors of OP5T. I just hate the back fingerprint scanner placements which is the trend now. And regarding with the bezels, I'm more into those phone with bezels on top and bottom for landscape usage. I've been trying the S8+, and some games that I play doesn't maximize or utilize the whole screen which leaves some part of the screen blank. However, the screen in the Note 8 is A1 dont get me wrong, but I'm more into the performance and the OP5's screen is enough. Thank you guys!

For me would have gone oneplus 5,cause that thing is crazy fast. However the jello, jelly put me right off. And the fact that oneplus 5,would not until now come out in the open about it, really bugged me and beggars belief!. You can see the problem as soon as you pick the device up, so that reason I went note 8 and it's been an amazing experience. I haven't played games on it yet, still enjoying just browsing, multimedia, taking photos of my munchkins etc.

I had the oneplus 5 like 4 phones ago and it was great. No issues whatsoever, no jelly or any of the other issues you mentioned tbh. Bang for bucks it is the best phone you can get. Great for flashing and whatnot. That being said the note 8 has so much more added value and the exynos has a dev community that should keep you flash happy for years to come...

marvi0 said:
For me would have gone oneplus 5,cause that thing is crazy fast. However the jello, jelly put me right off. And the fact that oneplus 5,would not until now come out in the open about it, really bugged me and beggars belief!. You can see the problem as soon as you pick the device up, so that reason I went note 8 and it's been an amazing experience. I haven't played games on it yet, still enjoying just browsing, multimedia, taking photos of my munchkins etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah yes, the jelly effect. I've also heard it too and seen it in facebook. That thing also prevents me in purchasing this device. However, some owners claimed that their device has small to no signs of jelly effect in their device. So I think they have fixed it now, I wish. Thank you for your comment
mrnovanova said:
I had the oneplus 5 like 4 phones ago and it was great. No issues whatsoever, no jelly or any of the other issues you mentioned tbh. Bang for bucks it is the best phone you can get. Great for flashing and whatnot. That being said the note 8 has so much more added value and the exynos has a dev community that should keep you flash happy for years to come...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see. I heard that Snapdragon version is more strict in terms of tweaking than the Exynos version. Thank you for you reply!

lazygeniuslanz said:
Hi, I need some advice on which device I am going to buy. I'm going to use this I guess 3 to 5 years as I dont replace my phone that often so this thread will help A LOT. I'm basing on some reviews, speed tests, but the two seems to be on par with each other. Price is/may kind of an issue here as I would love to use some of the money (if I buy the OP5) for the after sales and some personal stuff. However if the Note 8 is really "bang for the buck" then I'll gladly go with it. I also tried to search some issues. Here's what I found so far:
One Plus 5:
GPS Issue
Bluetooth Issue
Overheating issue
Jelly Effect in screen
Note 8:
Red tint in a lot of device
Light leak (lights leaking on the side of the phone not much of an issue for me)
If you have some issues with the phone, please feel free to reply. It would be appreciated a lot!
I also created Pros and Cons that might help me but I ended up more confused what to buy. Haha.
Pros for One Plus 5
Performance
Price
Dev Community as I love to mod my phone
Fingerprint Scanner placement + the scan speed is so fast
I've seen a lot of people who still uses OPO or OP2 which means that this device last long
The toggle above the volume like in iPhones
Customizable hardware buttons (I really love this one)
Cons for One Plus 5
Issues above as I really need the GPS and bluetooth, and I play heavy games.
No waterproofing
No Micro SD slot (I guess 128gb is enough but I would love to have the option of expanding more)
Pros for Note 8
SPen
Camera
Performance (but I've read OP5 has better. The 8gb ram may be the reason. But please feel free to correct me)
Display is a plus
Iris Scanner and Face Recognition (Is it accurate?)
Cons for Note 8
Samsung phones tend to slow down after months/years of using it.
Price
Body build is somewhat easy to crack due to glass body + curved edge
Samsung is a little bit strict when it comes to flashing Custom ROMS and I dont know if the SPen functionalities will be affected. (Please correct me here)
Fingerprint Scanner placement
I may be wrong with some of this but I've researched and this is what I've seen.
If this is a point to consider, I'm coming from a Xperia Z3Compact which didn't last long (I hated sony to the hell because of this) because of the digitizer issue. However, I enjoyed tweaking that phone. Now I'm forced to use my iPhone5s with jailbreak.
Note: Just to be clear, the devices in comparison are OP5 8gb/128gb and Note 8 6gb/64gb Exynos
Note: I'm posting this to each respective forum to have a fair discussion for each phone. I hope this is allowed. I also hope to help some people that have the same options with me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I a solution for you to avoid those listed "issues" if you decide to buy a Note 8.
Just find a open box or used one and inspect it fully before handing over the money.
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

marvi0 said:
For me would have gone oneplus 5,cause that thing is crazy fast. However the jello, jelly put me right off. And the fact that oneplus 5,would not until now come out in the open about it, really bugged me and beggars belief!. You can see the problem as soon as you pick the device up, so that reason I went note 8 and it's been an amazing experience. I haven't played games on it yet, still enjoying just browsing, multimedia, taking photos of my munchkins etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Limeybastard said:
I a solution for you to avoid those listed "issues" if you decide to buy a Note 8.
Just find a open box or used one and inspect it fully before handing over the money.
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've read that solution too haha. And that's a good one. But is there any reason to consider Note 8 for OP5?

lazygeniuslanz said:
I've read that solution too haha. And that's a good one. But is there any reason to consider Note 8 for OP5?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't answer that question as I don't have any experience with the OP5, to be honest.
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

lazygeniuslanz said:
I've read that solution too haha. And that's a good one. But is there any reason to consider Note 8 for OP5?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a personal decision. Only you can weigh the pros and cons of each phone... and you seem to have done a great job of listing them.
The SD card is the dealbreaker for me. I carry about 200 GB of hi-res music. At this point, that's difficult to replicate any other way that doesn't involve paying even more for music I already own.

I've had the oneplus5, now currently have the note 8.
The reasons that made me return the oneplus 5 were as follows
- The jelly screen ....once you see it, it'll bug you forever
- The camera in my opinion wasn't all that..the lack of OIS was really annoying. Videos were shaky as hell! (It was improved with software stabilisation, bit it wasn't anything compaired to realtime optical stablisation
I really wanted to like the phone, it's so cheap for what you get and I love how oneplus allow you to root and mod away.
You need to decide what you'd want from your phone

Thanks but.. some of your "CONS" are off. You didnt go with the majority. On some cons.

note 8- tons more features
one plus- easier to mod
its just that simple; YOU decide whats important to YOU

In 3 or so years you probably won't want a phone with all that bezel. I'll venture out and say if you want a phone that won't feel obsolete sooner than later do to design get the note 8 hands down (or s8+).....imo
Sent from my SM-N950U using XDA-Developers Legacy app

louforgiveno said:
In 3 or so years you probably won't want a phone with all that bezel. I'll venture out and say if you want a phone that won't feel obsolete sooner than later do to design get the note 8 hands down (or s8+).....imo
Sent from my SM-N950U using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the Note 8 has a higher chance of being obsolete. Reason being the 8GB RAM of the OnePlus 5; it will probably become standard on all devices in 2018 or 2019.
It's not like all that extra screen gives you extra functionality that you won't have if your device has bezels. So I don't see why a device with bezels would become obsolete.
Design is really the last thing you should look at when making your decision. You're gonna use one of those devices, not stare at it and admire its design. You're probably gonna put a case on it anyway, so that whole design aspect flies out the window.

Pwnycorn said:
I think the Note 8 has a higher chance of being obsolete. Reason being the 8GB RAM of the OnePlus 5; it will probably become standard on all devices in 2018 or 2019.
It's not like all that extra screen gives you extra functionality that you won't have if your device has bezels. So I don't see why a device with bezels would become obsolete.
Design is really the last thing you should look at when making your decision. You're gonna use one of those devices, not stare at it and admire its design. You're probably gonna put a case on it anyway, so that whole design aspect flies out the window.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I respect your opinion but I think you're off a smidge. If design were not important there would be no iPhone X. Expect large bezels to be frowned upon in the 2 years. Bezels will get smaller that's just a fact. 8gb is overkill how will OEMs justify the 8gb when Apple does wonders with 3. 6gb will remain the maximum and 4gb the standard. We might see 8gb again but it sure won't become the norm.
Now I know that I referred to Apple as a reference for both arguments but for better or for worse Android sets trends and they cement it. It's just facts.
Design is the reason why many great devices were overlooked this year IE HTC U11 and Sony Xperia Zx1 or whatever (Saw it, laughed, moved on) I agree with you that in the end, Greater scheme and all, it doesn't matter as beauty is subjective but...
8gb standard? Maybe for Chinese OEMs. Bezels? They're flying out the window as we speak ?

douger1957 said:
That's a personal decision. Only you can weigh the pros and cons of each phone... and you seem to have done a great job of listing them.
The SD card is the dealbreaker for me. I carry about 200 GB of hi-res music. At this point, that's difficult to replicate any other way that doesn't involve paying even more for music I already own.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, thats a lot of music you have there. I can't even fill my 32gb from my z3c hahaha. Thank you sir!
Ry2mkk said:
I've had the oneplus5, now currently have the note 8.
The reasons that made me return the oneplus 5 were as follows
- The jelly screen ....once you see it, it'll bug you forever
- The camera in my opinion wasn't all that..the lack of OIS was really annoying. Videos were shaky as hell! (It was improved with software stabilisation, bit it wasn't anything compaired to realtime optical stablisation
I really wanted to like the phone, it's so cheap for what you get and I love how oneplus allow you to root and mod away.
You need to decide what you'd want from your phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, the camera in OP5 kinda sucks at videos. I've watched many camera reviews against Note 8 and boy that OP5 videos are shaky but I think they can do better after software updates. However the stills from OP5 looked good that it made the OP5 worth it atleast at good lighting. Don't get me wrong, the Note 8 outputs are better but I guess it doesn't justify the price differences.
Zeblade said:
Thanks but.. some of your "CONS" are off. You didnt go with the majority. On some cons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you means sir?
wase4711 said:
note 8- tons more features
one plus- easier to mod
its just that simple; YOU decide whats important to YOU
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see, thank you sir!
Pwnycorn said:
I think the Note 8 has a higher chance of being obsolete. Reason being the 8GB RAM of the OnePlus 5; it will probably become standard on all devices in 2018 or 2019.
It's not like all that extra screen gives you extra functionality that you won't have if your device has bezels. So I don't see why a device with bezels would become obsolete.
Design is really the last thing you should look at when making your decision. You're gonna use one of those devices, not stare at it and admire its design. You're probably gonna put a case on it anyway, so that whole design aspect flies out the window.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mrnovanova said:
I respect your opinion but I think you're off a smidge. If design were not important there would be no iPhone X. Expect large bezels to be frowned upon in the 2 years. Bezels will get smaller that's just a fact. 8gb is overkill how will OEMs justify the 8gb when Apple does wonders with 3. 6gb will remain the maximum and 4gb the standard. We might see 8gb again but it sure won't become the norm.
Now I know that I referred to Apple as a reference for both arguments but for better or for worse Android sets trends and they cement it. It's just facts.
Design is the reason why many great devices were overlooked this year IE HTC U11 and Sony Xperia Zx1 or whatever (Saw it, laughed, moved on) I agree with you that in the end, Greater scheme and all, it doesn't matter as beauty is subjective but...
8gb standard? Maybe for Chinese OEMs. Bezels? They're flying out the window as we speak
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey you guys calm down haha I agree that the design may be obsolete but I think I value the performance than the design itself. I don't want to use a good design phone but stutters or lags even a bit specially when its priced in an almost 1k. But good points guys! :good: :fingers-crossed:

Thank you guys. After a long comparison, I'm going for the OP5 even with the rumors of OP5T. I just hate the back fingerprint scanner placements which is the trend now. And regarding with the bezels, I'm more into those phone with bezels on top and bottom for landscape usage. I've been trying the S8+, and some games that I play doesn't maximize or utilize the whole screen which leaves some part of the screen blank. However, the screen in the Note 8 is A1 dont get me wrong, but I'm more into the performance and the OP5's screen is enough. Thank you guys!

Moving on from Nexus 6 - Should I get the Oneplus 6 or Pixel 3/3XL?

After almost 4 years of this beast its finally time to move on, but I'm not sure if I want to go to the OnePlus 6 (6t is basically the same as the 6 for my needs, except no headphone jack, which I want) or should I get the Pixel 3/3XL. I am leaning towards the 3XL since I'm used to a huge screen, but the 3 doesn't have the notch, which I think could be an eyesore. I have seen great development for the 1+6, but Dirty Unicorns doesn't support the device, but they don't support the Pixel 2 either. Note 9 is in the running, but i think it has a locked bootloader, smaller dev community, and less frequent updates (i'm also on ATT).
So, what do you think I should get? I am likely going to wait for some Pixel 3/3XL reviews before I make the purchase. I don't really care about price.

Xiaomi Pocophone F1 is very popular right now. May turn out to be the 2018 phone with the most custom roms.
Myself, I like the wide screen of my Nexus 6. I don't think there is any other popular phone with as wide a screen as that. But I miss a fingerprint reader.

I came from a long line of nexuses that ended with the Nexus 6P. Held off from the pixels and got me an OP6 on launch day. Price is not a factor for me here. The OP6 is a great phone, believe it or not the software is better than stock Android, it's like a custom ROM on a Nexus phone with all those extra cool stuff. The phone blazes through everything it's crazy fast. However, the camera sucks so bad that it is in usable to me. The speakers are very bad. It lacks that special thing Google phones have . I'm getting the pixel 3XL myself. I cannot live with the OP6 camera.

I'm afraid I'm moving on as well. I chose the pixel 2 xl, as money is a priority for me. i was looking at specs( I live in rainy Washington), and wasn't impressed with waterproofing. Wasn't ready to move on but battery in my 6 wasn't making it through work schedule. I chose pixel (should be here any day now) cause I love updates and not ready to leave Google yet. Nexus 1, Galaxy Nexus, 4 and 6

ONEPLUS SIX .... ACTUALLY, ONEPLUS 6T .... ya might as well wait 2 more weeks for the T-variant to be released.
I'm sure the Pixel 3/XL are damn fine (though hopefully, relatively flawless - I'm purposely leaving out any thing other than the fact I'm not even gonna comment on the XL & it's chin,etc buuut daammmn my Shamu, <xc for side bezels & far superior sOC, other internals of the Pixels> doesn't look as outta date as it actually is .... which is damn near 4 years now, the uneven bezels & other irritants I've found since buying last December [for a respectable $140/mint] definitely detract buuut I'll be damned if the ol sea world corporate orca isn't still holding it's own .... Buuueller? Buuuueller?)
ANYWAYS, TO YOUR INQUIRY, unless you have DEEP pockets for your significant disposable income & want to overlook the superior front design: namely, the rumored but easily believable teardrop front cam (& the almost certain inclusion of an under screen fingerprint scanner & supposed vastly improved camera)>>
[[PARDON ME, A PERSONAL ASIDE .... HEY GOOGLE, JUST EXACTLY WTF IS GOING ON OUT THERE IN MTN VIEW THE PAST, IDFK, 5 YEARS ?!?!?!
THE FUTURE OF SMARTPHONE UI & UX DESIGN SHOULD, SHHOOOULD, HAVE BEEN ALL YOU, BUUUT YOU HAVE SO MANY IRONS IN THE PROVERBIAL FIRE THAT YOU LET SAMSUNG TAKE IT RIGHT OUTTA YOUR VERY CAPABLE HANDS & YOUR BOTTOMLESS POCKETS FROM YOUR ENDLESS FORTUNES ..... AI IS COOL n ALL BUT WHY SCRAP NEXUS FOR THE (cheap) iPOD COPYCAT PIXEL ONE (but the seeds were there to be green instead of ignored ) & CREATE SUCH A BEAUTIFUL ECOSYSTEM AS MATERIAL DESIGN IF ONLY TO GET DESTROYED BY SAMSUNG'S NOW UNDENIABLE GLOBAL MARKETPLACE DOMINANCE and their faaaar superior "infinity display" using the world's BEST AMOLED/OLED displays (in fact, SOOOO SUPERIOR that Sammy's hated rival, crApple buy up more of their displays -by the literal ****-TON- than anyone!!!) ???? (Material Design, now, is as fine as she's ever been xc for those 9.0 settings colors, whaaatthaeff guys, at least show some thoughtfulness by using the new Contacts color palette for goodness sake!!!!! Hideous ....) I DIGRESS, YOU ARE THE COMPANY (or damn sure seemed like the across-the-board, trend-MAKERS for a long time before you lost perspective ? At first I didn't understand WTF Samsung was doing with the one sided slant/Edge thing & I ALWAYS hated that stupid APPLE home button BUUUT The SGS-7 Edge actually caught my eye .... Then came the SGS-8 AND HOLY EFFING ****E, THAT'S WHAT SHOULD'VE SHAKEN "OUR FAVORITE COMPANY" OUT OF ITS LETHARGY OF HAVING MADE TOO MUCH DAMNED MONEY, I GUESS BUUUUT ALAS, IT DID NOT ..... I KNOW A LOT OF THOUGHT & BRAINS GO INTO MAKING PIXELS SPECIAL, IT'S JUST THAT THE GOOGLE I KNOW (KNEW?) & LOVE(D?) COULD, WOULD, DAMN SURE SHOULD BE THE INNOVATORS, YOU SHOULD BE SOOOO INSANELY FAAAAR BEYOND MOST OTHER COMPANIES, NOT ONLY IN INTERNAL SMARTPHONE/OS AESTHETICS BUT FFS, APPLE & SAMMY SHHOOOULD BE TRRYING TO COPY YOU AGAIN, LIKE IN DAYS PAST INSTEAD OF YOU GUYS CUTTING CORNERS, TAKING THE BEST OF WHAT'S ALREADY OUT THERE, MAKING A PASSABLE OVERPRICED MASHUP WITH A GREAT CAMERA (FINALLY, THAT STUNNING CAMERA THAT NONE, NOT ONE, OF THE NEXUS' EVER GOT, WHICH FOREVER RELEGATED THEM FROM MAINSTREAM ALONG WITH EACH NEW NEXUS RELEASE CAME NEW YEARLY ISSUES STEMMING ULTIMATELY, FROM CORNER CUTTING) ..... I am sorry .... I have simply lost the passion with which my initial aside started ....
ONEPLUS SIX - OR - ONEPLUS 6T ..... they're ACTUALLY innovating, they turned this once fledgling company on unsteady footing grab the XDA & former GOOGLE/NEXUS DIE-HARDS by the balls and NOW LOOK WHERE THEY ARE, 2 RELEASES A YEAR, PROLLY THE BEST CURRENT FRONTAL TOP BEZEL SOLUTION, MOSTLY BEAUTIFUL DEVICES WITH ALL THE COOLNESS WE ARE LOOKING FOR IN A SMARTPHONE YET ..... AT A SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER PRICE, SIGNIFICANTLY MORE RAM, EXPANDABLE STORAGE (??) .... IMHO, ONEPLUS has finally, truly earned the "Flagship Killer" moniker from the not so clear flagship killer OP-1 they'd have you believe back then.
..... I hope that helps instead of hinders .... If so, by all means, disregard & Happy hunting.

I was looking at the 3, but now thinking 2XL when they go on fire sale. Price on the 3 and 3XL is just crazy.

That's a tough call, I am generally a pixel guy, with the freedom of knowing it will be updated monthly and get the quickest platform updates. The 6t looks promising and has a robust dev community from what I can see. I am rocking the pixel 2 (not xl) and the pixel 3 is not super exciting for me. I would go with 6t but I am on fi. Doubt 6t is will be on fi or we would hAve probably heard about it by now. I think the pixel 2/XL are damn good phones and worth picking up on the cheap.

I know it's not on your list and not too high on the media's radar, but the Razor Phone 2 should maybe be another to consider.
- Nexus 6 screen ratio (16:9) which I prefer
- 120hz panel for silky smooth interface
- front facing speakers
- large 4,000 MAH battery
- SD 845 with Adreno 630 GPU
- in place thermal reduction copper plate that acts as a heat sink that is almost the size of the phone.
- 8GB of DDR4 RAM
- no headphone jack, but quality dolby dts DAC
- expandable storage up to 1TB
- hopefully great cameras with new Sony hardware. (Wide angle lens on the 2nd camera)
- wireless fast charging
- QCOM QC 4+
- Treble support
Myself, I'm in no hurry to leave shamu. Running AOSiP 8.1 and getting around 4-5 SOT. This phone, minus the headphone jack, is the only phone to truly provide an actual upgrade to our phone. Plus having expandable storage is awesome. Hopefully the initial impressions and community develops since it has treble support.

I am in the same boat, however I am not beholden to a flagship phone or major company name. If it has everything I need ( everything my shamu has) or more I dont care who makes it..I know there are phones out there every bit as good as the flagships for a lot less money but Ive been a bit out of the loop and not sure what to look at. That being said if the flags are the way to go this time I can do that too. I am on Tmo. I do take my phone mountain biking with me so I think anything bigger than me N6 would be a no. Any recommendations guys?

That sounds really nice. I'll have to look into that one. Would like to get my wife a phone that'll keep up with her for a good while.
wavedashdoc said:
I know it's not on your list and not too high on the media's radar, but the Razor Phone 2 should maybe be another to consider.
- Nexus 6 screen ratio (16:9) which I prefer
- 120hz panel for silky smooth interface
- front facing speakers
- large 4,000 MAH battery
- SD 845 with Adreno 630 GPU
- in place thermal reduction copper plate that acts as a heat sink that is almost the size of the phone.
- 8GB of DDR4 RAM
- no headphone jack, but quality dolby dts DAC
- expandable storage up to 1TB
- hopefully great cameras with new Sony hardware. (Wide angle lens on the 2nd camera)
- wireless fast charging
- QCOM QC 4+
- Treble support
Myself, I'm in no hurry to leave shamu. Running AOSiP 8.1 and getting around 4-5 SOT. This phone, minus the headphone jack, is the only phone to truly provide an actual upgrade to our phone. Plus having expandable storage is awesome. Hopefully the initial impressions and community develops since it has treble support.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

huawei mate 20 X

def1003 said:
huawei mate 20 X
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not bootloader unlockable.
"find somebody that you think is undeserving of your compassion and give it to them" - Christian Picciolini

ktmom said:
Not bootloader unlockable.
"find somebody that you think is undeserving of your compassion and give it to them" - Christian Picciolini
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
not determined yet from what ive found

Some Guys 24-Hour Review: Nokia 9 Pureview

PURPOSE
So 1st and foremost, the plan here is to give you my first 24-Hours experience with the Nokia 9 PureView compared to some other recent flagship phones I have tried. Granted, I have only used the Nokia 9 for about 24-Hours now and can say I have yet to fully break it in to find everything that may or may not be right / wrong with it. However, this will be a unbiased look and comparison. I'm neither a fanboy or sheep. No brand affiliation. Not a programmer either, just a pro-sumer Senior Member of XDA willing to get trolled, flamed, etc. for sharing a look at this phone. Hopefully, I can give "the everyday guy / gal look" without getting bogged down in stats, variables or benchmarks. Here goes...
MY BACKGROUND
No one special. Just a guy that likes the latest tech... phones being at the top of the list. I am a nerd. No doubt about that. I think anyone that knows about XDA probably is to some extent. No brand loyalty. I have had the privilege to try out the following phones:
1. Samsung S10 128GB / 8GB
2. Google Pixel 3 XL
3. Xiaomi Mi 9 Global Version 64GB / 6GB
4. iPhone XS Max
5. Xiaomi Mi 8 Pro Transparent Global
And probably some more, but these are the most recent. Does that make me qualified to make a review... Maybe. It does make me an idiot that likes new phones, though. I am always looking for something that meets my needs but also is a good phone. Currently with TMobile but have been with ATT, Verizon & Sprint at some point 20 years of using cell phones.
MY NEEDS
I drive about 45 miles each way everyday to work (yes, my work week is currently 7 days a week with a few occasional days off). So, with this in mind and where I drive. I need the minimum requirements:
1. Can Stream Music
2. Android Auto / Apple CarPlay Compatible w/ My 2018 Honda
3. An equalizer of some sort since I have only switch out my new cars speakers for better ones and don't plan on changing or adding a better sound system.
4. Decent pictures when needed
5. Relatively not laggy - will sometimes do some ROM-ing or some customization but since I tend to get rid of the phones quickly I try not to void warranties or make it too non-stock
THE COMPARISON
I am looking at my experience with the Nokia 9 and the other flagships under/around these requirements and some normal stuff like battery, screen, snappiness, camera & software. Here goes:
BATTERY
This has been a hot topic as of late as the larger phones continue to dominate this field (duh... larger phone mean more room for larger battery), however 3340 - 3800 mAh batteries seemed to be the "standard" for phones the size of the Nokia 9. During setup, from 100%, I tortured it setting up all my apps from scratch while on AC-wireless connection... then after all the app downloading, logging apps in and setting up further. I would say a good 5 to 6 hours of heavy use on Wifi drained it to 56% battery... decent performance given the amount of hammering on it I was doing. If normal day away from home is 12 hours with normal use, I feel it goes the distance... Is it a battery champ like the iPhone XS Max, no. Is it one of the better phones in its group like the S10 and Xiaomi Mi 9... you bet. I feel Android One has everything to do with it... More on Android One later.
SCREEN
At a 5.99" OLED at 18:9 aspect, I do feel that the forehead and chin on the phone is a little circa 2017 - 2018. With that said, I do feel it is more pleasant than "Mein Fuhrer" mustache going on with the Pixel XL 3... so much so I had to toggle no notchiness in the developer settings. The "Little Mac" swing and a miss punch out on the Samsung S10 is definitely not my cup of tea ... I found it annoying for one and the fact that they have graphics to swirl around it to make that much more noticeable is even more unsettling. As for the actual screen itself, the colors, brightness and clarity is awesome albeit small especially if you toggle down the screen size in settings... with that, it is a little difficult to manage photos properly with the size of screen. Not impossible but it can try your patience... but the screen itself is definitely better than the Xiaomi Phones and the Pixel 3 XL... the S10 still has the nicest screen but Samsung is getting me annoyed with the continue elongation of the phone... soon it will have a 76:5 aspect ratio... and will look like a Hershey Bar... btw Samsung, don't take design cues from a candy bar company... just sayin'
THE FINGERPRINT SCANNER
Probably the most controversial item on the Nokia 9. Yes it is not great.... I would place it below the scanner in the S10 & Xiaomi Mi 9 but better than the Mi 8.... Pixel 3 XL , you don't count with your don't rock the boat rear sensor... which of course is super fast. Honestly, this tech is not ready for prime time on any of these phones. The S10 comes with a plastic screen protector that makes it hard at first to register the scanner. I felt like I pressing my finger through the display. It did start working decently at about a 90% success rate, after programming fingers a few different time. The Nokia 9 is definitely 75% at best with just one scan of each of my thumbs... as mentioned in different threads, going to add a second scan of each thumb to see of that improves... I feel though that Nokia HMD will patch it to make it slightly better. With facial recognition available, although not as secure, helps for getting into the phone and really the finger print is only needed for the different apps requiring. There's a learning curve for sure to get it to work well but the same goes for the S10... Definitely, not the "deal breaker" everyone's trying to paint... it's the price of new technology
SOFTWARE
Android One to me, besides the Pixel 3 XL and the iPhone XS Max, is in a class of android that Samsung and Xiaomi can't touch. Vanilla Stock Android (for the most part) is a breath of fresh air. Everyone is creaming in their pants that One UI is so much better TouchWiz for Samsung. When your yardstick is the garbage that was TouchJizz, saying One UI is better without qualifying it further is not a great state of affairs. I personally did not find it "that much better" and was immediately looking to replace the launcher with the pixel launcher or similar iteration immediately. I feel as soon as they take away the google assistant screen to the left on the homepage, its a failure... that's of course is a personal preference. Bixby blows... kill him/her off Samsung... and have Bixby take Siri with them... Google Assistant, the swipe left news screen should NEVER be removed... if it happens, then google and android lose a customer for life... just saying... can't wait for timely security updates that will never come to Samsung. Xiaomi on their own do a great job to update. not much to say about their interface other than like most Xiaomi phones... notifications can sometimes be a pain to get to work right due to aggressive battery savings. Xiaomi also does not have the assistant screen to the left :crying: replaced easily with pixel launcher... the S10 was not as easy... could not just use pixel launcher from apkmirror and had to buy action launcher to mimic. The experience of as close to vanilla android on the pixel 3 xl and the nokia 9 just can't be touched. The 6GB phone rocking the 845 performs IMO better than the 855 8GB S10. Even the Xiaomi Mi 9 feels faster than the S10, 845 or 855.
CAMERA
Ok, camera... or as you all know cameras when speaking about any of these phones except you, you "one-eyed monster" pixel 3 xl. Although I haven't put it through the regiment of use cases, The Pentacular camera explosion that is the Nokia 9 is something I'm digging. If your looking for a point and shoot and send master class phone, get the iPhone 8 XS Max, Google Pixel 3 XL or the Xiaomi Mi 9 in that order. For me, Samsung always supposedly has good cameras in their phones but being a person that went to photography school, shot professionally and still cares about the pictures they take... the software non-sense that the S10 does with pixel smoothing, HDR, etc., etc. makes everything no genuine. The other phones too suffer from this at times as well. Don't get me wrong... Night Shot on the Pixel 3 XL is a feet of software magic... quite frankly, google needs to share this tech with other OEMs to make the sustainability of Android that much better. But if your looking for a genuine picture with great image detail and the ability to adjust in-box, the Nokia 9 excels. Yes, you pay for it in processing time. Are you going to want to take this phone to Monaco to caught a F1 car in motion... hell no, but if you want on par caliber shots with a DSLR with RAW Images on outdoor, standard to semi-low light situations... I don't believe there's a camera that compares... for the price... and that leads to...
VALUE FOR YOUR DOLLAR
Although not the cheapest phone, at $600 USD (pre-sale pricing, $700 now), you get a lot of phone for the dollar. The only better value is you just want to go the point, shoot and send route is the Xiaomi Mi 9 at about $530 USD. As always, Samsung at over $800 is not worth it. Not worth it for camera, not worth it for software, design, etc. Samsung Pay to me is the only thing Samsung uniquely has that I wish every phone did. The Pixel 3 XL which I was able to get around $550 was a good value too, but is barely worth it north of $600 buying new. Yes it has the best single shooting camera of practically any phone in its class, but I feel it doesn't run as smoothly as the Nokia 9 with the extra 2GB RAM increase. Of course, Apple cost to value is in a different class... yes the phone is $1100... but you'll also be able to probably sell it in 2 years for $600 as well. Try that with an android phone and you'll get laughed at that it retains 60% value after 2 years. The Nokia 9 packs the right amount of stuff to make it a great value IMO. It would be a slam dunk of course if it had a SD 855 as opposed to 845 but it would be probably $100 more expensive without adding much value. Android One is wonderful and a great choice. Wireless charging (OnePlus, you can't add wireless charging, are you just dumb or what at this point?) The 5 cameras is a great gimmick and works as advertised. Everyone expecting the world out of a $600 phone... it has a better camera then phones $200 - $500 more than what it costs. Can you shoot in a pitch black room... no? Why are you? You creep... you spying on me... it is a little weird
OVERALL
The Nokia 9 is not the phone for everyone. It's the phone for a person that want great value in a phone capable of taking amazingly detailed photos in its price category. Can you point, shoot, send... sometimes. Does the fingerprint reader work ok? Sometimes. Is it a phone pushing some new hardware envelopes in a cost affordable package? Always! The fingerprint reader hate is just that... hate without a 100% justification. Is it an annoyance, it can be... does it overshadow the value of this phone for those of us wanting more from their phone cameras, absolutely not. It is also by no means cutting edge on design... but it doesn't have to be sporting 5 cameras... chins and foreheads are nice when done tastefully (look at Angelina Jolie... maybe not 2019 Angelina maybe circa 2005 Angelina :highfive: ) It not an ugly phone is all I'm saying. Can the big boys in the cell phone game learn something from the once dominate Nokia (actually HMD) is that innovation is needed to remain relevant... think if Apple put 5 cameras on its next phone (would never happen) but what if it did. They'd be like "The Job-biness is Back at Apple" "Apple, the innovators again" and a multitude of other stupid headlines. Lets face it, this phone has a gimmick, a fairly great one but gimmick nonetheless. Will it catch on? Is it years ahead of its time? It just maybe. As always, this is just Some Guys 24-hour Opinion....... :good:

Great first 24 hour impressions

Camera question
Thanks for the review, mine arrives March 18 and looking forward to the camera. The processing time has been mentioned all over the place but I am still unclear as to whether the processing time prevents you from taking the next shot. For example, I would most likely always shoot raw with the full depth turned on. I am more interested in being able to take the next exposure quickly than looking at the last shot on the phone's screen. So, wondering how quickly one can take the next shot.
Thanks!

jhw61032 said:
Thanks for the review, mine arrives March 18 and looking forward to the camera. The processing time has been mentioned all over the place but I am still unclear as to whether the processing time prevents you from taking the next shot. For example, I would most likely always shoot raw with the full depth turned on. I am more interested in being able to take the next exposure quickly than looking at the last shot on the phone's screen. So, wondering how quickly one can take the next shot.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From experience it doesn't keep you from taking the next shot... I haven't done it with say more than 2 or 3 shots though... don't know how far it will let you go and tell you it can't process anymore. The processing is not unbearable either.... its just kids nowadays, if it isn't ready in 1.5 seconds, time to troll Nokia on a phone that is at least trying to change things up.... :victory:

is it still worth to buy in Sept./Oct. 2020?

I am looking for new phone from past 4 days and I am not able to find better option than this K20 Pro, due to sd855 present in it. For the price it's available right now I couldn't find another. My main priorities are:-
1) it should handle game fluently
2)good rear cameras (not for printing photos but uploading on instagram)
3)have a good community for custom rom development (this phone have that)
4)have decent battery backup as i am not going to game whole day but yeah approx. 2hrs game session
5)last but very important for me a HEADPHONE jack is a must thing.
I wanna ask is that, is it worth to buy this phone even when its 1year old. Also, I wanna know if there is an alternative to this phone or should I go with it without having any thought.
Earlier I considered realme x3 pro(due to sd855+ but there was no headphone jack, no custom roms) and ONeplus nord( i think it's overpriced and without headphone jack).
I am gonna use new phone for atleast 2yrs, so what are your thought about this phone? is it worth to buy or to wait to for another flagship killer(which is very hard to see in near future)?

prakharayush31 said:
I am looking for new phone from past 4 days and I am not able to find better option than this K20 Pro, due to sd855 present in it. For the price it's available right now I couldn't find another. My main priorities are:-
1) it should handle game fluently
2)good rear cameras (not for printing photos but uploading on instagram)
3)have a good community for custom rom development (this phone have that)
4)have decent battery backup as i am not going to game whole day but yeah approx. 2hrs game session
5)last but very important for me a HEADPHONE jack is a must thing.
I wanna ask is that, is it worth to buy this phone even when its 1year old. Also, I wanna know if there is an alternative to this phone or should I go with it without having any thought.
Earlier I considered realme x3 pro(due to sd855+ but there was no headphone jack, no custom roms) and ONeplus nord( i think it's overpriced and without headphone jack).
I am gonna use new phone for atleast 2yrs, so what are your thought about this phone? is it worth to buy or to wait to for another flagship killer(which is very hard to see in near future)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't think too much now, go for it. I had similar questions before buy it, but for me they were: no notch, fm radio, jack, custom roms, a fair battery (4000 is the minimum). I didn't care too much about the cpu but this one is a beast. The cameras are just fine since I'm not a photographer. The only con for me is not having an external sd card. The biggest pro for me is not having to look at a f#cking hole or notch. We already have an aosp 11 rom if you need it & we'll probably have some more android os versions. This phone is worth to buy & if you ask, I would bought it again without think twice.

I kind of regret it. There's noting really wrong with the phone, it just leaves a lot to be desired.
-The screen is very small and narrow & the bezel is quite large for a modern phone.
-Battery life is pretty good, but not great.
-The screen quality/resolution is not good. I find it quite distracting, although you get used to it somewhat.
-The back camera is not good compared to other devices.
-There might be no more support for Xiaomi. Meaning we may never get Android 11 for the device. As we've technically had our 2 updates. Which is pretty bs.
The screen size of the Pocofone F2 or the Mi 10 Ultra is where I'd probably put my money.

Turbine1991 said:
I kind of regret it. There's noting really wrong with the phone, it just leaves a lot to be desired.
-The screen is very small and narrow & the bezel is quite large for a modern phone.
-Battery life is pretty good, but not great.
-The screen quality/resolution is not good. I find it quite distracting, although you get used to it somewhat.
-The back camera is not good compared to other devices.
-There might be no more support for Xiaomi. Meaning we may never get Android 11 for the device. As we've technically had our 2 updates. Which is pretty bs.
The screen size of the Pocofone F2 or the Mi 10 Ultra is where I'd probably put my money.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First time I've heard of a 6.4" screen described as too small???
The aspect ratio is identical to almost all current phones, so it's certainly not narrow compared to anything else. The resolution of FHD+ is absolutely fine. The human eye cannot distinguish higher resolutions, at typical reading distances. This is why going to QHD is pointless and a waste of money.
Currently almost all phones with the SD865 and SD865+ have jumped in price by quite a margin over the previous SD855 phones. So this phone still represents very good value for money. It's certainly better value than the current SD7xx midrange phones, that are similar in price.
However the K30 Pro/POCO F2 Pro came with only a reasonably small increase in price, so is not much more expensive and is probably the best value SD865 phone currently available. This would be my choice if I was buying a 'budget flagship' today. If this is stretching the budget too much, then this (K20 Pro/Mi 9T Pro) phone is definitely still worth buying.

Turbine1991 said:
I kind of regret it. There's noting really wrong with the phone, it just leaves a lot to be desired.
-The screen is very small and narrow & the bezel is quite large for a modern phone.
-Battery life is pretty good, but not great.
-The screen quality/resolution is not good. I find it quite distracting, although you get used to it somewhat.
-The back camera is not good compared to other devices.
-There might be no more support for Xiaomi. Meaning we may never get Android 11 for the device. As we've technically had our 2 updates. Which is pretty bs.
The screen size of the Pocofone F2 or the Mi 10 Ultra is where I'd probably put my money.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry to sound rude, but what the f*** are you talking about?? small screen??? quality not good??? Bro its 6.4" 1080p Super AMOLED panel! And android 11 is confirmed for this phone and we got 1 update to android 10 not 2. Do you even know what you are talking about??
I would absolutely recommend buying this phone.

bilal.fanatic said:
Sorry to sound rude, but what the f*** are you talking about?? small screen??? quality not good??? Bro its 6.4" 1080p Super AMOLED panel! And android 11 is confirmed for this phone and we got 1 update to android 10 not 2. Do you even know what you are talking about??
I would absolutely recommend buying this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
++

Robbo.5000 said:
First time I've heard of a 6.4" screen described as too small???
The aspect ratio is identical to almost all current phones, so it's certainly not narrow compared to anything else. The resolution of FHD+ is absolutely fine. The human eye cannot distinguish higher resolutions, at typical reading distances. This is why going to QHD is pointless and a waste of money.
Currently almost all phones with the SD865 and SD865+ have jumped in price by quite a margin over the previous SD855 phones. So this phone still represents very good value for money. It's certainly better value than the current SD7xx midrange phones, that are similar in price.
However the K30 Pro/POCO F2 Pro came with only a reasonably small increase in price, so is not much more expensive and is probably the best value SD865 phone currently available. This would be my choice if I was buying a 'budget flagship' today. If this is stretching the budget too much, then this (K20 Pro/Mi 9T Pro) phone is definitely still worth buying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes dude I agree with you K30 Pro came with reasonably small price increase, but it's not available in India. If it was launched here I would definitely go for K30 Pro, that is why I was considering this K20 Pro. Well thanks for the help bro I got my answer. Going to get this phone on upcoming sales with exchange and bank offers.

bilal.fanatic said:
Sorry to sound rude, but what the f*** are you talking about?? small screen??? quality not good??? Bro its 6.4" 1080p Super AMOLED panel! And android 11 is confirmed for this phone and we got 1 update to android 10 not 2. Do you even know what you are talking about??
I would absolutely recommend buying this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah 6.4 is sufficient for me, and now I have decided, I am gonna buy this phone in exchange of my very old Moto G turbo. Thanks a lot bro for giving advice about this device

Turbine1991 said:
I kind of regret it. There's noting really wrong with the phone, it just leaves a lot to be desired.
-The screen is very small and narrow & the bezel is quite large for a modern phone.
-Battery life is pretty good, but not great.
-The screen quality/resolution is not good. I find it quite distracting, although you get used to it somewhat.
-The back camera is not good compared to other devices.
-There might be no more support for Xiaomi. Meaning we may never get Android 11 for the device. As we've technically had our 2 updates. Which is pretty bs.
The screen size of the Pocofone F2 or the Mi 10 Ultra is where I'd probably put my money.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
worth considering you points bro that you told, but I think it's gonna a huge upgrade for me as I will be switching from my Samsung Galaxy S7. May be screen quality will not be that good compared to samsung, but I currently I use my device on 720p to reduce battery drain.:good:
bro can you tell how are the pictures captured with google camera mod is? (compared to stock camera)

mauam said:
Don't think too much now, go for it. I had similar questions before buy it, but for me they were: no notch, fm radio, jack, custom roms, a fair battery (4000 is the minimum). I didn't care too much about the cpu but this one is a beast. The cameras are just fine since I'm not a photographer. The only con for me is not having an external sd card. The biggest pro for me is not having to look at a f#cking hole or notch. We already have an aosp 11 rom if you need it & we'll probably have some more android os versions. This phone is worth to buy & if you ask, I would bought it again without think twice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks for the help bro.

Turbine1991 said:
I kind of regret it. There's noting really wrong with the phone, it just leaves a lot to be desired.
-The screen is very small and narrow & the bezel is quite large for a modern phone.
-Battery life is pretty good, but not great.
-The screen quality/resolution is not good. I find it quite distracting, although you get used to it somewhat.
-The back camera is not good compared to other devices.
-There might be no more support for Xiaomi. Meaning we may never get Android 11 for the device. As we've technically had our 2 updates. Which is pretty bs.
The screen size of the Pocofone F2 or the Mi 10 Ultra is where I'd probably put my money.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What you are talking about are phones from 2025. The K20P/Mi 9T Pro is an amazing phone. The screen is actually quite large, but not oversized (the phone's dimensions are about as equal to the OnePlus 3). The bezels are thin enough to not be annoying, but not too thin for you to accidentally press the screen while holding it (looking at you, Samsung phones with edge display. Even though there's a rejection algorithm in place to solve this).
The battery life is decent with 4Ah, but we already see that the next-gen phones have a capacity of 4.5Ah to 5Ah. 4Ah is still enough to last a day, the problem I face with MIUI is that idle drain is a lot.
The 1080x2340 screen is pretty good, especially in terms of PPI (I mean, you shouldn't complain if you compare this to your desktop monitor, laptop, or television). Color space is also pretty good with D3 color space when you use the "warm" preset.
The main rear camera is superior (IMX586) and gcam modders are busy with unlocking the full potential of the sensor by modifying the driver.
The only thing you are correct about is the support from Xiaomi (or should I say, Xiaomeme), with not only lack of updates, but lack of security updates. The latest MIUI 12 EEA v12.0.2.0 rom came with a 1-month outdated security patch. It's a shame to see that they simply don't care about their flagship phones, or they have too many devices and rom variants to maintain, so they rather focus on the China beta roms and push completed changes over to stable Global, EEA, CN, RU and IN.
If you have no issues with MIUI (MIUI 12 is actually pretty good, I prefer it over stock android, because of the split notifications), I'd suggest staying on it till Xiaomi decides to end the support and then switch to a custom rom.

Go for it, good phone overall no notch and cheap.