Happy New Year!

*Positive vibes rain down post*

This is a post for everyone buying an android device this year. It talks about new phones, midrange, and entry level. We having SOC talk and a buyer’s guide for my fellow fiscal conservatives.

One of the main trends this year is the hole punch. Last year everyone came with a notch and this year the hole punch comes next to last year’s notch trend.

Example:

https://cdn.gsmarena.com/imgroot/news/18/12/opinion-punch-hole-cameras/-728/gsmarena_004.jpg

Rumored devices (shortlist):

Galaxy S10 Lite, S10, S10+, S10 5G - February 20th or later launching by the end of Q2

LG G8, G8+ - LG release schedule is to be announced (tea)

Sony XZ4, XZ4 Compact, XZ4 Premium - TBA

One Plus 7, 7t - Possibly sometime in May with the 7t in November

Pocophone 2 - Possibly Q1 or Q2

P30 - Going off last year possibly April in the UK.

Huawei Honor 10 - Possibly in May in the UK

Pixel 4 - Sometime in October

SOC talk:

Nanometers are important because of power efficiency and device component fit i.e. less nm means more space for components.

S855 - 7nm flagship SOC typically found in devices $700 or higher (minus the pocophones of the world) Comes with vr support

S710 - 10nm upper midrange touching on flagship performance found in devices from 2018 as low as $465, no vr support for anything at this price point or lower. Expect $465 to $700 depending on OEM

S670+ - nm at this point doesn’t matter because its midrange. Expect performance higher than the S660 of last year. Expect $400 to $650 at most depending on OEM.

S439/450 - nm doesn’t matter because it’s low tier. Expect $100 to $250 Any SOC below this is entry level and you shouldn’t spend more than $100 on the device.

Questions you need to ask before you buy a smartphone:

Do you care about Android OS updates? If you care about os updates buy a current Pixel or Sony flagship..

Do you mainly care about hardware, don't like 2019 flagships, and could care less about OS updates? Go with an S9/S9+, LG G7, or LG V35/40

Do you care about mobile payments but don’t like using NFC, don’t care about OS updates? Go with any of the midrange Galaxy devices as far back as 2017 because of MST technology that emulates the magnetic stripe found in older cards.

Do you take extensive photos or make movies using your device? Go with the LG V35, 40, or Huawei P20 or higher

Buyer’s Advice:

Phones are getting expensive so be clear on exactly what you need and how long you’re going to keep this device.

You’re spending upwards of $800 off contract on a flagship unless you buy a Pocophone which gives you 25 percent of a flagship spec at $300 to $350 price.

Do you need 4K video?
Do you need an NPU on the device to assist with voice assistant and machine learning tasks?
Do you need VR?
Do you need a great dac for a audio playback?
Do you need IP68 dust and water resistance?
Do you need three cameras or more (two and higher on the back, one and higher on the front)
Do you need the military grade drop spec?
Do you need 128 gb, 256 gb or 512 gb of flash storage?
Do you care about large aspect ratios like 1 or in the rumored case of the xz4 2 ?

If the answer to these questions are no then save yourself $300 to $700 and buy a midrange device.

Counterpoint to this argument is anyone that uses a lot of apps may need something above 64 gb of flash storage and definitely about the 32 gb found in some midrange devices.

Honestly I’d look at the S845 devices from last year to save money if none of the flagship features are appealing but you feel the midrange is trash. Its not a generational leap from the S845 to S855 but spend your money however you want.

If you just need something to get by then grab a Moto E series for basic stuff, a G series if you want a higher spec and better camera (average at best), and a Z series if you want flagship performance and mods.

Xiaomi should release their Redmi series for midrange enthusiasts but the devices lack NFC. Counterpoint is they start around $165, $185..

Do you have small hands? Look online for a visual phone size comparison. An 1 ratio adds at least .4 to device length. That’s a big deal for someone with small hands that cares about one hand use. My advice is use the phone size comparison to get an idea of how these devices fit in your hand.

Dont buy refurbished because of possible performance issues, trash warranties, and terrible customer service support.

Look for reviews and pay attention to the android skin. If it looks trash don’t buy the device. Reviewers say if the skin is trash sometimes.

Happy hunting and post up your android phone purchases. I want to see what made the cut and what was trash.