Another "I'm due an upgrade, what phone will I get" thread

nedd · 29-07-2013 3:28pm #1

So, this type of thread has been done to death... but I'm still going to start one.

I will be thinking of getting a new phone next month (August, maybe September) and I want peoples opinions what what is/will be available. I currently have a HTC One X so I will be looking for a top spec replacement.

Right now my options are:

HTC One
Samsung Galaxy S4
Sony Xperia Z
Nexus 4

We can ignore the Note 2 because I find phablets too big for me.

From what I know, coming down the line are the following:

Moto X (nice phone, from spec online it might not be a high end phone)
Nexus 5 ?? (maybe)
I think I heard of a HTC One Max which is going to be a phablet as well.

Am I missing any contenders? What do people think, should I wait till next year and get the newer generation of phones? Any opinions welcome.

listermint · 29-07-2013 3:29pm

HTC one,

just got one. Its awesome.

Thats about all the input i will give. Hate the S4 plastic feel and despise touch wiz.

nedd · 29-07-2013 4:15pm

Unless something remarkable is on the horizon in the coming months I will probably end up getting a HTC One. I'm on an 18 month contract so I would rather get something just released to get the best out of it. The One is out 4 months so will probably have to wait until April of next year for a new HTC

listermint · 29-07-2013 4:21pm

nedd wrote: »

Unless something remarkable is on the horizon in the coming months I will probably end up getting a HTC One. I'm on an 18 month contract so I would rather get something just released to get the best out of it. The One is out 4 months so will probably have to wait until April of next year for a new HTC

Well if im honest, the screen went on my SGN which i loved, it was a throw up between getting it fixed or upgrade. My plan was to wait out for a possible nexus 5. But I then got the HTC one into my hand, its very hard to see how its going to be possible to make a phone faster and nicer feeling than it.

Speed improvements will be negligible on newer models. might see some camera possibly battery improvements, but between this and my nexus im not seeing a huge leap bar the improvement on styling and feel.

Well the Beats seems to do a great job i have to say.

Id say take the plunge on the One as you will be waiting around for not alot more.

nedd · 29-07-2013 4:41pm

I have been doing a little googling now and there is not much better coming out alright.

I did come across a "HTC Butterfly S" which I hadn't heard about. seems to have a slightly bigger screen and faster processor than the One. I don't know what the story with it being released over here is though.

Mimikyu · 29-07-2013 8:11pm

This post has been deleted.

nedd · 29-07-2013 10:00pm

I rang o2 and convinced them to give me an upgrade.

Well probably get the HTC one. What are people's thoughts on the Xperia z?

listermint · 29-07-2013 10:04pm

nedd wrote: »

I rang o2 and convinced them to give me an upgrade.

Well probably get the HTC one. What are people's thoughts on the Xperia z?

Never a fan of Sonys having used two of the last experia models in work.

However it was a fleeting use of them, and given more time with them i might like it. I cant tell as with all phones i think you need a good days use of it to get a feel for it.

waynegalway · 29-07-2013 11:24pm

What about the LG G2 that's being announced soon? Not sure when it'll be available here, but I'm in the same boat about being due an upgrade and I'm going to hold fire til I know more about that phone.

ED E · 30-07-2013 6:33am

nedd wrote: »

What are people's thoughts on the Xperia z?

Great hardware crippled by terrible software, time and time again. They spend all their time coding for the new flagship thats coming out a month after the last and never bugfix properly.

Aaand, if you get it from a carrier the bootloader can NEVER be unlocked, so you cant ROM it properly.

Its a real shame, but I have to recommend the One. Especially with the low light performance on that camera.

Slutmonkey57b · 12-08-2013 10:56pm

waynegalway wrote: »

What about the LG G2 that's being announced soon? Not sure when it'll be available here, but I'm in the same boat about being due an upgrade and I'm going to hold fire til I know more about that phone.

I'm interested in that too, specifically the 3000mah battery. with panel self refresh it might finally give more than s day's battery life...

waynegalway · 19-08-2013 8:25pm

Looks like LG G2 isn't coming to Three any time soon. Nor is the moto x. So that only really leaves the S4, Xperia Z or the HTC One, I guess.
My S3 freezes quite a bit, but I'm putting that down to using a leaked version of 4.2.2 and hopefully going back to the latest stable firmware will solve it. If not, I'd be reluctant to stick with Samsung for my upgrade.

So that leaves the One or the Z.

Are these much of an "upgrade" from an S3, though? In real user terms?

Alpha Dog 1 · 19-08-2013 8:51pm

waynegalway wrote: »

Looks like LG G2 isn't coming to Three any time soon. Nor is the moto x. So that only really leaves the S4, Xperia Z or the HTC One, I guess.
My S3 freezes quite a bit, but I'm putting that down to using a leaked version of 4.2.2 and hopefully going back to the latest stable firmware will solve it. If not, I'd be reluctant to stick with Samsung for my upgrade.

So that leaves the One or the Z.

Are these much of an "upgrade" from an S3, though? In real user terms?

Wayne Galway, I moved from the s3 to the HTC one and would definitely recommend it. It's a much more premium phone.

waynegalway · 19-08-2013 8:59pm

Alpha Dog 1 wrote: »

Wayne Galway, I moved from the s3 to the HTC one and would definitely recommend it. It's a much more premium phone.

Cheers for that. How does battery life, ease of viewing in daylight and the camera compare to the S3?

I'm getting 24hrs battery on the S3, and I find the camera pretty good. Crap screen for viewing in daylight though. Also, removable battery and sd slot are handy, does One have these?

Alpha Dog 1 · 19-08-2013 10:11pm

waynegalway wrote: »

Cheers for that. How does battery life, ease of viewing in daylight and the camera compare to the S3?

I'm getting 24hrs battery on the S3, and I find the camera pretty good. Crap screen for viewing in daylight though. Also, removable battery and sd slot are handy, does One have these?

Battery life is slightly better imo, I miss not being able to swap out the battery but the improved performance means it's needed less.

No sd card either, but I cannot see why anyone would want more than 32 gb.

Screen is much better especially in sunlight. Camera is similar outdoors but the htc is much better indoors.

The best thing about the phone over the gs3 is the much much better sound, better screen, sense 5, and premium feel and design of the phone especially if you do not have a phone cover on.

Also having the phone for 4 months it has never stalled, switched off, froze, like my old s3 did.

S3 is still a very good phone, but if you are upgrading and want a change from Samsung then you cannot go wrong with the One.

Kenno90 · 20-08-2013 12:01pm

I've the S4 and i'm very happy with it, Now mind you its very customised as i hate touch wiz, so thats gone.

I use nova launcher to get a stock feel and will be flashing a stock ROM on it shortly, but i really like the phone. Its light and solid built (Yes that my opinion :eek:)

The One is a truly gorgeous phone, but i was thrown off the weight and the fact the the power button was at the top and hard for me to press.

Get either of these you'll be happy.

The Nexus 4 is fantastic though its getting old and i'd say wait for the nexus 5 if you want to go down that route.

I've not used the Sony Phone so i cant comment there.

and i've also heard that the Moto X is on sale in America only (Not impossible to get the phone just an FYI)

waynegalway · 20-08-2013 12:14pm

Kenno90 wrote: »

I've the S4 and i'm very happy with it, Now mind you its very customised as i hate touch wiz, so thats gone.

I use nova launcher to get a stock feel and will be flashing a stock ROM on it shortly, but i really like the phone. Its light and solid built (Yes that my opinion :eek:)

The One is a truly gorgeous phone, but i was thrown off the weight and the fact the the power button was at the top and hard for me to press.

Get either of these you'll be happy.

The Nexus 4 is fantastic though its getting old and i'd say wait for the nexus 5 if you want to go down that route.

I've not used the Sony Phone so i cant comment there.

and i've also heard that the Moto X is on sale in America only (Not impossible to get the phone just an FYI)

The thing putting me off the One is the lack of detail in the camera. I know it's supposed to be great in low light, but I've seen comparisons online between it and the S4, and the S4 camera is better in every way except for in low light.

Also, I like the idea of removable sd card. I use a Mac, and the only way I've been able to get media onto the S3 from it has been via card. I have a pc at work, so I guess I can use that for media transfer. 32gb should be fine, so maybe this issue isn't really a problem for me after all?

Removable battery is nice, too, but if the one in the One can go a full 24 hours, I don't see a need for a spare.

The form factor of the One is winning me over.

The Nexus 5 should be a cracking phone, but it'll probably be only available sim free and I don't have the cash flow to get an upgrade unless its part of a contract.

neacy69 · 20-08-2013 12:27pm

just upgrade from the galaxy nexus to the HTC one and I am very happy with it. I wasnt overly imporessed by the nexus 4 and couldnt wait for the nexus 5 and the styling and form of the HTC one just won me over in the end.

Kev. · 20-08-2013 2:30pm

Honestly the HTC one ...

I had an S3 before I got my HTC and I absolutely loved the SG3,I didn't mind the plastic feel or it crashing every so often,once I put Nova Launcher on it it was brilliant.or so I thought...

Forward 2 months that Ive had my HTC one and wow,its a beast.

Its never crashed on me,the screen is beautiful and it feels and looks superb...

At the start I missed my S3 and little things I got use to like the on off button etc but now I know what a real phone feels like and Ill probably stick with HTC for the foreseeable future.

The only bad thing about HTC is their slow release of firmware but honestly you never need an update because the phone is that good.
You wont need to flash this phone or add different firmware/roms.
The way I see it is HTC take their time releasing updates but they get it right and thats whats most important to me..

Go for it

Get the One...

CiDeRmAn · 20-08-2013 6:25pm

I'm in the same boat, looking at a new phone in September, if only the Galaxy Mega had better specs, bit otherwise I'm in the market for the S4.
Re the One, it looks great but I just detest the SenseUI, had it on the Desire a couple of years ago and it drove me mad.
I was always a fan of Samsung products, importing the most excellent U300, and the Soul a couple of years later.
The Xperia Z Ultra looks great but no sign of its release here.
Pity the Note 3 is a bit away yet, I just really wanted a phablet

waynegalway · 20-08-2013 6:56pm

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

I'm in the same boat, looking at a new phone in September, if only the Galaxy Mega had better specs, bit otherwise I'm in the market for the S4.
Re the One, it looks great but I just detest the SenseUI, had it on the Desire a couple of years ago and it drove me mad.
I was always a fan of Samsung products, importing the most excellent U300, and the Soul a couple of years later.
The Xperia Z Ultra looks great but no sign of its release here.
Pity the Note 3 is a bit away yet, I just really wanted a phablet

I'm in a slightly different boat, in that I'm not chasing screen size. I'd be tempted by a Note 2 or 3 at the right price, but more for the stylus function than purely for screen size.

Another "I'm due an upgrade, what phone will I get" thread

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