New phone after nokia N8. What to get?

jimykx

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I hope I'm not posting this in the wrong place :-\!
Up until a few weeks ago I owned a Nokia N8 (Symbian OS)for about 4 years and I really loved it, It has been my all time favorite phone. Modern, really good looking (for my standards), fantastic camera :cool:(which was my favorite thing about it), sturdy and heavy, had never broken or gotten broken in all the years I owned it, not even the screen and I was always dropping it:-[. Besides that, It had a glass screen and not a plastic one (like many of the phones today) so it was super soft and responsive, and after all these years it barely wore out.

I already own different lenses for the camera, different tripods etc for the phone.. protection cases, underwater cases.. I loved that phone and all I would do with it. Problem is it got stolen, and that broke my heart :'( . But it was already getting old that It didn't have an Android OS and that was starting to limit me a little bit, maybe if it had Android I could have located it with the existing software for it. I was already researching but I disliked that many phones, even expensive ones have a plastic casing.. What? I know they are much lighter than my tough metalish nokia, but I'd really rather have a brick than have a plastic toy.. So I'm looking for a new phone within the price range of 100~400 euro that would have the following characteristics (by order of preference)

1- Great camera (Better than my old nokia N8)
2- Sturdy, resistant and glass screen (I will still buy a case for it, but I'm always dropping my phones so I wanted the phone and everything within itself to be resistant)
3- Android
4- Good looking (I thought of Samsung, but all samsungs look the same with their round edges, and I don't like those round edges . I loved my nokias because of their square style)
5- Pocket size - It can be bigger than my n8, but I don't want something as big as a samsung S5.. that's almost like a tablet IMO
6- Good phone for playing some modern 3d games on it, though this is not really required.

After my research I seem to like the Xperia Z. The leaked stuff about the Motox+1 is quite interesting, specially because it seems smaller than most modern great phones, but it doesn't seem to have such a great camera? not sure. Though the biggest problem I have with these phones... G3, S5, nexus 5... is that they are quite bigger than what I wanted them to be. (and more expensive). They are almost like small tablets. I wanted more of a pocket phone, like my N8 was. I'd rather have a smaller screen but have a smaller, more sturdy phone.
I really appreciate all of your help and time!
 

belodion

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My suggestion is Sony Xperia Z1 compact, which I think you will be able to buy within the price range you mention, though at the higher end of it.

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jimykx

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My suggestion is Sony Xperia Z1 compact, which I think you will be able to buy within the price range you mention, though at the higher end of it.

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Wow! Thanks a lot, I had not found that one and it seems indeed very interesting!
Though isn't the camera of the Z1 compact supposed to be the same as the xperia Z1? because this comparison website shows difference between both. Photo Compare Tool - GSMArena.com

You can notice it even more when you compare on the black and white photo, where the Z1 is sharper than the Z1 compact, and the 13mb of the G2 are way more sharp.

So I'm a little confused in between the Z1 and the G2 now
 

belodion

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If I remember rightly the Xperia Z1 Compact has the same camera as the Z1, a 20mp beauty with oversampling to produce an 8mp photo of very high quality. I once considered buying it myself, because photography is important for me as well. The one disadvantage is that it has a 720p display, but since that display is smaller than that of the bigger Z series phones with their 1080p displays, the display quality is still high.
The G2, though obviously of very high quality, would be bigger, and the camera not as good as the Z1 Compact. I think it would also cost more.
You may care to check out the Sony Xperia forums.
From personal experience I'd say, Take your time before making the final decision.

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belodion

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(I'm surprised by the findings in your link but I think the general consensus would be that the 20mp Xperia cameras are second only to the Nokia Lumia 1020 41mp camera.)

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tdk1988

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There is no other device which can replace the masterpiece such as Nokia N8 💪 xD . hey maybe 808 can be the right choice for you :D

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Mobile Nations mobile app
 

jimykx

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(I'm surprised by the findings in your link but I think the general consensus would be that the 20mp Xperia cameras are second only to the Nokia Lumia 1020 41mp camera.)

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After some research I found out that the comparison is using both phones automatic mode, and the Z1 shoots automatically at 8mp (if I'm not mistaken), so you have to crank up the settings to 20 if you actually want it to use all those pixels. That's why it looks like that. Because after looking at some other comparisons, the Z1 photos do look better.
The only problem right now I have with the Z1 compact is the protective cases. They all seem very "light", "slim" etc.. I want a PROTECTIVE case, I really don't care if it looks bad, or bulky. I want it to be protected, I don't mind if it will look like a tank, I just don't want it to break when it will fall from my hands as I know it will.
There isn't a lot of offer on cases for the Z1 compact and the one that seems better that I found out was the "Case-Mate Tough Case".
The LG G2 on the other hand seems to have many more offers for cases( including ones that seem very tough), as well as drop test videos with the cases on, actually showing some protection.

Crap, If I could find something like this: http://www.bestphonecasereview.com/sony-xperia-z1-ballistic-case/
For the Z1 compact, I would buy it right away
 

belodion

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Yes, that does look good. You haven't reached the desperate stage of considering adding your own armour
or protection to ordinary cases, then? It seems madness to me that cases offer no protection to the camera lens...it's easy to plant a fingerprint on the lens when pulling the phone out of your pocket, especially if you've just been eating a pie. At the moment I'm trying to add a sliding protector to cover the lens when not in use, but I think the end result will be laughable.

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belodion

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There is no other device which can replace the masterpiece such as Nokia N8 💪 xD . hey maybe 808 can be the right choice for you :D

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Mobile Nations mobile app

People speak highly of the 808, some saying its camera beats the Lumia 1020's. It was before my smartphone time unfortunately.

My latest phone has a case with an eyelet for attaching a lanyard. Anyone prepared to rope their phones to their neck or to a belt might care to consider this as an anti-drop measure.

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belodion

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Regarding your earlier post: if you're inclined towards the LG G2 and cost and size are okay for you, there's no doubt it's one of the best phones available, and some might still say THE best. That's another phone I was considering buying recently. In the end I decided to hang on till the G3 became available....both have 13mp cameras, though with some differences, and I can tell you from my limited use of it so far that G3 camera performance is impressive. So I think the G2 would be a very sound choice.

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jimykx

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There is no other device which can replace the masterpiece such as Nokia N8 ������ xD . hey maybe 808 can be the right choice for you :D

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Mobile Nations mobile app

There is absolutely no doubt my choice would be Nokia if they had Android OS.. I'm not too happy with windows mobile.
 

jimykx

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Regarding your earlier post: if you're inclined towards the LG G2 and cost and size are okay for you, there's no doubt it's one of the best phones available, and some might still say THE best. That's another phone I was considering buying recently. In the end I decided to hang on till the G3 became available....both have 13mp cameras, though with some differences, and I can tell you from my limited use of it so far that G3 camera performance is impressive. So I think the G2 would be a very sound choice.

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Yes, I do care about size and price indeed. The smaller size of the Z1 compact makes it a very interesting feature for me, specially because the smaller size seems (to me) to indicate somewhat of a stronger phone and a glass harder to shatter. You know how people say.. the bigger the thing, the bigger the fall?
The things bringing me to the LG G2 are the fact that since it seems a more common phone, used by more people which means I have better and good protective cases, and i can easier find spare parts in case I will need.. Like if I will shatter the glass and will need to change it or something..
 

belodion

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Yes, a large glass area is a bit worrying...I just hope I never accidentally apply bending pressure because I can imagine the glass breaking more readily on a large screen than on a smaller one.

Something that made me decide to avoid the large Xperia Z class, too expensive for me anyway really, was an account from a user whose Z2 screen suddenly shattered by itself....possibly due to the strong waterproofing adhesives under the glass slowly contracting and setting up stresses in the glass. A one-off perhaps, but you can never be sure. Of course the G2 doesn't have the waterproofing feature.

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jimykx

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Yes, a large glass area is a bit worrying...I just hope I never accidentally apply bending pressure because I can imagine the glass breaking more readily on a large screen than on a smaller one.

Something that made me decide to avoid the large Xperia Z class, too expensive for me anyway really, was an account from a user whose Z2 screen suddenly shattered by itself....possibly due to the strong waterproofing adhesives under the glass slowly contracting and setting up stresses in the glass. A one-off perhaps, but you can never be sure. Of course the G2 doesn't have the waterproofing feature.

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So, by lowering my budget to the maximun price of 300€ (or even 200€), what would be recommended? phone with a good camera?
 

belodion

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That's a tricky one. Most of the cheaper phones have less-than-excellent cameras. I'm assuming you'd want to buy new. I'll mention yet another phone I once considered buying, the Sony Xperia SP. You may care to check reviews. I believe that its 8mp camera is good but not outstanding. It's an excellent mid-range device...though quite large. You ought to be able to buy within your budget. I don't know what your country is, but here in UK, available from one high street retailer for under two hundred pounds (I had to write it thus to avoid a spam report).

You may care to consider the ageing, but still good, Samsung Galaxy S3, which I noticed today is available for a similar price. I know nothing about its camera but doubt that it would be anything less than good. Check reviews perhaps, but bear in mind it's not 4G-ready.

If anything more occurs to me I'll let you know.

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jimykx

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That's a tricky one. Most of the cheaper phones have less-than-excellent cameras. I'm assuming you'd want to buy new. I'll mention yet another phone I once considered buying, the Sony Xperia SP. You may care to check reviews. I believe that its 8mp camera is good but not outstanding. It's an excellent mid-range device...though quite large. You ought to be able to buy within your budget. I don't know what your country is, but here in UK, available from one high street retailer for under two hundred pounds (I had to write it thus to avoid a spam report).

You may care to consider the ageing, but still good, Samsung Galaxy S3, which I noticed today is available for a similar price. I know nothing about its camera but doubt that it would be anything less than good. Check reviews perhaps, but bear in mind it's not 4G-ready.

If anything more occurs to me I'll let you know.

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Well.. I believe I will just work for a few more days during the summer to be able to afford the pricey Z1 compact. I'm hoping it will be worth the investment as much as I loved and as much as my N8 lasted
 

belodion

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I was handling a demo model in a phone shop only yesterday and it really is a wonderfully compact little thing. Feels good in the hand. Try one in a store if you can.

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jimykx

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I was handling a demo model in a phone shop only yesterday and it really is a wonderfully compact little thing. Feels good in the hand. Try one in a store if you can.

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Yes, I'm planning to try one before I will buy :). Though I think it will be a problem to find a store where I can find one, cheap, AAnd fully unlocked. But I don't want to buy it through the internet as it mostly comes without warranty
 
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belodion

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I'm sorry, in an earlier post I suggested the Galaxy S3. I meant to say the Galaxy S3 Mini. That was in response to your post mentioning lower prices, and the Mini is quite cheap now. It's a Samsung so perhaps you don't like the styling, it's ageing, but you may care to look at reviews. I don't know anything about it myself.

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