Hi All,
I've been pretty determined to find the ideal android phone for myself. I have an iPhone 5s that I use for about a week then switch over to Android for a few months, then back to iPhone. So, over the last 6 months I've tried the following android phones:
Below, I will outline why I didn't keep that particular phone and discuss the pro's and con's.
Sony Xperia Z2 - This phone almost made the rotation, and to be honest, is probably the most well balanced phone among the bunch. The hardware is great: camera, battery, screen, waterproof, are all in line with the best. The software is ok and one of the better skinned versions out there. If you have some aversion to the M8, this would be my choice. The main reason I didn't keep it is I am fully annoyed with the doors covering the charger. Yes, I know there is a dock capability, but I didnt get it and I charge it too much during use for a dock to be all that useful. I hate having to pull open the door every time I want to charge. I'm a pretty heavy user, and charge the phone when I'm at my desk or in the car. So that's a lot of opening and closing the door. This is one of the main annoyances of being waterproof (Same issue with the S5).
Moto X - Love this phone. To be honest, I have bought and sold this phone 5 times. I keep going back to it. Love the active notifications and do miss them with the M8. The software is great due to the fact it's as close to stock as you'll find in a skinned version of Android. The primary reason I am not keeping it is the form factor and hardware. It's certainly fast enough, but the camera is just ok. Battery life is just ok. 4.7 inches just isnt quite big enough to be honest. For anyone that likes a smaller footprint or is switching from iPhone to Android, this would be my recommendation. I just like a bigger phone.
Galaxy S5 - This one for me comes down to software. I hate Touchwiz. Also, as mentioned with the Z2, the waterproofing is an issue for me. The camera is great and the software is snappy. If they did a GPE and made it not waterproof, this is the phone I would get. The size and form factor of this phone are pretty decent, however, it feels cheap and the plastic back is kind lame. Got rid of this phone after about a week of use.
Samsung Note 3 - There isnt much I like about this monster. Did I mention I hate touchwiz? For all the reasons I didn't like the S5, it is just as bad with the Note 3, sans the waterproof door. I guess I just don't like Samsung.
Nokia 1020 - Ok...I know it's a Windows phone, but this is a pretty amazing OS and hardware. I love so much about Windows Phone and honestly, if my life wasn't invested in Google, this would be my phone of choice. Amazing hardware, camera, screen, etc. Using Google, and the lack of maps, is a real problem for me. I use maps on a weekly basis. To check traffic, to find places, even to just get phone numbers. I really missed Google Maps. Gmail, calendar, Google Plus, all suffer on Windows OS. Nuff said.
OnePlus One - But for the pain in the arse invite system, this would be a definite contender. Oh, and the yellow band on the bottom was a deal killer for me. Got my invite and was pretty stoked to get it. Great form factor, amazing screen, good battery life and the back is so cool. The texture is like velvet, and is very nice in hand. For those that don't know about the yellow band on the bottom of the screen Google it. Needless to say, I couldn't get past it and don't have another invite. The lower quarter of the screen has a yellow tint to it. It's most noticeable when looking at a white screen. Instant pass for me. If I get another invite, I'll likely buy it again to see if they've address the yellow band. If not, I will return or sell it.
LG G3 - I really wanted to like this phone. The form factor is the best of all large phones. Nearly no bezel and feels great in hand. The screen is pretty nice and detail is amazing. Text kinda stunk for me and I am an avid reader on my phones. In low light, the black text looks washed out. The screen needs to be at near full brightness to see it. The OS is pretty lame, although I hear, better than the G2. I think the problem with this phone lies in the fact that the processor is a bit underpowered for the screen resolution. It was just laggy and sluggish. I just don't think QHD has been fully evolved. I think the G5 or the M9 will likely have perfected a QHD screen. This was a pretty quick pass for me, although, as I said, the form factor is far and away the best out there.
Oppo Find 7 - Nearly identical form factor to the Oneplus One, the Find 7 is a pretty cool phone. The quick charging is incredible. You can fully charge the phone in about 30 minutes from zero battery. The main downside to this phone is the ColorOS. Second worst to Touchwiz, I just couldnt get used to this OS skin. The QHD, like on the G3, just isnt ready for primetime. You need to turn up the brightness and honestly, I think the M8 has a better screen. Another quick pass for me.
HTC One M8 - I've bought and sold this phone 3 times. Why? The camera. I think this phone has the best hardware, best screen, best skinned version of Android. The CPU is snappy and the screen is amazing. The speakers and boomsound are incredible. I really do like Sense 6 (hated all previous sense skins) It's got great volume and the phone is the best phone to hold in your hand, the metal chassis is amazing. I get great battery life out of the m8. What I've finally learned about the M8 is the camera needs a little more attention than point and shoot. If you properly set up the camera and shot, you can get amazing shots with this camera.
As MKBHD said, the GPE version of the M8 is his go to phone. I personally have the Developer Edition of this phone and have rooted and put Mike1986's amazing stock ROM Android Revolution on it. With Xposed and some of the pretty cool tweaks, I have my version dialed in. I have pretty much rooted every phone I've ever owned for Android and yet, this is the one I will be sticking with. As mentioned in all of the phones above, most of my nit picks are on the hardware side, since I can just install a custom ROM if needed. The M8 is an amazing phone and with a little tweaking, is my daily driver until the M9 comes out or another phone maker decides to challenge this phone. Based on my experience this is what the perfect phone would look like:
The form factor of the LG G3, the screen, speakers, and metal material of the M8, the camera of the Nokia 1020, the rapid charging of the Oppo Find 7 and GPE for the software. If you can make a phone like that, you'd have a winner in my book.
I've been pretty determined to find the ideal android phone for myself. I have an iPhone 5s that I use for about a week then switch over to Android for a few months, then back to iPhone. So, over the last 6 months I've tried the following android phones:
- HTC One M8
- Sony Xperia Z2
- Moto X
- Galaxy S5
- Samsung Note 3
- Nokia 1020
- OnePlus One
- LG G3
- Oppo Find 7
Below, I will outline why I didn't keep that particular phone and discuss the pro's and con's.
Sony Xperia Z2 - This phone almost made the rotation, and to be honest, is probably the most well balanced phone among the bunch. The hardware is great: camera, battery, screen, waterproof, are all in line with the best. The software is ok and one of the better skinned versions out there. If you have some aversion to the M8, this would be my choice. The main reason I didn't keep it is I am fully annoyed with the doors covering the charger. Yes, I know there is a dock capability, but I didnt get it and I charge it too much during use for a dock to be all that useful. I hate having to pull open the door every time I want to charge. I'm a pretty heavy user, and charge the phone when I'm at my desk or in the car. So that's a lot of opening and closing the door. This is one of the main annoyances of being waterproof (Same issue with the S5).
Moto X - Love this phone. To be honest, I have bought and sold this phone 5 times. I keep going back to it. Love the active notifications and do miss them with the M8. The software is great due to the fact it's as close to stock as you'll find in a skinned version of Android. The primary reason I am not keeping it is the form factor and hardware. It's certainly fast enough, but the camera is just ok. Battery life is just ok. 4.7 inches just isnt quite big enough to be honest. For anyone that likes a smaller footprint or is switching from iPhone to Android, this would be my recommendation. I just like a bigger phone.
Galaxy S5 - This one for me comes down to software. I hate Touchwiz. Also, as mentioned with the Z2, the waterproofing is an issue for me. The camera is great and the software is snappy. If they did a GPE and made it not waterproof, this is the phone I would get. The size and form factor of this phone are pretty decent, however, it feels cheap and the plastic back is kind lame. Got rid of this phone after about a week of use.
Samsung Note 3 - There isnt much I like about this monster. Did I mention I hate touchwiz? For all the reasons I didn't like the S5, it is just as bad with the Note 3, sans the waterproof door. I guess I just don't like Samsung.
Nokia 1020 - Ok...I know it's a Windows phone, but this is a pretty amazing OS and hardware. I love so much about Windows Phone and honestly, if my life wasn't invested in Google, this would be my phone of choice. Amazing hardware, camera, screen, etc. Using Google, and the lack of maps, is a real problem for me. I use maps on a weekly basis. To check traffic, to find places, even to just get phone numbers. I really missed Google Maps. Gmail, calendar, Google Plus, all suffer on Windows OS. Nuff said.
OnePlus One - But for the pain in the arse invite system, this would be a definite contender. Oh, and the yellow band on the bottom was a deal killer for me. Got my invite and was pretty stoked to get it. Great form factor, amazing screen, good battery life and the back is so cool. The texture is like velvet, and is very nice in hand. For those that don't know about the yellow band on the bottom of the screen Google it. Needless to say, I couldn't get past it and don't have another invite. The lower quarter of the screen has a yellow tint to it. It's most noticeable when looking at a white screen. Instant pass for me. If I get another invite, I'll likely buy it again to see if they've address the yellow band. If not, I will return or sell it.
LG G3 - I really wanted to like this phone. The form factor is the best of all large phones. Nearly no bezel and feels great in hand. The screen is pretty nice and detail is amazing. Text kinda stunk for me and I am an avid reader on my phones. In low light, the black text looks washed out. The screen needs to be at near full brightness to see it. The OS is pretty lame, although I hear, better than the G2. I think the problem with this phone lies in the fact that the processor is a bit underpowered for the screen resolution. It was just laggy and sluggish. I just don't think QHD has been fully evolved. I think the G5 or the M9 will likely have perfected a QHD screen. This was a pretty quick pass for me, although, as I said, the form factor is far and away the best out there.
Oppo Find 7 - Nearly identical form factor to the Oneplus One, the Find 7 is a pretty cool phone. The quick charging is incredible. You can fully charge the phone in about 30 minutes from zero battery. The main downside to this phone is the ColorOS. Second worst to Touchwiz, I just couldnt get used to this OS skin. The QHD, like on the G3, just isnt ready for primetime. You need to turn up the brightness and honestly, I think the M8 has a better screen. Another quick pass for me.
HTC One M8 - I've bought and sold this phone 3 times. Why? The camera. I think this phone has the best hardware, best screen, best skinned version of Android. The CPU is snappy and the screen is amazing. The speakers and boomsound are incredible. I really do like Sense 6 (hated all previous sense skins) It's got great volume and the phone is the best phone to hold in your hand, the metal chassis is amazing. I get great battery life out of the m8. What I've finally learned about the M8 is the camera needs a little more attention than point and shoot. If you properly set up the camera and shot, you can get amazing shots with this camera.
As MKBHD said, the GPE version of the M8 is his go to phone. I personally have the Developer Edition of this phone and have rooted and put Mike1986's amazing stock ROM Android Revolution on it. With Xposed and some of the pretty cool tweaks, I have my version dialed in. I have pretty much rooted every phone I've ever owned for Android and yet, this is the one I will be sticking with. As mentioned in all of the phones above, most of my nit picks are on the hardware side, since I can just install a custom ROM if needed. The M8 is an amazing phone and with a little tweaking, is my daily driver until the M9 comes out or another phone maker decides to challenge this phone. Based on my experience this is what the perfect phone would look like:
The form factor of the LG G3, the screen, speakers, and metal material of the M8, the camera of the Nokia 1020, the rapid charging of the Oppo Find 7 and GPE for the software. If you can make a phone like that, you'd have a winner in my book.